17세기 후반~18세기 초 호속목 혁파와 재정 운영의 변화

The Changed Ecological Environment and International Situation in the Late 18th Century and Early 19th Century of Korea : Focusing on the Abolition of the Tiger Skin Penalty in Joseon Dynasty

This study examines the abolition of the tiger skin penalty in 1724 (the 1st year of King Yeongjo) as the necessary and sufficient conditions for the abolition of the system were satisfied. It was possible from the reduced supply of tiger and leopard skins due to the change of ecological environment in the Korean Peninsula and East Asia, and the exemption of leopard skin tribute that Qing used to demanded. The tiger skin penalty system replaced the tributary payment of tiger skins, which was introduced under the pretext of removing harms for the people. Since the tiger skin penalty system was institutionalized officially, however, the opinions for its abolition and its maintenance confronted with each other. The debate over the abolition of the tiger skin penalty was resolved with the abolition of the system in 1724. With follow-up measures on the offering of tiger and leopard skins to the king, the system was abolished completely in 1728 (the 4th year of King Yeongjo). This abolition of the tiger skin penalty has as its background the change of ecological environment in international wars in East Asia. As the population of tigers and leopards diminished in the Korean Peninsula due to farmland reclamation and the tiger hunting policy promoted in the Joseon Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty stopped demanding Joseon to pay leopard skins as a tribute to the emperor. This allowed the Joseon government to carry out the abolition of the tiger skin penalty. According to the good cause of Neo-Confucianism as well, this measure would have practically helped petty peasants. After removing tiger skin penalty, the Joseon government maintained the system nominally by raising a fund for part of the price of tiger and leopard skins through Seonhyecheong (an office created to administer the Uniform Land Tax Law) and Hojo (Ministry of Taxation) and paying the fund to the king and others.