Naval history of Korea

The naval history of Korea dates back thousands of years since the prehistoric times when simple fishing ships were used. Military naval history dates back to the Three Kingdoms period and Unified Silla dynasties of Korea in the 7th century. Because of the constant coastal attacks by the Wa Japanese and other barbarian tribes, Korean shipbuilding excelled to counter these threats as a result. During the Unified Silla period, Jang Bogo, a merchant, rose as an admiral and created the first maritime trading within East Asian countries. During the Goryeo dynasty, sturdy wooden ships were built and used to fight pirates. Korean shipbuilding again excelled during the Imjin war, when Admiral Yi defeated the advancing Japanese fleets. Today, South Korea is the world's largest shipbuilding nation and also the world's builder and exporter of ships. The South Korean Navy is concentrating its efforts to increasing its number, develop new ships, and become a blue-water navy by 2020. Ships were developed and used since the Three Kingdoms of Korea period. Because of the abundance of coastal waters surrounding the Korean peninsula, Koreans developed simple fishing ships to take advantage of the resources. Baekje, one of the kingdoms, first began expanding its navy and trading products by sea. Baekje also provided the link to spread Buddhism and Korean and Chinese culture to Japan. However, with the rise of Goguryeo's power and Gwanggeto the Great, Baekje's navy was soon defeated near the end of the 4th century Goguryeo also repelled numerous Chinese naval forces during its wars with China. During the Goguryeo-Sui Wars, Goguryeo defeated an invading Chinese fleet in 598, in the Bohai Sea. After the defeat of Goguryeo with an alliance with Tang China in 668, Silla unified the Korean peninsula. During this time, Korean culture and philosophy reached its height, and Unified Silla maintained a large trading network with both China and Japan. Silla, like previous Korean kingdoms, maintained powerful control over its trade routes and oceanic territory as Japanese and Chinese pirates began to harass trade routes over sea.