A Joseon Dynasty Official Who Prophesied Japan's Invasion and the Colonial Period

“The Imperial Family is a lineage without moral flaws, maintaining an unbroken line for ten thousand generations.
Who knows if those who scheme for power by using the Emperor as a tool
will appear once again?
If the Shogunate loses its strength and Japan falls into chaos,
cunning groups from the fringes will seize power by riding on the Emperor's coattails
and will seize the opportunity to come and plunder our land once more.”
- A record left by Won Jung-geo, a member of the 18th-century Joseon Tongsinsa (diplomatic mission), during a visit to Kyoto -
This is a record by Won Jung-geo, who visited Japan as part of the 18th-century Joseon Tongsinsa.
He left writings that objectively evaluated the Edo period, which had achieved dazzling development.
It is said that when he visited Kyoto, Shogunate officials avoided any mention of the Emperor,
and he could not even pass by the palace or see his face.
Observing the Emperor, who was confined to the palace and barely subsisting on a stipend,
he made the aforementioned prediction.
His prediction came true exactly about 90 years later,
when the fringe Satsuma and Choshu domains led the Meiji Restoration
under the pretext of Imperial rule.