Koryo

Korean kingdom ruled by a dynasty of the same name from 935 to 1392. During this period Korea began to form a distinctively Korean cultural tradition. The dynasty was formed by Gen. Wang Kon of Later Koguryo, who defeated the kingdoms of Silla and of Later Paekche to create a unified Korean peninsula in 936. In the late 10th century, a centralized bureaucratic system replaced the old aristocratic tribal system. The kingdom saw a flowering of the arts, particularly ceramics (Koryo celadon), and Buddhism and Confucianism were influential. In the 13th century Koryo endured a series of Mongol invasions, and in 1392 Yi Song-gye overthrew the shaky dynasty and founded the Choson dynasty.