Yi Sun-Shin Monument in Chantilly, Virginia

While not very well known in western culture, Admiral Yi Sun-Shin is a major figure in Korean and Asian history. Admiral Yi’s accomplishments on the battlefield, as a leader and a naval tactician, stymied Japanese efforts to invade Korea in the late 1500s and revolutionized maritime warfare. Admiral Yi was born in Seoul, Korea in 1545, to parents of modest means. While he was a good student, at the age of 22, Yi made the unexpected decision to pursue a military career. Initially, Yi studied horsemanship, archery, swordsmanship, and military tactics. At the age of 32, Yi passed the rigorous phy

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