Sueojangdae Command Post

A command post, called jangdae, is the center from which a military commander would direct soldiers during military drills and war. Namhansanseong Fortress had a total of five command posts, only one of which remains.

Sueojangdae Command Post was first built in 1624 as a single-story structure and was known as Seojangdae, meaning "Western Command Post," as it stood in the western part of the fortress. In 1751, the local magistrate Yi Gi-jin (1687-1755) rebuilt the command post as a two-story structure and renamed it Sueojangdae, meaning "Command Post of the Defense Commander." The command post was rebuilt again in 1836 by the local magistrate Bak Gi-su (1792-1847), who had his older brother Bak Ju-su calligraph the building's name plaque.

During the Joseon period (1392-1910), there were five military offices in charge of the defense of the royal capital. Among them was the Office of the Defense Commander. The headquarters of this office was originally located in today's Jongno-gu, Seoul, and its jurisdiction over Namhansanseong Fortress was exercised through the magistrate of Gwangju. However, in 1795, the headquarters of the Defense Command was relocated to Namhansanseong Fortress to improve its effectiveness. Since then, the magistrates of Gwangju also took on the duties of Defense Commander. Sueojangdae Command Post was designated as a Gyeonggi-do Tangible Cultural Heritage in 1972 and was designated as a Treasure in 2021. When Namhansanseong was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2014, this command post was also recognized for its outstanding universal value as an integral component of the fortress's military landscape.

Source: Korea Heritage Service signboard ↗ · collected 2026-10-08