In the final phase of the second Japanese invasion of Korea (Jeongyu Jaeran) in 1598, the Japanese general Konishi Yukinaga built a Japanese-style fortress (waeseong) on a low hill facing Gwangyang Bay and garrisoned his forces there. Allied Korean and Ming Chinese forces launched the Battle of Waegyoseong to capture it, but the fortress didn't fall easily. That winter, following the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi in Japan, Japanese forces across Korea began a general withdrawal — and Konishi's army, trapped at Suncheon, attempted to escape as well.
To block the Japanese fleet coming to rescue Konishi, an allied Korean-Ming fleet under Admiral Yi Sun-sin and Ming commander Chen Lin lay in ambush in the waters off Noryang. In the early hours of December 16, 1598, that ambush became the Battle of Noryang. The allied fleet dealt the Japanese navy a crushing defeat — but in the course of the battle, Admiral Yi Sun-sin was killed, bringing to an end the career of the commander who had led Korea's navy through both the 1592 and 1597 invasions. In the end, the core of the Japanese force managed to withdraw successfully, but this battle closed the final chapter of a war that had lasted seven years. Standing at the site of Suncheon Waeseong today, all you'll see is the quiet scenery of Gwangyang Bay — but it's hard to overlook that this is the spot that triggered the final battle of the most celebrated admiral in Korean history.