○ Gyeonggi Province, Seoul Metropolitan City and Goyang City are promoting the inscription of their Joseon Dynasty fortresses on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
– On December 8, the Cultural Heritage Administration set three fortifications—Hanyangdoseong, Bukhansanseong and Tangchundaeseong—as priorities for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
– More procedures remain, including the selection of candidates and finalists.

Gyeonggi Province, Seoul Metropolitan City and Goyang City are working to promote the inscription of the Hanyangdoseong, Bukhansanseong and Tangchundaeseong fortresses on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and have recently completed the first step.

On December 14, Gyeonggi Province announced that the Cultural Heritage Administration has included these three fortifications built during the Joseon Dynasty on the priority list for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The priority list identifies heritage sites that have been well-preserved and are strong candidates for designation as World Heritage Sites. The proposal must still go through a number of procedures, including the selection of candidates and finalists, before it is submitted to UNESCO.

Gyeonggi Province, Seoul Metropolitan City and Goyang City and the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation named the three fortresses for inclusion on the priority list. Hanyangdoseong Fortress, a.k.a. Seoul City Wall, is currently included on UNESCO’s World Heritage Tentative List.

The three local governments have been actively carrying out campaigns to promote the inscription of the fortresses on the World Heritage List. The most recent event was an academic symposium held on September 30 under the theme of “Capital Defense System and Military Heritage.’

The partnership has been focusing on proving the systematic and organized operation of fortresses during the 18th century Joseon Dynasty, as well as on undertaking joint studies on inscription, securing expert advice, benchmarking foreign cultural heritage sites, hosting global academic symposiums, and forming a related task force.

The three fortresses, completed in the 18th century to defend Hanyang, the capital city of the Joseon Dynasty, are acknowledged as outstanding examples of a capital defense system. Moreover, they exhibit a distinctive architectural style and comprise a coordinated defense system thanks to their interconnectedness.

A Gyeonggi provincial official said, “We will jointly pursue registration on the World Heritage List by strengthening the cooperative relationship between Gyeonggi Province, Seoul Metropolitan City and Goyang City, and shall form an integrated research group to promote such efforts in the future.”