Gyeongju Government Office and Jail Shrine

History & origins

During the Eulhae Persecution of 1815, the Archdiocese of Daegu records that about forty Catholics suffered at the Gyeongju government office and prison, including Joseph Go Seong-un, Peter Go Seong-dae, Barbara Gu Seong-yeol, Francis Choe Bong-han, Andrew Seo Seok-bong, Agatha Magdalene Gim Yun-deok, and An Chi-ryong. This record shows that Gyeongju was not merely a transit point after arrest, but a place where believers were questioned about their faith before the local magistrate and subjected to punishment.

According to letters of Father Choe Yang-eop, ten Catholics were also confined in the Gyeongju prison during the Gyeongsin Persecution of 1860, undergoing interrogation and imprisonment. During the Byeongin Persecution of 1866, James Heo In-baek, Luke Gim Jong-ryun, and Peter Yi Yang-deung were interrogated and punished here before their martyrdom at Jangdaebeol in Ulsan, openly professing their Catholic faith. The repeated use of the same government office and prison to question and punish Catholics in different waves of persecution gives the site particular historical weight.

In 2014, a monument was erected at the former prison site within Gyeongju Fortress to commemorate the beatification of the 124 martyrs, and this marker now preserves the memory of persecution within the jurisdiction of Seonggeon Parish. Although the old administrative and prison functions have disappeared, the records of those who witnessed to their faith and the memorial marker continue to connect Gyeongju’s persecution history with present-day pilgrimage and veneration.