Chorokbawi Martyrdom Site

History & origins

During the Byeongin Persecution of 1866, John Nam Jong-sam was martyred at Saenamteo. His father, Nam Sang-gyo, and his eldest son, Nam Myeong-hui, were then transferred to the provincial office in Gongju. Under the law of the time, a grandfather and grandson were not to be confined in the same prison, so fourteen-year-old Nam Myeong-hui was sent again, this time to the provincial office in Jeonju. Because faith had been passed down through generations in the family, the effects of persecution likewise extended far beyond one individual.

While imprisoned in Jeonju, Nam Myeong-hui's execution was postponed until he reached the age then regarded as adulthood. According to the Diocese of Jeonju, he was hanged at Green Rock the following year and his body was thrown into the Jeonjucheon River. A son of Hong Bong-ju, who had been martyred together with Nam Jong-sam, is also remembered as having been hanged here and cast into the water.

Green Rock consequently became a witness to the reality that state persecution extended even to minors and the children of martyrs. Nam Myeong-hui's family is remembered for producing martyrs across three generations. The significance of the present site lies not in recreating an execution ground but in preserving the actual riverside setting where visitors can remember their deaths and the faith of their families.