The purpose of this study is to review the research on Gangbang Palace and to presume the location of the palace through the study of feng shui. when the Mongols invaded, Ganghwado was the capital, moved from Gaegyeong and it was maintained for 39 years. At that time, the palace construction followed the palace of Gaegyeong, and the names such as Gujeong毬庭, Palace, and Sasa寺社were the same as those of Gaegyeong. However, despite several archaeological excavations at Goryeo Palace Site, Historic Site No. 133, no actual remains of the Goryeo period were found. After the negative opinions on the current Goryeo Palace site became public, there have been several previous studies on the estimation of the location of the Goryeo Palace Site, and although there have been achievements, the location of the Goryeo Palace is still not confirmed. The key to presuming the location of the GangdoPalace江都宮闕is first, whether the palace was located in the south of Songaksan, and second, at what point it was located in the south of Songaksan. As to whether the palace was located in the south of Songaksan, it was presumed that the Chiso治所of Ganghwabu was located in Gukhwari, referring to the record in 『Shinjeungdongguknyeojiseungnam新增東國輿地勝覽』that Goryeosan, a guardian mountain鎭山, was ‘five ri west of Bu府西五里’. Accordingly, the location of the palace of ‘Budongsimni 府東十里’ in the old literature was estimated to be south of Songaksan Mountain. Also, the location of the palace on the south side of Songaksan was approached from a feng shui theory. Three places for the palace to be located are presumed to be 'Ganghwa Girls' High School', 'Seonggwang Church', or ‘Above the Ganghwa-gun library’, and the central axis of the palace is estimated to be ‘Above the Ganghwa-gun library’ where the corridor-type building relics were found among them, and the other two areas were presumed to be other buildings within the palace.
This study examines the transitional situation that can be seen from the palace operation in early Joseon Dynasty. The first decades of Joseon after the nation was founded differ from the Joseon Dynasty as a whole, but rather similar with the Goryeo Dynasty. By examining “The History of Goryeo(高麗史),” it showed that palace operation during the Goryeo Dynasy was marked by the fact that a separate palace was built and resided in despite the existence of the Bongweol(本闕, main palace) as the central palace. The separation of the parent’s generation and the children’s generation was shown through the establishment of one’s own palace. Such trait of Goryeo affected palace construction directly after the founding of Joseon. This can be shown from the characteristic of palace operation by generation. The construction of the Changdeokgung Palace(昌德宮) of King Taejong, as his own palace, is an example. Afterwards, the palace system of Joseon was established, and the space of the king and the crown prince was merged through ritual reform during the reign of King Sejong. However, the space for the parents of the king were considered separate, and this influence continued to the reign of King Seongjong. The construction of Changgyeonggung Palace(昌慶宮) during the reign of King Seongjong is an event where the king proclaimed the separation with his mother and grandmother.
It could be said that the Kyongbok Palace, the main palace of the Chosun Dynasty which built in the early years of the Dynasty, had two main architectural characters. One ; the entire building complex was arranged under the influence of ancient Chinese building principle based on the Confucian ideas. Two ; building compositions and shape of each buildings were succeeded from the palace of the former Koryo Dynasty, especially on the latter periods of it. The architecture of the Kyongbok Palace had formed its own uniqueness by developing these two characters.