Dutasanseong Fortress

Dutasanseong Fortress is a stone fortress located within the national tourist site Mureung Valley, also known as Dongseoksanseong Fortress. It is a site of resistance where local youths organized a righteous army to defeat Japanese forces, and the fortress ruins remain today, embodying the spirit of patriotism. It is said to have been first built in 102 AD (the 23rd year of King Pasa of Silla), and in 1414 (the 14th year of King Taejong of Joseon), Kim Maeng-gyun, who came as the magistrate of Samcheok, rebuilt the fortress to a height of 1.5m and a circumference of 2.5km. During the Japanese invasion of 1592 (the 25th year of King Seonjo), Japanese forces attacked this area, and many people took refuge in this fortress. At that time, our forces made scarecrows and lined them up on a 15-ri (approximately 5.9km) cliff from north to south to intimidate the enemy, causing the Japanese to abandon the attack and retreat toward Baekbokryeong. Later, an old woman doing laundry, as if reporting the fortress's situation, lured the Japanese forces along the path where our forces were ambushed, and the Japanese were deceived and annihilated.