Changgyeonggung Palace
A royal residence beside Changdeokgung where Joseon domestic history shares the grounds with a surviving 1909 glasshouse from the palace’s colonial-era conversion into a public park
Royal-family history, palace architecture, the Grand Greenhouse, gardens and evening visits, especially for visitors interested in how heritage restoration chooses what to recover and what to retain
Honghwamun and Okcheongyo lead directly toward Myeongjeongjeon; smaller residential courts occupy the middle of the grounds, while Chundangji and the 1909 Grand Greenhouse sit farther inside the palace
Changgyeonggung carries an unusually visible scar from its twentieth-century transformation. The restored royal courts and the surviving Grand Greenhouse let visitors see both the palace that was recovered and one carefully preserved fragment of the park that displaced it
Character
The white iron-and-glass Grand Greenhouse stands beyond Changgyeonggung’s painted timber courts. Built in 1909 with the palace’s zoo and botanical garden, it survived the later restoration that removed most traces of Changgyeongwon and returned the grounds to a royal-palace setting
Royal family life shaped the older palace. Seongjong expanded an earlier residence in 1483 for three senior royal women, and Changgyeonggung remained closely tied to family life within the East Palace it shared with Changdeokgung. Bedrooms, living quarters and smaller courts sit close to the ceremonial halls
The experience
Honghwamun opens almost immediately onto Okcheongyo, the stone bridge over the palace watercourse, and then Myeongjeongjeon, Changgyeonggung’s main throne hall. The ceremonial axis is compact; behind and beside it, smaller residential courts tighten the scale before the grounds open around Chundangji
Beyond the residential core, the physical vocabulary changes. Enclosed timber courts give way to water, trees and the white iron-and-glass Grand Greenhouse. The building appears at the far side of a visit that began in Joseon ceremonial architecture, making the palace’s twentieth-century transformation visible through an abrupt change in material and setting
History
Sejong built Suganggung on this site in 1418 for the retired King Taejong. In 1483, King Seongjong enlarged it for Queen Jeonghui, Queen Sohye and Queen Ansun and renamed it Changgyeonggung. It formed the East Palace with Changdeokgung and served heavily as living space for the royal family
The palace burned during the Japanese invasions of 1592 and was rebuilt in 1616. Another major fire in 1830 destroyed much of the complex; reconstruction followed four years later. The surviving buildings carry several rebuilding periods across more than two centuries
Its sharpest break came after Emperor Sunjong’s accession. A zoo and botanical garden were established in 1909, and in 1911 the palace was renamed Changgyeongwon, a public park. The 1909 Grand Greenhouse was part of that transformation
A major restoration began in 1983. The zoo was moved, later park structures were removed, Chundangji was reshaped, and the original palace name was restored. The greenhouse, however, remained. Its survival means the visitor can stand inside a building created during the palace’s transformation into Changgyeongwon while walking through grounds later reconstructed to recover the royal setting
Before you go
Continue beyond Myeongjeongjeon. The palace’s historical argument only becomes clear when the royal courts, Chundangji and the Grand Greenhouse are seen together. Changgyeonggung also connects directly with Changdeokgung through Hamyangmun, but the two palaces have separate admission arrangements
- Hours
- The palace is open 09:00–21:00, with last admission at 20:00; Monday is the regular closure day
- Admission
- General adult admission is KRW 1,000