Geoncheonggung Palace is on the north side of Hyangwonjeong Pavilion. It was the first electric lamp installed in the Joseon Dynasty and the residence of Emperor Gojong and Empress Myeongseong, who were the last emperor and empress of the Joseon Dynasty. Its name means “clear sky”. It gives a glimpse of the political relationship between the King, Queen Consort, and the King’s father.

Geoncheonggung Palace was built by Emperor Gojong in 1873. He built the building with the intention of ending the regency of his father and began participating in political affairs directly to own his rule over Joseon. It was built in the style of an upper-class Joseon house instead of the traditional palace style. It is believed that it was because Emperor Gojong missed his youth time and life when he had led outside the palace, the house he has lived in.

Unfortunately, a lamentable incident happened in Geoncheonggung Palace in 1895. The Japanese assassinated Empress Myeongseong at the Okhoru Pavilion inside the palace building. The incident is called the “Eulmi Incident” as it happened in the year of Eulmi. A group of Japanese warriors murdered the empress, burnt her body, and discarded her in a nearby forest. After several months of the incident, Emperor Gojong and his son took refuge at the Russian legation and never returned to the Gyeongbokgung Palace.

As the royal family had abandoned the Gyeongbokgung Palace, the Japanese had vandalized and ransacked it with impunity. Eventually, the Geoncheonggung Palace building was also demolished in 1909. The current building was newly built and restored in 2007.