A Historian Reacts - ADMIRAL YI (Parts 1 & 2) by Extra History

See the original video here - • Korea: Admiral Yi - Ke...
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#History #Reaction

[@arc.7758]

I love a historian who says up front, “Hey I don’t know a lot about this topic”

[@Squillem]

gotta respect his honesty

[@2639theboss]

Thats....most historians man. You should expose yourself more to them. Most of them dont get in the field for money or fame (for very obvious reasons) so they usually are really passionate and genuine people.

[@jasonitaliano8631]

There is a lot of history. Can't be an expert on all eras and areas

[@mr.mangles8730]

​@@2639theboss yeah too bad alot of the greedy ones that spread misinformation are the most popular *cough* david irving *cough*

[@projectdaaltaran]

But gotta love when he says he doesn't know a lot about the topic then drops the guy's entire convoluted lineage. There've been a few where he's definitely a little too modest about his knowledge on the subject before blowing viewers away.

[@djsalad5752]

“To compare me to Admiral Nelson would be fair and accurate, but to compare me to Admiral Yi would be wrong, for Yi has no equal.” -Admiral Togo You know a man is badass when even legendary admirals look up to him with reverence.

[@bkjeong4302]

From the enemy side, no less.

[@peelslowly28]

@@bkjeong4302 The best learn from the best regardless of whose side they're on

[@TheMrEpiphany]

“It is always difficult for Englishmen to admit that Nelson ever had an equal in his profession, but if any man is entitled to be so regarded, it should be this great naval commander of Asiatic race who never knew defeat and died in the presence of the enemy" - George Ballard, vice-admiral of the Royal British Navy. When even Brits put aside their pride in their navy and one of their own, you know Yi Sun-Shin was truly a Maritime War God.

[@mahatmaniggandhi2898]

@@peelslowly28 nice pfp

[@painvillegaming4119]

@@TheMrEpiphany marine war god isn’t worthy of enough to be this man title

[@Krnballerzzz]

Admiral Yi in Korean society is a known name just like George Washington is known to Americans. Truly a badass man.

[@dashiellgillingham4579]

Yi deserves it. Even Washington lost sometimes, and spent most of his best-known campaign narrowly avoiding combat believing (probably correctly) that he would lose if it came to that. Yi just went out and f*cking won with tiny numbers against a vast enemy, inventing his way out of problems.

[@maximilianbeyer5642]

@@dashiellgillingham4579 Washingtons greatest achievement was keeping his army together while he was outgunned, unmanned, hopelessly undersupplied and couldn’t pay his troops. And pulling out of his lost battles with an intact army. That was the really impressive thing, rather than his actual skills as commander

[@dashiellgillingham4579]

@@maximilianbeyer5642 Oh yeah, I'm not docking points from Washington for that. It was impressive. I just find Yi even more impressive, because he had many of the same problems and more and was still an amazing commander on top of all that.

[@maximilianbeyer5642]

@@dashiellgillingham4579 absolutely agree

[@Quincy_Morris]

@@maximilianbeyer5642 Washington’s greatest achievement was refusing to be made king and insisting on a democratic republic as a system of government. King George said “if George Washington refuses to be made king then I guess he’s the greatest man in history.” He said this as a joke in passing because of how absurd an idea it was for Washington not to become king.

[@annika3265]

Admiral Yi's story sounds like the kind of thing Hollywood wishes they were creative enough to come up with.

[@raygiordano1045]

Old Clint Eastwood movies were a lot like Yi's history, but Hellyweird hasn't made a movie I wanted to watch since the late 1990's.

[@Bayard1503]

It's that type of story that if you make a movie... you need to cut some of the things to make it more believable for the audiences.

[@annika3265]

@@ab-hv8qs Well... Have you read Enders Game or One Punch Man? It's possible to make a interesting story with a character that always succeeds, it just depends on what you focus on.

[@hiroono1]

There is no record of the completion of a turtle ship, and there is no record of it ever fighting against the Japanese navy. Of the 13 ships that survived the Battle of Myeongliang, there were no turtle ships, and even if they sank somewhere, no wreckage has been found. The turtle ship is a lie fabricated by Koreans. The last time Yi Sun-shin fought in a superior position against Japan was at the Battle of Hansando, just three months after the start of the war, when the Japanese navy had not yet completed its equipment. For the next seven years, Yi Sun-shin was defeated in every battle. The 23 wins in 23 battles that Koreans claim is a complete lie. This is a fact recorded in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty.

[@mayanksinghsikarwar72]

​@@hiroono1Liar 🤥

[@justin529s7]

Admiral Yi is the equivalent of being so good at a game people call you a hacker

[@スノーハッピー]

Basically xD

[@JuanchoGamex]

turtle ship too op pls nerf

[@maximusd26]

that micro would make any total war player faint bruv

[@terrykang6052]

My thoughts exactly!

[@spatepheni]

So you mean Korean gamers?

[@Spartan265]

Though we are separated by centuries and I'm American, Admiral Yi is someone I look up to. He really is a hero.

[@Spartan265]

@@christiandauz3742 That's what makes him so great. Almost 99% of people would have defected or just quit and ignored the invasion. But not Yi.

[@andro7862]

@@christiandauz3742 Most people would, in fact, as the 5 Eulsa traitors show us later in history, it wasn't rare at all. But I Sun Shin was not most people. Apart from military victories he gave his Korea, a nation to be tormented by Japan in later centuries, a symbol of resistance. And this is his true value, loyal and patriotic until the bitter end, someone who would never ever betray his people and his country.

[@mauddib696]

History doesn’t know border my dude… they’re just variables for events and like variables they could be whatever.

[@배진아-d1b]

I’m glad people in the west like learning about yi

[@hiroono1]

There is no record of the completion of a turtle ship, and there is no record of it ever fighting against the Japanese navy. Of the 13 ships that survived the Battle of Myeongliang, there were no turtle ships, and even if they sank somewhere, no wreckage has been found. The turtle ship is a lie fabricated by Koreans. The last time Yi Sun-shin fought in a superior position against Japan was at the Battle of Hansando, just three months after the start of the war, when the Japanese navy had not yet completed its equipment. For the next seven years, Yi Sun-shin was defeated in every battle. The 23 wins in 23 battles that Koreans claim is a complete lie. This is a fact recorded in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty.

[@DunkTasticMan]

At last, it’s time for the best series in extra history.

[@Femonk100]

Truer words were never spoken

[@williamtheconqueror7807]

Absolutely.

[@anthonyboatner7286]

I'm partial to the south sea bubble series

[@WillardWright1986]

Justinian, South Sea Bubble, Suleiman, Paper Money, Northern War, Sengoku Jidai are some of my personal favorites

[@zainsalhani4705]

Hell. To. The. Yes.

[@alexandersturnn4530]

Admiral Yi. Without a doubt, one of the most badass People to ever live.

[@chheinrich8486]

Together with theodore roosevelt

[@painvillegaming4119]

@@chheinrich8486 and the unkillable soldier

[@chheinrich8486]

@@painvillegaming4119 and Bismarck

[@painvillegaming4119]

@@chheinrich8486 the boat or the man ?

[@chheinrich8486]

@@painvillegaming4119 honestly the boat was cool but a Glas cannon and wasnt half as interesting as the Man

[@KimFareseed]

The incompetence of the admiralty hurts. You don't just let a fleet of ships, flying unknown flags, armed or not, move on without scouting them out.

[@justinlee790]

The very long period of peace that had preceded the Imjin War really degraded the military competency of Joseon: a lot of the incompetence that's displayed is a consequence of decades on decades of the military having functionally little purpose in the Kingdom. It allowed nepotism to fester and produced a lot of high ranking officers who only held their positions due to political connections rather than ability, which is why you hear about such ridiculous incompetence. Peace is a double-edged sword.

[@rokkfel4999]

In broad freaking daylight I mean cmon man

[@xenotypos]

The incompetence of the Japanese regarding naval battle was even worse tbh. They didn't even use cannons (which is paradoxal considering they used arquebuses, a more advanced weapon but more suited for land battles). It's like those 100 years of civil war in Japan before the invasion made them super strong on land, trash on the seas.

[@adamwu4565]

@@justinlee790 After so many years of peace, one could imagine that most of the time the military didn't have to do much that required any sort of competency or creativity. In such an environment, military appointments would tend to become the places where you shuffled off officials you KNEW were incompetent, but you didn't want to just sack because they had important or troublesome connections, to get them out of the way so their incompetence wouldn't impair the civilian administration...

[@adamwu4565]

@@xenotypos The Japanese did have cannons on their naval ships. But they were smaller and shorter ranged than the Korean cannons, and Yi effectively just stayed out of their range in a lot of his battles with them.

[@7Seraphem7]

YES! Admiral Yi! This really is one of, if not the best series they've done. Oh, and the reason that one casualty was holding up a bandaged finger? That was the actual casualty, one of the oarsmen got a rather nasty splinter.

[@Caesar-ww3yp]

😂😂

[@jaredjosephsongheng372]

What the heck.....

[@joshuahernandez3216]

I use to live in Yeosu, South Korea. There is a statue of Yi and also a turtle ship. I love Korea. The scenery there is beautiful and it's full of very nice people.

[@겜여행]

:)

[@beohel]

It should also be noted that Admiral Yi is one of the few military commanders in all of history that has not lost a single battle, alongside with the likes of Alexander the Great.

[@mrunaltondre6051]

Alexander actually lost in indian subcontinent

[@Bayard1503]

@@mrunaltondre6051 Alexander won at Hydaspes. Wasn't that his last battle before returning to Babylon?

[@dariusalexandru9536]

yes but usually he fight mostly against merchant and transport ships ,japanese army didn t really have more to offer at that time

[@princefarron5484]

​​@@mrunaltondre6051hough he did abandon his campaign, he did not in fact lose any of the battles that took place. I still wouldn't call that a defeat since continuing might have sparked mutiny. In the same way I'd count Yi retreat saving civilians a success and win since that was the goal and not winning the battle.

[@alanfriesen9837]

@@dariusalexandru9536 You might have a point if Yi Sun-sin didn't also defeat them on land when he was outnumbered. He also designed his best warship, which happens to be the world's first ironclad battleship. Yi Sun-sin was simply the best all-around military commander in the history of the world.

[@WaywardVet]

Omaha beach would have been been much easier on D-Day if only the Germans thought we were just coming ashore to apologize for our rudeness 😂

[@ZwiekszoneRyzyko]

Hey, if they had been kind enough I would have fallen for it 😂

[@erikrungemadsen2081]

So is the Japanese invasion what you might call an apology in force

[@tae-whankim9821]

That's how lowly the ancient Koreans thought of Japan, just barbarians. this hubris cost them tho

[@RandomInternetLozer]

It would be fitting to do the EH coverage of the Sengoku Judai period as it happens just before this.

[@scriptos9698]

He's already reacted to the whole Sengoku Jidai EH series

[@RandomInternetLozer]

@@scriptos9698 no, he hasn’t.

[@rubberduck7757]

I heard that one was relatively inaccurate though. Might be thinking of a different one.

[@scriptos9698]

@@rubberduck7757 Never heard that at all

[@illogicaldale2219]

@@scriptos9698 search up r/bad history extra history sengoku jidai on Reddit you’ll see how inaccurate the series is

[@ftw1267]

Here's Yi's track record (from his diary and records of Ming China, Korea, Japan) Year 1592 May 7th (Okpo) - 1 wounded (Yi) / 31 ships sunk (Japan) May 8th - No casualties / 11 ships sunk May 29th (Sacheon) - 2 wounded / 13 ships sunk June 2nd (Dangpo) - No casualties / 21 ships sunk June 5th and 7th - 11 dead, 47 wounded / 29 sunk, 4 captured July 8th (Hansando) - 19 dead, 116 wounded / 59 sunk, 14 captured July 10th (Angolpo) - No casualties / 42 sunk August 29th - No casualties / 6 sunk September 1st (Busan) - 6 dead, 25 wounded / 159 sunk Year 1593 February 10th ~ March 6th - 4 capsized / 51 sunk Year 1594 March 4th - No casualties / 31 sunk September 29th - No casualties/ 2 sunk October 1st and 4th - No casualties on both sides Year 1597 February 10th - No casualties / Casualties Unknown July 15th - 60~70 sunk / 8 sunk (Won kyon's disaster, His whereabouts are unknown to this day) August 27th - No casualties on both sides September 16th (Myeongyang) - 11 dead, 21 wounded / 31 sunk Year 1598 July 19th - 30 dead / 50 sunk September 20th ~ October 7th - 29 dead, 100 wounded (Yi) / 29 sunk, 2300 dead (Ming China) / 31 sunk ,11 captured, 2900 dead, 200 wounded (Japan) November 19th (Noryang) - 130 dead (Including Yi), 170 wounded / 500 dead / 200 sunk, 150 partially destroyed, 100 captured, 20000~32000 dead, 3000 wounded Total : 200 dead, 500 wounded, *0* sunk / 75000~92900 dead, 4400 wounded, 773 sunk, 127 captured, 220 partially destroyed

[@jaredjosephsongheng372]

I love how you emphasized the 0 in Yi's Ships Lost lol.

[@alexmontenegro9991]

It’s kind of hard to overstate how crucial Admiral Yi was in the defense of Korea. At the time Hideyoshi mobilized 335,000 men (so many that only 158,800 could actually be moved at once for the first wave) for the invasion of Korea, almost all of which were veterans of the civil war. They also had a massive portion of musketeers making up that force. He, by far, had the most dangerous army in the world, even compared to the states of Europe. Korea in contrast was obsessed with the idea that a man well versed in Confucian ideals was the best possible decision maker, so they overly relied on individuals who were “qualified” on paper but really of no use in an actual battle. It would be Yi who made Hideyoshi’s dream of an Asian empire stretching all the way to India impossible by defending the Yellow Sea.

[@겜여행]

정말 끔찍하네요. 이순신은 도대체 어떻게 막은거야.

[@kitsuch.6776]

Ah yes. Admiral Yi. I remember ending up having it on my recommend a year ago, watched with not much expectations, ended up with me having manly tears. An Epic Legend.

[@roastghost901]

This is why you always pick Koreans in Age of Empires 2 when there's water on the map.

[@blacknorthwind93]

Men i haven't played that game in ages.

[@roastghost901]

@@blacknorthwind93 It's got a bustling community with lots of tournaments every year. Highly recommend.

[@jean-philippedoyon9904]

I highly recommend the Sengoku Jidai serie ! It's very well made considering the crazy amount of info about it !

[@XVDAW]

Unfortunately their Sengoku Jidai series is not very accurate, it's heavily criticized for being full of misinformation

[@firelight4502]

If that true idc I want to seen him watch it

[@sclarke6969]

Think its one of the only early ones i didnt enjoy.

[@Zeitgeist2000]

I like rewatching this reaction series. your reactions and admiration towards history is genuine and as a fan and learner of history, I am refreshed to see another person as amazed and awed by history as I am.

[@JLS639]

Samuel Hawley (who was one of Extra History's major sources) mentioned that Yi's friendship with the Prime Minister was probably the largest reason courtiers conspired against him. They could not go after the PM directly, so they went after his supporters

[@rhett1029]

Russians in WWII when they see Germans after the invasion of Poland: “They’re not invading they’re apologizing!”

[@IronpenWorldbuilding]

NO THEY’RE GIVING US THEIR ARMY!

[@stevenwatson1547]

The invasion of Poland was a couple years before operation Barbarossa

[@rhett1029]

@@stevenwatson1547 I know I’m just joking besides the joke doesn’t have to depend on time

[@rhyang8311]

Ooh yeah baby. Admiral Yi. Also, nice logo. A good movie about admiral yi is roaring currents. Just search up admiral yi movie and it will show up

[@slayden2737]

thanks for the recommendation

[@RMondo44]

154k subscribers! (at this time) Your rapid rise is fully deserved. I love the fact you're more than happy to dive in to topics that you don't know a whole lot about. I feel like I've learned so much since discovering this channel. Keep up the good work

[@quoniam426]

"Won a number of battles" that's an understatement for someone who had a near 100% winrate (except for that island defense that he couldn't do anything about). Even Grand Admiral Thrawn, a fictional alien; doesn't reach that high. The only engagements Korean lost back then were not fought by him since they demoted him and thrown under the bus several times, fearing his growing popularity. Same as General Belisarius, as much as popular he was, Yi never had political ambitions.

[@jacobcoady8852]

I appreciate that you say you won't have much to contribute to the on going story, however, you still contribute plenty. By talking about what's going on in rest of the world at the time, the similarities between what's happening in the story and what you do know, is very nice. It adds more depth to the setting.

[@TheGRAclan]

Oh my god I'm so happy! This was one of the ones I suggested and I love it because he's a lesser known figure in history compared to the likes of Napoleon, Julius Caesar or Hannibal but he was an absolute strategic genius!

[@littlekuribohimposte]

Even if Yi wasn't a military genius, I bet he'd still be remembered as a hero, because literally everyone else in Korea was a tool.

[@jameswhite153]

that's unfair on tools, they do what they are supposed to do.

[@TheQuyman]

"if there ever were an Admiral worthy of the name of ‘god of war’, that one is Yi Sun-sin. Next to him, I am little more than a petty officer.’” , Grand admiral Tōgō Heihachirō

[@KracenSC]

I never watch reaction channels, but when I saw a historian reaction channel, well that there is a perfectly acceptable thing to watch and subscribe to. Also, as a British person, I believe I can say that I would rate Admiral Yi higher than that of even Nelson, for Nelson had a lifetime of training to become the master he was, Admiral Yi did it in a few years with zero prior experience... Imagine what he could have accomplished were he given the same time Nelson had to perfect his craft.

[@robertbodell55]

while i admit that Yi was undoubtably a peerless admiral, one thing to consider is that the Japanese hardly covered themselves in glory as a naval force in this era, the Korean navy had a significant advantage in both tactics and ship design. That was only undone by staggering incompetence and hesitation of other Korean commanders. While in contrast Nelson managed his victories against foes that were technologically and qualitatively closer in both equipment, battle doctrine and training to his own forces.

[@xenotypos]

I don't think we can compare the two, they had to overcome different types of challenges. For Nelson's battles technology was generally comparable on both sides. But as for Yi, the Japanese navy didn't even use cannons, the Japanese army was very (very) strong on land, but very bad at anything related to naval battles (probably because of those 100 years of civil war). In return, Yi had to overcome insane odds in terms of numbers, as the Japanese navy, as incompetent they may have been, had a LOT of ships.

[@KracenSC]

@@xenotypos I generally look at it in terms of experience and the tools available, Yi had no experience but through sheer innate ability and dedication to learning was able to overcome the odds. Yes the Japanese navy was not as strong as Koreas but as the guy who took over and then lost when Yi was forced down and lost everything shows that it was possible for the Japanese to overwhelm them... something they had zero chance of doing against Yi. Now for comparing them, Nelson had a lifetime of experience and equal technology with his opponents. He is still amazing, itd be like giving Nelson a 99/100 score but Yi gets the perfect 100/100

[@Wasthere73]

@@robertbodell55 Nelson had the backing of the British Empire. Yi was constantly getting screwed both politically and logistically. Also having an advantage in tactics that you pioneered is the definition of being an outstanding military leader. No one detracts from Napoleon for innovative tactics.

[@laughsatchungus1461]

admiral yi is one of those few, few people that you wonder how its possible for someone to be that badass

[@reporterblue6987]

During this period of Korea (known as the Joseon Dynasty), the house of Yi ruled Korea, which is why most aristocrats (if not all) have Yi as their surname.

[@luskarian4055]

The surname is still used today, although it's mostly spelled "Lee" now

[@Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee]

That's so inaccurate. I'm a decendant of the Royal Yi clan, which is known as Jeonju Yi clan. There aren't many Yi clan that are aristocrats.(example, kyung ju Yi clan are aristocrats) most officials and eunuchs are Kim's, Parks, Choi and Jeong. It's because if a Yi clan member becomes a eunuch, the kings power increases which is good for the slaves and normal people, but for the aristocrats, they get taxed a lot for the king.

[@Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee]

Also, Yi sun shins Yi clan is not the Jeonju Yi clan( royal Yi ).

[@Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee]

@@luskarian4055 Lee and rhee

[@chandler3570]

On this series, I really really recommend watching and posting about the lies episode. I think you could add a lot to it just as a historian.

[@sclarke6969]

The lies episodes really add so much to these

[@EmporerAaron]

Trust me when I say this series will blow your mind. Its worth watching again and again as it never seems to just lose the power of his tale. Also you've only done two episodes and I am eager to see you watch the rest, its that good of a series.

[@감민석-v1r]

Yi's greatest strengths were his leadership and his knowlege of the importance of gathering intel. Yi was a very, VERY strict leader especially when it came to discipline. It is speculated that soldiers under Yi's command died more from executions than in battle. However, while he was very strict, he was also very just- he gave rewards to his men when due, and he never punished them on a whim or without a just reason.. He also drilled his men hard, and even fought with his men in battle. That is how he earned their fear, respect and loyalty- enough to follow Yi's rather bold and risky tactics without complaining, and even fight valiantly in an unexpected naval melee battle. The Ming admiral Chen Lin was so impressed by how well-disciplined and loyal Yi's men were, that he asked Yi for help with training and disciplining his men. Also, surprisingly, many commanders in Joseon neglected the need to actively scout for intel during this war. Yi, however, actively gathered intel and estimated his chances for victory. If the odds were not too great but victory was still possible, he would look elsewhere for resources to use- like the water currents at the site of the battle, as you'll see in the next video, for example. Thanks for reacting to this series! I was kinda expecting you to mention Horatio Nelson, as he is also considered as one of all-time-greats of naval warfare.

[@sw36jl]

Wish China's relation was good with (South) Korea as it was in the past. Just because it's Communist doesn't mean it has to be bad. Plus, in the past, the relationship was not just one over another but rather mutual respect, ie. Korea gives China gifts, China returns the favor. One day I hope this is the case, in a three thousand year relationship, 50 years is but nothing.

[@감민석-v1r]

@@sw36jl Thanks for the input! However, I think the relationship between Korea and China always was kinda complicated, depending on which party or dynasty was in power. Ming was probably the closest with Korea during its Joseon dynasty. That was because Confucianism was the main philosophy/religion in early to mid Joseon, and Joseon officials and royal court sought to learn from Confucius' birthplace, and considered Ming as their superior. It changed from the mid to late Joseon dynasty when practical natural sciences bloomed and boomed. "Mutual respect" did happen during the Korean Three Kingdoms era (Tang dynasty in China), and many exchanges of culture, ideas and commerce took place in this time. When Goryeo unifed the Peninsula and ended the Three Kingdoms era, the Jin dynasty offered "constitution gifts" out of respect. Tensions were there too. Qing was not on the best terms with Joseon, Sui and Tang feared the "small" nation of Goguryeo because of their mitary prowess, and Communist China... well... I think you get the point by now. The Korean-Chinese relationship went through ups and downs throughout history, but I agree, the two nations had seen days when their relationship was much better than modern day Korea and China.

[@maximribus5165]

I have a french exam tomorrow, yet here iam. I cannot not click on your videos. I hope in the future we will learn more about eastern culture in school. It is a big part of history that we miss out on. Greetings fron Belgium

[@hochungyip1123]

There are few points I wanna add to the video: 1. why the Korean kinda abandon its military? To answer this question, we have to look into the geographic of Korea: the northern border was mostly the Ming's territorry, which was Korea's boss, said in a fancy way, while only a small fraction of area was the Jurchen tribute, which was not grown into a strong power. With these two pieces of information, northern part of the peninsular was mostly safe or negligible. While three sides of water didn't have much to do about it but only dealing with the pirates(of course we know that later on Japanese were coming for a fight). Its waters have little things to do. All in all, military was clearly not the thing they cared the most for the time being. 2. If we look over the world at the time, the portuguese and spainish were building up colonies in many continents like in aisa, the malaysia. And also those Japanese weapon and technology were in fact bought from and inspired from them. So why didn't these westerners attempt to take down the korea and make up some colonies? Long answer short, first reason, they were unable to do so cuz Ming developed fire arms, some of them were from portuguese, to defend against them and guarding coastal line, which to the south of korea. Westerners couldn't do whatever they wanted with their force. Second reason, they had to maintain a good relationship with the Ming for their trade. So Koreans were again overprotected by their big sugar daddy Ming.

[@xPhenom41x]

I remember watching the Admiral Yi story many years ago. It is fantastic. I'm glad more people will know his story.

[@42k78]

I couldn't have told you a thing about Admiral Yi before today. This was an amazing story, but also so frustrating. I found myself making audible gasps time after time when Yi's talents were ignored and he was demoted by his rivals. Everyone wanted to rise the ranks without letting an actual skilled commander, like Yi, have the military power that he deserved. This is a situation all too common throughout history and is probably happening on a smaller scale at your local Food Lion. I love how much history I learn from your channel. When I'm with my friends, I'll take every opportunity I can to divulge historical information I recently learned, and they seem impressed. So yeah, I'm pretty cool now. Thanks!

[@빔빔-v1p]

그것은 맞다 그의 적인 일본 해상군은 강력했다.

[@ItsAVolcano]

This period of Korean history saw some of the most ludicrously nepotistic and corrupt nobility in world history.

[@2Links]

Finally! Been waiting for ages for this one. One of my favourite series and historical figures.

[@ForgottenHonor0]

Expanding on what you said about the Japanese subverting expectations by adopting and expanding on new technology, we have to remenber that it was the Japanese who effectively ended the era of domination by the battleship and ushered in the modern view of the aircraft carrier being the superior naval power.

[@bkjeong4302]

Though they themselves (and to be fair, everyone else) failed to see this and put new battleships into service right after that.

[@ForgottenHonor0]

@@bkjeong4302 There will always be those members of the Old Guard...

[@darkphoenix4568]

Yaaaaaay. Finally. I was waiting for this. I am a proud Korean-American.

[@PredixPL]

That's great you picked up the series about admiral Yi! His tale is probably one of my favourites in history. What a badass naval commander he was.

[@kingmac6638]

You know ur doing good when I'm happy to see a video longer than usual

[@tycoflo6385]

I love this channel. I’ve always had a love for history. But this just hits in the best ways

[@sohums.6107]

Finally, it’s an amazing series!!

[@JoeLaFigue]

YES ! I really like your content, because as much as you can add historical anecdotes and whatever kind of knowledges, I like the fact that most of what you personally process out of history is "what cycle am I witnessing". So we get more life lessons from you than most youtubers out there. ALso Admiral Yi was my first ever Extra History video, actually my first ever English KZbin video, and it helped me learn the language. So this series is very close to my heart

[@nei1mchugh]

yi's battle numbers are amazing. Its like playing a video game on the beginner level.

[@감민석-v1r]

Absolutely, Yi was arguably a tactical genius, but he also didn't forget to scout for intel, increasing his chances to win lol

[@ForgottenHonor0]

Japanese: "Turtle ships OP, plz nerf."

[@AshtonSnapp]

Korea: “no, git gud lol”

[@ForgottenHonor0]

@@AshtonSnapp Pretty sure it was: "Get rekt, son!"

[@JamesBuschell]

Been waiting for this, as a Korean, Admiral Yi is a great source of pride for me.

[@forgottenfamily]

Yi is, in every way, Korea's Nelson. One important difference: Nelson pulled off an astounding set of impressive victories and accomplishments after a lifetime of naval service. Yi pulled off an undefeated streak of often dominating victories and absolutely astounding feats having zero prior naval experience. If there's one rub against Yi, it's that you could conceivably argue that his record was a statement of his technological advantage, though Korea's performance outside of Yi in naval engagements raises questions with that theory

[@artembentsionov]

It was also a matter of tactics. The Japanese favored the grapple-and-board approach. This was similar (but the reverse) to the Punic Wars where the Carthaginians were superior sailors and often won traditional naval engagements. That’s why the Romans chose to change up the game and use their advantage - their greater skill on land. They started putting marines on ships and invented the Corvus boarding ramp to allow their soldiers to fight the enemy hand-to-hand instead of ship-to-ship

[@forgottenfamily]

@@artembentsionov I don't disagree with you but picking the right tactic to combat your enemy is often the mark of a good Admiral/General. Sadly, not a lot of Great Admirals had a lengthy career against a diverse set of opponents in terms of technology and tactics to really test whether they were the right person with the right tactic against the right enemy or if they were truly adaptive.

[@adamwu4565]

Yi had a technological advantage, but he also had a technological disadvantage, given Japan's dominance in arquebuses, and their superior capability in melee. Remember that the Japanese Navy's preferred battle tactics using boarding parties wasn't some outlier relic of bygone times. It was still commonly employed all over the world at that time. It was the preferred way of fighting for the Spanish Armada during that same time period in Europe for example. Yi's genius was in creating tactical and strategic situations where his own technological advantages could be maximally applied, while his enemy's technological advantages was neutralized, or could not be brought to bear. Don't forget what happened to the Korean Fleet (with the same superior ships, the same superior cannons, and the same more skilled sailors) when Yi was removed from command and Won Kyun took over.

[@cosmedelustrac5842]

I can't wait to see your reaction to the rest of this series (espacially the end).

[@thehelper6401]

I’m so happy you’re reacting to this series, trusty one of the best EC series

[@jordanseidl7998]

Admiral yi is such a legendary figure in Korea today, not only are there statues of him everywhere, but toys and LEGO sets based around him.

[@calvinkeinath6955]

Thank you for 2 parts! Made my day

[@myssie-theanimedevourer5835]

I've never watched this one but I love watching with you! 😅 your commentary is always what I'm thinking. Such a great channel this is!

[@dgmithril]

I'm obligated to mention the movie The Admiral which is a movie about him. A bit exaggerated but quite good.

[@gabrielaagusts9854]

This is the second best extra history playlist in my opinion just beneath Justinian

[@matheusimon7316]

It's funny the beginning of his story start with him on a horse, like the red Baron before they begun diving deep in to their careers

[@BlueflameKing1]

Awesome. You also really should watch the sengoku jidai episodes, unless you have and I forgot.

[@Design-Challenge-Pod]

I think it's so interesting how Korea lacked in military, but when push came to shove, they had large scientific inventions. IMO the most impressive Korean military invention is the hwacha which used arrows as shells.

[@asikmort2530]

Just to make some myths clear Samurais main weapon is the bow and arrow second is the spear and last is the sword. A samurai if it came that he needed to fight with his sword meant that the battle had taken a turn for the worst or they were winning and just having fun. All the things around the sword and how they "perfected" its art etc, its true up to a point but not to the movie point where you see samurai charging swords first. The sword was more ceramonial and to train for sure but the training had other meanings besides fighting (Also not katanas not ANY SWORD can cut through armour, if anyone things that a sword can cut even through copper armor just doesnt understands basic physics and material science.) Also the japanese where a nation of war and military, so when the powder came in to the game they ofcourse adobt it, they wanted to be the best warriors and the new game was named "gun powder" and they learned it. The movie "last samurai" shows a fraction of a truth that is "They honoured the old ways" some at the end of their time but the Samurai which I forger now the naem used guns all the way until that last moment where more a statement decided to not use them

[@buriedintulips]

Cannot wait for the next one! Definitely my favorite EC series.

[@nacimento4321]

basically when people say that the new "things that extra history makes are bad" they're reffering to anything that isn't history related, imo if you stick to only the history part of their channel you wont have too much problem with their content

[@101Mant]

Their mythology is usually good, although they dropped the ball on a couple of myths, so was the series on sci-fi so I'm curious what is considered bad?

[@nacimento4321]

i dont remember exactly the name of the videos but the stop normalizing nazi and the one where they talk about 40k had a bunch of wonky arguments and some things that just werent true,and by bad i also mean the dislike ratio on both videos

[@unknowndane4754]

@@nacimento4321 the most clear example of how little thought on that one would be the "Iron cross = Nazi" in spite of it being an older and still in use symbol

[@yondie491]

they said ALL soldiers in German military uniforms should be considered Nazis. that's Nazi level bigotry there.

[@NoBody-lj5xh]

This was one of my favorites from them.

[@Ivan.A.Churlyuski]

Do Cao Cao history, I think his boneheaded naval defeat is hilarious.

[@timhare9867]

Is it just me, or do most East Asian dynasty’s start off extremely competent militarily, then slowly get more crippled by corruption until they get conquered or usurped by the next dynasty. Which then goes through the exact same process. It noticed it happened with both the Koreans of this era, and the Ming then later Qing Chinese.

[@alexmontenegro9991]

I highly recommend the book “The Imjin War” by Samuel Hawley. The most comprehensive account of the war and Admiral Yi you’ll find in english.

[@techieendou8778]

Extra Credits way of telling a story is truly remarkable ... They make any topic interesting just by the way of narration, and those topics that are epic themselves just became even more interesting.

[@yondie491]

used to be, they took a massive downturn a few years ago and became utter closed minded crap.

[@agale1360]

Thank you for doing this series! I voted for it and always cool to feel a part of a community when you see your votes counted! Couldn’t let this pass without recommending Kings and Generals - Thomas Cochrane. Another incredible sea captain always being under appreciated by his superiors.

[@xxrainxfallxx]

Omg you're finally reacting to this series. Can't wait for you to explore more of the east asian history!

[@DorneysHouseofGames]

I’ll be here and wait for a day when Sengoku Judai will be watched by this good man and a day when the Catherine the Great series will be watched as well 🙂

[@Rayen015]

Oh man i want to see his reaction to Catherine the Great. Mostly for his reactions to Peter.

[@CapitalTeeth]

Despite everything done to this man, he still took the sword and defended Korea to his very last breath. Any other person would have just quit and watched it all burn down. Massive props to Yi. Without him, I'd bet Korea wouldn't exist today.

[@aj1218]

Even with very limited knowledge on the topic, he still adds so much to the conversation

[@drrakw2432]

Long have I waited. Thanks for posting!

[@zainsalhani4705]

Hey I became a big fan of your history channel, and gaming channel. Much like you, I am much more familiar with European and (mainly middle eastern for me) history. I really loved admiral Yis story so I am super glad you like it. Keep educating!

[@Loidy14]

Roaring Currents is one of my favourite historic films ... a great watch

[@hyunlee5262]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it, but my understanding is that there wasn't a great distinction between Admiral and General. In korean he is called "general" Yi, even if his major accomplishment is considered to be naval battles.

[@samwhary5498]

I can't wait for more! This guy is amazing!

[@gerogedamon1573]

Can't wait for the next video sir, and thank you for doing this video even though it's out of your comfort zone, so to speak.

[@notzaran5977]

My day just became so much better

[@johnclayden1670]

I gotta say, VTH, that I love your presentations.

[@zzzkoszzz]

The Admiral :Roaring Current (2014), a Korean movie, is a good adaption of the Battle of Myeongryang.

[@Jim-cj7pj]

Very interesting so far, looking forward to tomorrow.

[@moneymastermind2698]

Yi basically said: “We’re not trapped in here with you… *YOU’RE TRAPPED IN HERE WITH US.* “

[@joshuascollen1946]

MY FAVOURITE HISTORICAL FIGURE! Can't wait to see how you react to the rest of this series. Also I agree with the others who have said you should react to the sengoku jidai series another great series by EC.

[@Potatoes85858]

Oh boy, I've been waiting for this for so long

[@hlynnkeith9334]

To put Yi Sun-shin's accomplishments into perspective, there is only one other admiral to defeat the Japanese -- Chester Nimitz.

[@blackjack90631]

YES!! just got off work and This makes me so happy to see

[@calvinstuart431]

HAHA I was thinking the same exact thing! "Yi ALWAYS has a plan"

[@cayman401]

Dan's time at extra history is the closest we may get to listening to to ancient orators like Herodotus and Thucydides. What oral history lacks in accuracy it more than makes up for in enthusiasm and interest, it allows us to take history from being this dead thing that only talked about in reference to dates and statistics to something we actively discuss for enjoyment, we learn not because we have to but because we want to.

[@andrewlai4494]

I recommend watching the end of samurai series its pretty good

[@hridaanjhaveri9267]

16:49 a very similar example would be the Napoleonic wars if napoleon had a navy that could fair with the UK's and landed, it would've been very different.

[@laughsatchungus1461]

you should watch their series on Joan of Arc. It is one of their most recent series's, and it was uploaded right around the time of their big controversy (so youll see the first episode having a lot of dislikes as a result) but the series itself is actually pretty good and about a topic im pretty sure youll have a lot of insight on.

[@DaMathias]

I know very very little about admiral yi too, I’m ready to learn.

[@deflategate1297]

He’s like Kurt Warner of admirals

[@unluckysoul5494]

Do three kingdoms of oversimplified

[@jonathanvillanueva9206]

What do people mean that Extra Credits has “gone down in quality”, the 30 years war series was weird but I didn’t think it was terrible

[@loficat4993]

Mostly because they made a video that said if you play as a nazi in video games you yourself are an actual nazi/sympathizer.

[@nacimento4321]

dont forget the "if your fantasy has a bad race/orks you're racist"

[@johanmilde]

People present the orc thing like Extra Credits invented the comparison, and that it was not a massive debate in RPG circles last year. They really should have fleshed out what they meant, though - they aren’t too good at expecting the inevitable backlash.

[@nacimento4321]

sorry if i made it look like i was saying they invented it,i know thats a topic that has existed for a while now but with the backlash they received you can see that the overwhelming majority of the people who watched the video had disagreed with the video,my point is that if they had the idea of making a full video on the subject and agreeing with that idea, you can understand that they're not the best to deal with topics which arent history related ps not a native english speaker so my apologies in advance

[@GeneralLuigiTBC]

I think it's mostly with regards to their occasional video touching on politically sensitive issues. I've watched the channel long enough to know that they've always had a left-wing bias, but they've got a larger audience now, meaning that whenever they run a video on a controversial issue, let alone when they bungle the delivery of their arguments, it's that much more likely to attract the attention of someone who disagrees with them and has a large audience of their own, which in turn leads to dislike-mobbing of said videos.

[@SplendidFactor]

Ah yes, Admiral Yi, my second favourite Admiral. First one being the Dutch Admiral Michiel de Ruyter.