Bone Rank System - Evaluations

Evaluations

The frustrated ambitions of the head rank six class in particular seem to have played a prominent role in the politics of the late Silla period. Many men of head rank six status, proscribed from rising too high in the Silla administrative system defined by the bone rank system, sought to bypass this by studying Confucianism (either in Silla or abroad in Tang China) or else turned to careers in Buddhism. The most prominent of the head rank six figures was undoubtedly Choe Chiwon, who following an illustrious career in China returned to Silla only to see his attempts at administrative reform rebuffed by an entrenched aristocracy. In the early 10th century the nascent state of Goryeo, which succeeded Silla, tapped into the head rank six intellectuals to man its bureaucracy.

The bone rank system's extreme rigidity certainly helped to weaken Silla toward the end of the Unified Silla period, although numerous other factors were at play. After the fall of Silla, the bone rank system was abolished entirely, although different and somewhat more flexible caste systems persisted until near the end of the Joseon Dynasty in the late 19th century.