The Garye(嘉禮, the king's royal marriage) implemented during the 3rd year of King Gojong(1866) exhibited marked differences from those held beforehand. While the traditional three rounds of the selection process(samgantaek) were carried out, the candidate for queen was in effect determined during the second round of the selection process(Jaegantaek). Moreover, the composition of the officials which would staff the Garyedogam(嘉禮都監) established to implement the Garye ceremonies also took on a different look from the past. Suddenly, the number of members of the directorate was increased from three to eleven, with six of these eleven individuals consisting of royal relatives. Furthermore, new positions such as those of bujejo(副提調) and munnangcheong(文郎廳) were established for the purpose of these ceremonies. To this end, royal relatives such as Yi Jaemyeon, Min Seungho, and Jo Kyeongho were appointed to these new positions. In terms of the site where the important Garye ceremonies were to be held, here again a significant change was evident, with the Unhyeongung that served as the Daewongun’s residence replacing the Eouigung where the ceremonies had previously been held. Besides, various Garye ceremonies were implemented over a relatively short 13-day period. Unprecedented situations emerged during even the biggest Garye ceremony: the Chinyeong haengnyeol(親迎行列, a parade held after the rite commemorating the groom’s personal induction of the bride). In addition to the king and queen who usually took part in the Chinyeong haengnyeol, the Daewongun and his wife(who was given the title of Yeoheungbudaebuin(驪興府大夫人) also participated in this particular parade, which by all accounts was more grandiose and lavish than its predecessors. The extravagant nature of the coterie protecting the Daewongun and his wife all but rivaled the king and queen’s own royal guard, an occurrence which did not go unnoticed by the public. For King Gojong, who had been enthroned at a young age, the Garye meant that he would soon become an adult. From a political standpoint, this event was also of great importance in that it signaled the end of the regency that has been established by the Queen Dowager Sinjeong in order to ostensibly guide the young king Gojong. Perfectly reflecting this new reality, Queen Dowager Sinjeong’s announcement of the abolishment of her regency during the preparations for the third round of the process of selecting a new queen, was followed almost immediately by the onset of Gojong’s own personal rule(chinjeong). For the royal family, the Garye was regarded not only as one of the most important national rites of the Joseon dynasty, but it was also perceived as an event of great political significance. To this end, Garye ceremonies had traditionally been implemented based on predetermined rules that called for the most senior adult of the royal family, such as the dowager queen or the king, to play the most prominent role. Viewed in this light, there was no official justification for the decision of the Daewongun, who despite being Gojong’s father did not personally hold any official positions or titles, to interfere in the Garye ceremonies on Gojong’s behalf. Furthermore, Gojong’s Garye could have led to a great crisis for the Daewongun, in that it could have led to his role in politics, which he had originally assumed in the name of assisting the king, being brought to an end as a result of his son’s official coming of age. However, by changing the traditions surrounding the Garye ceremonies, the Daewongun was able to play a leading role in Gojong’s Garye. By doing so, he succeeded in not only making himself stand out as a person who could play the role of Gukgu(國舅, king’s father in law), but also managed to preserve his status as a provider of guidance to the king in the process. As such, by bringing about fundamental changes to the Garye ceremonies, which included making alterations to the Samgantaek process, changing the palace where the Garye ceremonies were conducted, increasing the number of officials in the Royal Ceremonies Directorate, encouraging the participation of royal relatives in the preparations for the Garye, the shortening of the Garye schedule, and changes to the protocol surrounding the Chinyeong parade, the Daewongun was able to further strengthen his status.