southern coasts by the Joseon navy, the remaining Japanese forces in Korea were ordered to withdraw back to Japan by the new governing Council of Five Elders. Final peace negotiations between the parties followed afterwards and continued for several years, ultimately resulting in the normalization of relations. Background Japan and Korea before the war In 1392, General Yi Seonggye led a successful coup to take political power in Korea from U of Goryeo. Seonggye's followers forced him to take the crown as Taejo of Joseon, thus establishing a new dynasty. In search of a justification for its rule given the lack of a royal bloodline, the new regime received recognition from China and integration into the Imperial Chinese tributary system within the context of the Mandate of Heaven.Rockstein, Edward D., PhD pp. 10–11. Within this tributary system, China assumed the role of a "big brother", with Korea maintaining the highest position among the tributary states, which also included countries such as the Ryukyu Kingdom, Lan Xang, Đại Việt, and the Ayutthaya Kingdom, in return for accepting the subservient tributary role of a "younger brother". In 1402, the Japanese shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu (despite not being the Emperor of Japan) was conferred the title of "King of Japan" by the Chinese emperor and through this title had similarly accepted a position in the imperial tributary system as of 1404. This relationship ended in 1408 when Japan, unlike Korea, chose to end its recognition of China's regional hegemony and cancel any further tribute missions. Membership in the tributary system was a prerequisite for any economic exchange with China; in exiting the system, Japan relinquished its trade relationship with China. One thousand years earlier, the Sui and Tang dynasties of China had complicated political and trading relations with the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Ming China, on the other hand, had close trading and diplomatic relations with the Joseon, which remained integrated in the imperial tributary system, but also received tribute and trade from Japan. Ming China and Joseon Korea shared much in common. Both emerged during the fourteenth century after the end of the Yuan dynasty, embraced Confucian ideals in society, and faced similar threats (Jurchen raiders and wokou). Both had competing internal political factions, which would influence decisions made prior to and during the war.Turnbull, Stephen. 2002, p. 13. Because of close trade and common enemies, Joseon and Ming had a friendly alliance.