evidenced by this, the Eight Great Families of Baekje (Korean: 대성팔족, Hanja: 大性八族) was lost to history with many of them discarding their surnames. Though some were awarded, hence granted prestigious titles by Silla, the prizes that were bestowed upon them was far lesser of the old status back in Baekje. The Baekje people and that of their descendants' political success was bound to be limited. This eventually led to the dissatisfaction of the residents of the former Baekje region and the perception that they were in fact descendants of Baekje residents as a whole; holding an antipathic attitude against the Silla and preserving their collective consciousness. Decline of Later Silla After the Unification of the Three Kingdoms, Later Silla reigned as an powerhouse in the Eastern World, enjoying its heyday of more than 220 years. However, as it proceeded to decline, the local gentries across the country known as hojok began to have a desire to revolt, feeling that the central government's control over the provinces it held gradually weakened due to the endless struggle for the throne amongst the True Bone-class nobility. In the era of Queen Jinseong (887-897), the newly crowned queen of Silla, collected taxes were not efficient due to Silla's weakened grip over its territories beyond its capital and the vicinity of it. Thus, officials were sent by the central government to urge the peasants and farmers across the country to have their taxes paid, infuriating them in the process. What came after were a series of rebellion with the Rebellion of Wonjong and Aeno in the Sabeol Province being the most famous of them. Though the rebellion led by Wonjong and Aeno (889) was put down to an end by Silla's army, it signaled the beginning of the Later Three Kingdoms period that was to severely weaken Silla in the following years. When it began with his attack on Mujinju in 892, Gyeon Hwon's rebellion was only one among numerous rebellions which sprouted up against the weak Silla rulers in the late 9th century. Many of these rebellions were initially triggered by the Silla decision to use force to collect taxes on the peasantry in 889 (Lee, 1984, p. 98). At this time most of the power on the peninsula was held by local gentry, who lacked strong loyalty to the central government. It was thus fairly easy for rebellions led by disaffected military