Silla, which had accomplished an incomplete unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea in 668, weakened and lost control over local lords during the end of the 9th century. The country entered a period of civil war and rebellion, led by Gung Ye, Gi Hwon, Yang Gil, and Gyeon Hwon.

Gung Ye established Hugoguryeo (meaning "Later Goguryeo", renamed Taebong and Majin ). Gyeon Hwon established Hubaekje (meaning "Later Baekje"). Together with the declining Silla, they are known as the Later Three Kingdoms

The Goryeo Dynasty was established by Wang Geon, who was the lord of Songak (present-day Gaesong) joined Taebong but overthrew Gung Ye and it was done in 918 united with the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled Korea until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392. The Later Three Kingdoms era ended as Goryeo annexed Silla in 935 and defeated Hubaekje in 936. Wang Geon moved the capital to his hometown Gaeseong and ruled the Korean peninsula as the first king of Goryeo.

Two of this period's most notable products are Goryeo pottery. The most famous Korean celadon pottery was the Tripitaka Koreana was the Korean collection of the Tripitaka (Buddhist scriptures)carved onto roughly 81,340 woodblocks in the 13th century and stored in Haeinsa, a Buddhist templr in South Gyeongsang province, in South Korea. Goryeo also created the world's first metal-based movable type printing press in 1234.

The name "Goryeo" is a shortened form of "Goguryeo," one of the ancient Three Kingdoms of Korea. The English name "Korea" derives from "Goryeo".