Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
was ruled as a part of the
Empire of Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...
.
Joseon Korea
Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...
had come into the Japanese
sphere of influence
In the field of international relations, a sphere of influence (SOI) is a spatial region or concept division over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military or political exclusivity.
While there may be a formal al ...
with the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 (also known as the Japan-Korea Treaty of Amity in Japan and the Treaty of Ganghwa Island in Korea) was made between representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Kingdom of Joseon in 1876.Chung, Young-l ...
; a complex coalition of the Meiji government, military, and
business
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...
officials
began a process of integrating Korea's politics and economy with Japan. The
Korean Empire
The Korean Empire () was a Korean monarchical state proclaimed in October 1897 by Emperor Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. The empire stood until Japan's annexation of Korea in August 1910.
During the Korean Empire, Emperor Gojong oversaw the Gwa ...
, proclaimed in 1897, became a
protectorate
A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over m ...
of Japan with the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905, also known as the Eulsa Treaty, Eulsa Unwilling Treaty or Japan–Korea Protectorate Treaty, was made between the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire in 1905. Negotiations were concluded on November 17, 19 ...
Japanese Resident-General of Korea
The Japanese resident-general of Korea ( ja, 韓国統監, Kankokutōkan; ko, 일본의 대 한국통감, Ilbon-ui dae hangugtong-gam) was the leader of Korea under Japanese rule from 1905 to 1910. This post was highly hated among native Korea ...
. Japan formally annexed the Korean Empire with the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, was made by representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on 22 August 1910. In this treaty, Japan formally annexed Korea following the Jap ...
,
without the consent of the former Korean Emperor Gojong, the
regent
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
of the Emperor
Sunjong
Sunjong, the Emperor Yunghui (; 25 March 1874 – 24 April 1926), was the second and the last Emperor of Korea, of the Yi dynasty, ruling from 1907 until 1910.
Biography
Crown Prince of Korea
Sunjong was the second son of Emperor Gojong a ...
. Upon its annexation, Japan declared that Korea would henceforth be officially named Chōsen. This name was recognized internationally until the end of Japanese colonial rule. The territory was administered by the
Governor-General of Chōsen
The Governor-General of Chōsen ( ja, 朝鮮総督府, Chōsen Sōtoku; ko, 조선총독부, Joseon Chongdokbu) was the chief administrator of the Government-General of Chōsen (a part of an administrative organ established by the Imperial gov ...
based in
Keijō
Keijō, or Gyeongseong, was an administrative district of Chōsen that corresponds to the present Seoul, the capital of South Korea. :ko:경성부, -(Seoul of Korea under Japanese rule)
Honmachi
The central district of Gyeongseong was Ho ...
(Seoul).
Japanese rule prioritized Korea's
Japanization
Japanization, Japanisation or Japanification is the process by which Japanese culture dominates, assimilates, or influences other cultures. According to ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'', "To japanize" means "To make ...
, accelerated the
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
started during the
Gwangmu Reform
The Gwangmu Reform (Korean" 광무개혁, Hanja: 光武改革, ''Gwangmu Gaehyeok'') was a collection of reforms that were aimed at modernizing and westernizing the Korean Empire as it felt held back from what other countries had achieved in the ...
era of 1897 to 1907, built
public works
Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and constructed by the government, for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, sc ...
, and suppressed the
Korean independence movement
The Korean independence movement was a military and diplomatic campaign to achieve the independence of Korea from Japan. After the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910, Korea's domestic resistance peaked in the March 1st Movement of 1919, which ...
. The public works included developing railroads (
Gyeongbu Line
The Gyeongbu Line (''Gyeongbuseon'') is a railway line in South Korea and is considered to be the most important and one of the oldest ones in the country. It was constructed in 1905, connecting Seoul with Busan via Suwon, Daejeon, and Daegu. ...
,
Gyeongui Line
The Gyeongui Line is a railway line between Seoul Station and Dorasan Station in Paju. Korail operates the Seoul Metropolitan Subway service between Seoul Station and Dorasan Station.
History
''For the original line's history and other infor ...
,
Gyeongwon Line
The Gyeongwon Line is a railway line serving northeastern Gyeonggi Province in South Korea. The line is operated by Korail. The name of the line came from ''Gyeongseong'' (Seoul) and ''Wonsan'', the original terminus of the line, in what is now ...
, etc.) and improving major roads and ports that supported economic development. Averages for the annual
GNP
The gross national income (GNI), previously known as gross national product (GNP), is the total domestic and foreign output claimed by residents of a country, consisting of gross domestic product (GDP), plus factor incomes earned by foreign ...
growth-rate of Chōsen were comparable to those in the Japanese ''
naichi
is a term to distinguish the area of Japan from its outlying territories. It was an official term in the Japanese colonial empire, pre-war period, distinguishing Japan and its colonies in the Far East. After the end of World War II, the term ...
'', ranging from 2.3% to 4.2% during the 25 years preceding the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
Pacific War
The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
, industrial growth and output in Chōsen approached that of the ''naichi''.
Japanese rule over Korea ended on 15 August 1945 with the
surrender of Japan
The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...
in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The armed forces of the United States and the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
subsequently occupied this region. Their
division of Korea
The division of Korea began with the defeat of Empire of Japan, Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allies of World War II, Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached ...
separated the Korean Peninsula into two different governments and economic systems: the northern
United States Army Military Government in Korea
The United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK) was the official ruling body of the Southern half of the Korean Peninsula from 8 September 1945 to 15 August 1948.
The country during this period was plagued with political and eco ...
. These post-war administrative areas were succeeded respectively by the modern independent states of
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
and
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
. Japan officially relinquished the claims of Korea in the signing of
Treaty of San Francisco
The , also called the , re-established peaceful relations between Japan and the Allied Powers on behalf of the United Nations by ending the legal state of war and providing for redress for hostile actions up to and including World War II. It w ...
on 28 April 1952.
In 1965 the Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and South Korea declared that previous
unequal treaties
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
between both countries, especially those of 1905 and 1910, were "already
null and void
In law, void means of no legal effect. An action, document, or transaction which is void is of no legal effect whatsoever: an absolute nullity—the law treats it as if it had never existed or happened. The term void ''ab initio'', which means " ...
"
at the time of their promulgation.
Interpretations of Japanese rule over Korea remain controversial in Japan and both North and South Korea.
Terminology
During the period of Japanese colonial rule, Korea was officially known as , although the former name continued to be used internationally.
In
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
, the period is usually described as the "Imperial Japanese occupation" (). According to the ''
Chosun Ilbo
''The Chosun Ilbo'' (, ) is a daily newspaper in South Korea and the oldest daily newspaper in the country. With a daily circulation of more than 1,800,000, the ''Chosun Ilbo'' has been audited annually since the Audit Bureau of Circulations w ...
'', the term was derived from a North Korean one referring to South Korea as under "American imperial occupation" (). Other terms, although often considered obsolete, include "Japanese Imperial Period" (), "The dark Japanese Imperial Period" (), "period of the Japanese imperial colonial administration" (), and " Wae (Japanese) administration" ().
In Japan, the term has been used.
Background
Political turmoil in Korea
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876
On 27 February 1876, the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 (also known as the Japan-Korea Treaty of Amity in Japan and the Treaty of Ganghwa Island in Korea) was made between representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Kingdom of Joseon in 1876.Chung, Young-l ...
, also known in Japan as the Japanese–Korea Treaty of Amity (Japanese: , meaning ''Japan-Chosun friendly relations treaty'', meaning ''Treaty of Ganghwa island'') was signed. It was designed to open up Korea to Japanese trade, and the rights granted to Japan under the treaty were similar to those granted Western powers in Japan following the visit of Commodore Perry in 1854. The treaty ended Korea's status as a protectorate of China, forced open three Korean ports to Japanese trade, granted
extraterritorial rights
Extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) is the legal ability of a government to exercise authority beyond its normal boundaries.
Any authority can claim ETJ over any external territory they wish. However, for the claim to be effective in the externa ...
to Japanese citizens, and was an
unequal treaty
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
signed under duress (
gunboat diplomacy
In international politics, the term gunboat diplomacy refers to the pursuit of foreign policy objectives with the aid of conspicuous displays of naval power, implying or constituting a direct threat of warfare should terms not be agreeable to th ...
) of the
Ganghwa Island incident
The Ganghwa Island incident or the Japanese Battle of Ganghwa ( ko, 운요호 사건 揚號事件} ''Unyo-ho sageon'' meaning "'' Un'yō'' incident"; ja, 江華島 ''Kōka-tō jiken''), was an armed clash between the Joseon dynasty of Kore ...
Busan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...
, which became the center for foreign trade and commerce. Japanese officials then published Korea's first newspaper, , in 1881. Chinese language articles were aimed at Korea's educated elite, which advocated for constitutional government,
freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...
, strong rule of law and legal rights, and Korean-led industrialization. Few of these goals came to pass. Japanese language articles focused on news regarding business, specifically "the stagnant Pusan trade" in rice and other farmed goods, which fluctuated wildly due to weather conditions and the whims of the tax-levying elite class. It ceased publication sometime after May 1882.
Imo Incident
The regent
Daewongun
Heungseon Daewongun (흥선대원군, 興宣大院君, 21 December 1820 – 22 February 1898; ), also known as the Daewongun (대원군, 大院君), Guktaegong (국태공, 國太公, "The Great Archduke") or formally Internal King Heungseon Heon ...
, who remained opposed to any concessions to Japan or the West, helped organize the Mutiny of 1882, an anti-Japanese outbreak against
Queen Min
Empress Myeongseong or Empress Myungsung (명성황후 민씨; 17 November 1851 – 8 October 1895In lunar calendar, the Empress was born on 25 September 1851 and died on 20 August 1895), informally known as Empress Min, was the official wife ...
and her allies.Marius B. Jansen (April 1989). ''The Cambridge History of Japan'' Volume 5 The Nineteenth Century. Cambridge University Press . Motivated by resentment of the preferential treatment given to newly trained troops, the Daewongun's forces, or "old military", killed a Japanese training cadre, and attacked the Japanese
legation
A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, minister. Ambassadors diplomatic rank, out ...
. Japanese diplomats,Japanese Cabinet Meeting document Nov, 1882 p.6 left 陸軍外務両者上申故陸軍工兵中尉堀本禮造外二名並朝鮮国二於テ戦死ノ巡査及公使館雇ノ者等靖国神社ヘ合祀ノ事 policemen,Japanese Cabinet Meeting document Nov, 1882 p.2 left students and some Min clan members were also killed during the incident. The Daewongun was briefly restored to power, only to be forcibly taken to China by Chinese troops dispatched to Seoul to prevent further disorder.
In August 1882, the Treaty of Jemulpo (
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1882
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1882, also known as the Treaty of Chemulpo or the ''Chemulpo Convention,'' was negotiated between Japan and Korea following the Imo Incident in July 1882.Takenobu, Yoshitaro. (1887). ; excerpt, "''Korea agreed in the ' ...
) indemnified the families of the Japanese victims, paid reparations to the Japanese government in the amount of 500,000 yen, and allowed a company of Japanese guards to be stationed at the Japanese legation in Seoul.
Gapsin coup
The struggle between the Heungseon Daewongun's followers and those of Queen Min was further complicated by competition from a Korean independence faction known as the Progressive Party (''Gaehwa-dang''), as well as the Conservative faction. While the former sought Japan's support, the latter sought China's support. On 4 December 1884, the Progressive Party, assisted by the Japanese, attempted a coup (Gapsin coup) and established a pro-Japanese government under the reigning king, dedicated to the independence of Korea from Chinese suzerainty. However, this proved short-lived, as conservative Korean officials requested the help of Chinese forces stationed in Korea. The coup was put down by Chinese troops, and a Korean mob killed both Japanese officers and Japanese residents in retaliation. Some leaders of the Progressive Party, including
Kim Ok-gyun
Kim Ok-gyun (김옥균; 金玉均; February 23, 1851 – March 28, 1894) was a reformist (''Gaehwapa'', 개화파) activist during the late Joseon dynasty of Korea. He served under the national civil service under King Gojong, and actively par ...
, fled to Japan, while others were executed. For the next 10 years, Japanese expansion into the Korean economy was approximated only by the efforts of czarist Russia.
Donghak Revolution and First Sino-Japanese War
The outbreak of the Donghak peasant revolution in 1894 provided a seminal pretext for direct military intervention by Japan in the affairs of Korea. In April 1894, the Korean government asked for Chinese assistance in ending the Donghak peasant revolt. In response, Japanese leaders, citing a violation of the Convention of Tientsin as a pretext, decided upon military intervention to challenge China. On 3 May 1894, 1,500 Qing forces appeared in
Incheon
Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...
. Japan won the
First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the po ...
, and China signed the
Treaty of Shimonoseki
The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China and in the period before and during World War II in Japan, was a treaty signed at the , Shimonoseki, Japan on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, ending the Firs ...
in 1895. Among its many stipulations, the treaty recognized "the full and complete independence and autonomy of Korea", thus ending Korea's
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
relationship with the Chinese Qing dynasty, leading to the proclamation of full independence of Joseon Korea in 1895. At the same time, Japan suppressed the Donghak revolution with Korean government forces. With the exception of czarist Russia, Japan now held military predominance in Korea.
Assassination of Queen Min
The Japanese minister to Korea,
Miura Gorō
Viscount was a lieutenant general in the early Imperial Japanese Army.
Biography
Miura was born in Hagi in Chōshū Domain (modern Yamaguchi Prefecture), to a ''samurai'' family with the name of Andō, but was adopted by the Miura that was t ...
, orchestrated a plot against 43-year-old Queen Min (later given the title of "Empress Myeongseong"), and on 8 October 1895, she was assassinated by Japanese agents. In 2001, Russian reports on the assassination were found in the archives of the Foreign Ministry of the Russian Federation. The documents included the testimony of King Gojong, several witnesses of the assassination, and
Karl Ivanovich Weber
Karl Ivanovich Weber (also Carl von Waeber; russian: Карл Иванович Вебер, – 8 January 1910) was a diplomat of the Russian Empire and a personal friend to King Gojong of Korea's Joseon Dynasty. He is best known for his 1885–1 ...
's report to
Aleksey Lobanov-Rostovsky
Prince Aleksey Borisovich Lobanov-Rostovsky (russian: Князь Алексе́й Бори́сович Лоба́нов-Росто́вский) ( in Voronezh Governorate – ) was a Russian statesman, probably best remembered for having conclude ...
, the Foreign Minister of Russia, by Park Jonghyo. Weber was the ''
chargé d'affaires
A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...
'' at the Russian legation in Seoul at that time. According to a Russian eyewitness, Seredin-Sabatin, an employee of the king, a group of Japanese agents entered
Gyeongbokgung
Gyeongbokgung (), also known as Gyeongbokgung Palace or Gyeongbok Palace, was the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty. Built in 1395, it is located in northern Seoul, South Korea. The largest of the ''Five Grand Palaces'' built by the Joseo ...
, killed Queen Min, and desecrated her body in the north wing of the palace.
When he heard the news, Heungseon Daewongun returned to the royal palace the same day. On 11 February 1896, King Gojong and the crown prince moved from Gyeongbokgung to the Russian legation in
Jeong-dong
Jeong-dong is a legal '' dong'', or neighbourhood of the Jung-gu district in Seoul, South Korea and governed by its administrative dong, Sogong-dong.
It is an historical area with Deoksu Palace from the Joseon Dynasty and some of Korea's first m ...
, Seoul, from where they governed for about one year, an event known as the
Korea royal refuge at the Russian legation
King Gojong's internal exile to the Russian legation, also called the Agwan Pacheon incident ( ko, 아관파천, Hanja: 俄館播遷), occurred in 1896 in Korea when Gojong of the Korean Empire, King Gojong and his crown prince left the Gyeongbokgu ...
.
Democracy protests and the proclamation of the Korean Empire
After the Royal Refuge, some Korean activists established the
Independence Club
The Independence Association (독립협회, 獨立協會) was founded through the initiative of Philip Jaisohn (Seo Jae-pil) on July 2, 1896. At its founding it was recognized by the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Despite some remarkable ach ...
() in 1896. They claimed that Korea should negotiate with Western powers, particularly Russia, to counterbalance the growing influence of Japan. In 1897, this club had destroyed the
Yeongeunmun
The Yeongeunmun () or Yeongeunmun Gate is a historical structure once located in the Joseon Dynasty. Since it was a symbol of China's diplomatic influence on the Joseon, the Gaehwa Party of the Joseon government intentionally demolished it in Feb ...
, a special gate, built in 1537, where Chinese envoys had been escorted and received, and contributed to the construction of
Independence Gate
Dongnimmun () or Independence Gate is a memorial gate at Seoul, built by Soh Jaipil in late 19th century, as a symbol of Korea's commitment to independence around the world. It is designated as Historic Sites of South Korea in 1963, and relocate ...
and they held regular meetings in the
Jongno
Jongno or Jong-ro ( ko, 종로), literally meaning "Bell Street", is a trunk road and one of the oldest major east–west thoroughfares in Seoul, South Korea. Jongno connects Gwanghwamun Plaza to Dongdaemun.
The area surrounding Jongno is a p ...
streets, demanding democratic reforms as Korea became a constitutional monarchy, and an end to Japanese and Russian influence in Korean affairs.
In October 1897, Gojong decided to return to his other palace,
Deoksugung
Deoksugung, also known as Gyeongun-gung, Deoksugung Palace, or Deoksu Palace, is a walled compound of palaces in Seoul that was inhabited by members of Korea's Royal Family during the Joseon monarchy until Korea under Japanese rule, the annexa ...
, and proclaimed the founding of the
Korean Empire
The Korean Empire () was a Korean monarchical state proclaimed in October 1897 by Emperor Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. The empire stood until Japan's annexation of Korea in August 1910.
During the Korean Empire, Emperor Gojong oversaw the Gwa ...
. During this period, the Korean government conducted a westernization policy. It was not an enduring reform, however, and the Independence Club was dissolved on 25 December 1898 as the new Emperor Gojong officially announced a prohibition on unofficial congresses.
Prelude to annexation
Having established economic and military dominance in Korea in October 1904, Japan reported that it had developed 25 reforms which it intended to introduce into Korea by gradual degrees. Among these was the intended acceptance by the Korean Financial Department of a Japanese Superintendent, the replacement of Korean Foreign Ministers and consuls by Japanese and the "union of military arms" in which the military of Korea would be modeled after the Japanese military. These reforms were forestalled by the prosecution of the
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
from 8 February 1904, to 5 September 1905, which Japan won, thus eliminating Japan's last rival to influence in Korea. Under the
Treaty of Portsmouth
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...
, signed in September 1905, Russia acknowledged Japan's "paramount political, military, and economic interest" in Korea.
Two months later, Korea was obliged to become a Japanese protectorate by the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905, also known as the Eulsa Treaty, Eulsa Unwilling Treaty or Japan–Korea Protectorate Treaty, was made between the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire in 1905. Negotiations were concluded on November 17, 19 ...
and the "reforms" were enacted, including the reduction of the Korean Army from 20,000 to 1,000 men by disbanding all garrisons in the provinces, retaining only a single garrison in the precincts of Seoul. On 6 January 1905, Horace Allen, head of the American Legation in Seoul reported to his Secretary of State, John Hay, that the Korean government had been advised by the Japanese government "that hereafter the police matters of Seoul will be controlled by the Japanese gendarmerie" and "that a Japanese police inspector will be placed in each prefecture". A large number of Koreans organized themselves in education and reform movements, but Japanese dominance in Korea had become a reality.
In June 1907, the Second Peace Conference was held in
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
. Emperor Gojong secretly sent three representatives to bring the problems of Korea to the world's attention. The three envoys were refused access to the public debates by the international delegates who questioned the legality of the protectorate convention. Out of despair, one of the Korean representatives,
Yi Tjoune
Yi Tjoune (December 18, 1859 – July 14, 1907), also known as Yi Jun (이준), was a Korean prosecutor and diplomat and the father of the North Korean politician Lee Yong.
Early life and education
Yi Tjoune was born in Bukcheong in the pro ...
, committed suicide at The Hague. In response, the Japanese government took stronger measures. On 19 July 1907, Emperor Gojong was forced to relinquish his imperial authority and appoint the Crown Prince as regent. Japanese officials used this concession to force the accession of the new Emperor Sunjong following abdication, which was never agreed to by Gojong. Neither Gojong nor Sunjong was present at the 'accession' ceremony. Sunjong was to be the last ruler of the Joseon dynasty, founded in 1392.
Japan–Korea annexation treaty (1910)
In May 1910, the
Minister of War of Japan
The , also known as the Ministry of War, was the cabinet-level ministry in the Empire of Japan charged with the administrative affairs of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). It existed from 1872 to 1945.
History
The Army Ministry was created in ...
,
Terauchi Masatake
Gensui Count Terauchi Masatake ( ja, 寺内 正毅), GCB (5 February 1852 – 3 November 1919), was a Japanese military officer, proconsul and politician. He was a '' Gensui'' (or Marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army and the Prime Minister o ...
, was given a mission to finalize Japanese control over Korea after the previous treaties (the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1904
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1904 was made between representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire in 1904. Negotiations were concluded on February 23, 1904.Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington ...
and the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1907
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1907 was made between the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire in 1907. Negotiations were concluded on July 24, 1907.Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921-1922. (1922 ...
) had made Korea a protectorate of Japan and had established Japanese hegemony over Korean domestic politics. On 22 August 1910, Japan effectively
annexed
Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...
Korea with the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, was made by representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on 22 August 1910. In this treaty, Japan formally annexed Korea following the Jap ...
signed by
Ye Wanyong
Ye Wan-yong (; 17 July 1858 – 12 February 1926), also spelled Yi Wan-yong or Lee Wan-yong ( ko, 이완용), was a Korean politician who served as the 7th Prime Minister of Korea. He was pro-Japanese and is best remembered for signing the J ...
, Prime Minister of Korea, and Terauchi Masatake, who became the first Japanese
Governor-General of Korea
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
.
The treaty became effective the same day and was published one week later. The treaty stipulated:
* Article 1: His Majesty the Emperor of Korea concedes completely and definitely his entire sovereignty over the whole Korean territory to His Majesty the Emperor of Japan.
* Article 2: His Majesty the Emperor of Japan accepts the concession stated in the previous article and consents to the annexation of Korea to the Empire of Japan.
Both the protectorate and the annexation treaties were declared already void in the 1965 Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea .
This period is also known as Military Police Reign Era (1910–19) in which Police had the authority to rule the entire country. Japan was in control of the media, law as well as government by physical power and regulations.
In March 2010, 109 Korean intellectuals and 105 Japanese intellectuals met in the 100th anniversary of
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, was made by representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on 22 August 1910. In this treaty, Japan formally annexed Korea following the Jap ...
and they declared this annexation treaty null and void. They declared these statements in each of their capital cities (Seoul and Tōkyō) with a simultaneous press conference. They announced the "Japanese empire pressured the outcry of the Korean Empire and people and forced by Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910 and full text of a treaty was false and text of the agreement was also false". They also declared the "Process and formality of "Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910" had huge deficiencies and therefore the treaty was null and void. This meant the
March 1st Movement
The March 1st Movement, also known as the Sam-il (3-1) Movement (Hangul: 삼일 운동; Hanja: 三一 運動), was a protest movement by Korean people and students calling for independence from Japan in 1919, and protesting forced assimilation ...
was not an illegal movement.
Righteous army
One of the Korean righteous armies of rebels was formed in the earlier 1900s after the Japanese occupation. The Righteous Army was formed by Yu In-seok and other Confucian scholars during the Peasant Wars. Its ranks swelled after the Queen's murder by the Japanese troops and Koreans. Under the leadership of
Min Jeong-sik
Min or MIN may refer to:
Places
* Fujian, also called Mǐn, a province of China
** Min Kingdom (909–945), a state in Fujian
* Min County, a county of Dingxi, Gansu province, China
* Min River (Fujian)
* Min River (Sichuan)
* Mineola (Amtrak ...
,
Choe Ik-hyeon
Choe Ik-hyeon (; 1833–1906, also transliterated as Choe Ik-hyun) was a Korean Joseon Dynasty scholar, politician, philosopher, and general of the Korean Righteous Army guerrilla forces. He was a strong supporter of Neo-Confucianism and a very vo ...
and
Shin Dol-seok
Shin Dol-seok () was a Korean general of a Righteous Army that fought against the Japanese army in the early 20th century. He was born in Yeonghae (now Yeongdeok), North Gyeongsang Province.
Military career
Righteous armies emerged in the afterma ...
, the Righteous Army attacked the Japanese army, Japanese merchants and pro-Japanese bureaucrats in the provinces of
Gangwon
Gangwon or Kangwŏn may refer to:
* Gangwon Province (historical), the Goryeo, Joseon Dynasty and the Japanese Korean province
* Gangwon Province (South Korea), a province of South Korea, with its capital at Chuncheon. Before the division of Kore ...
,
Chungcheong
Chungcheong (''Chungcheong-do''; ) was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. Chungcheong was located in the southwest of Korea. The provincial capital was located at Gongju, which had been the capital of the kingdom o ...
,
Jeolla
Jeolla Province (, ) was one of the historical Eight Provinces of Korea during the Kingdom of Joseon in today Southwestern Korea. It consisted of the modern South Korean provinces of North Jeolla, South Jeolla and Gwangju Metropolitan City as wel ...
and
Gyeongsang
Gyeongsang ( ko, 경상도, ''Gyeongsang-do''; ) was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Gyeongsang was located in the southeast of Korea.
The provincial capital was Daegu. The region was the birthplace of the Kingdom ...
.
Shin Dol-seok, an uneducated peasant commanded over 3,000 troops. Among the troops were former government soldiers, poor peasants, fishermen, tiger hunters, miners, merchants, and laborers. During the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1907, the Korean army was disbanded on August 1, 1907. The Army was led by 1st Battalion Commander Major
Park Seung-hwan
Park Seung-hwan was a Korean major, war hero and independence activist of the Korean Empire. He was known for organizing the Battle of Namdaemun after his suicide as a response to the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1907 and the abdication of Emperor ...
, who later committed suicide, occurred after the disbandment, former soldiers of Korea start a revolt against the Japanese army at the
Namdaemun Gate
Namdaemun (, ), officially known as the Sungnyemun (, ), is one of the Eight Gates in the Fortress Wall of Seoul, South Korea, which surrounded the city in the Joseon dynasty. It is located in Jung-gu between Seoul Station and Seoul Plaza, ...
. The disbanded army joined the Righteous Armies and together they solidified a foundation for the Righteous Armies battle.
In 1907, the Righteous Army under the command of
Yi In-yeong
Yi or YI may refer to:
Philosophic Principle
* Yì (义; 義, righteousness, justice) among the 三綱五常
Ethnic groups
* Dongyi, the Eastern Yi, or Tung-yi (Chinese: , ''Yí''), ancient peoples who lived east of the Zhongguo in ancient Ch ...
massed 10,000 troops to liberate Seoul and defeat the Japanese. The Army came within 12 km of Seoul but could not withstand the Japanese counter-offensive. The Righteous Army was no match for two infantry divisions of 20,000 Japanese soldiers backed by warships moored near
Incheon
Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...
.
The Righteous Army retreated from Seoul and the war went on for two more years. Over 17,000 Righteous Army soldiers were killed and more than 37,000 were wounded in combat. Most of the resistance armies were hunted down and unable to defeat the Japanese army head-on, the Righteous Army split into small bands of partisans to carry on the War of Liberation in China, Siberia and the Baekdu Mountains in Korea. The Japanese troops first quashed the Peasant Army and then disbanded the remainder of the government army. Many of the surviving Korean guerrilla and anti-Japanese government troops fled to
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
and
Primorsky Krai
Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of the ...
to carry on their fight.
Early years and expansion (1910–1941)
Japanese migration and land ownership
From around the time of the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895, Japanese merchants started settling in towns and cities in Korea seeking economic opportunity. By 1910 the number of Japanese settlers in Korea had reached over 170,000, comprising the largest single '' nikkei'' community in the world at the time.
Many Japanese settlers showed interest in acquiring agricultural land in Korea even before Japanese land-ownership was officially legalized in 1906. Governor-General Terauchi Masatake facilitated settlement through
land reform
Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultural ...
, which initially proved popular with most of the Korean population . The Korean land-ownership system featured absentee landlords, only partial owner-tenants and cultivators with traditional (but no legal proof of) ownership. Terauchi's new Land Survey Bureau conducted
cadastral
A cadastre or cadaster is a comprehensive recording of the real estate or real property's metes-and-bounds of a country.Jo Henssen, ''Basic Principles of the Main Cadastral Systems in the World,'/ref>
Often it is represented graphically in a cad ...
surveys that established ownership on the basis of written proof (deeds, titles, and similar documents). The system denied ownership to those who could not provide such written documentation; these turned out to be mostly high-class and impartial owners who had only traditional verbal cultivator-rights . Japanese landlords included both individuals and corporations (such as the
Oriental Development Company
The Oriental Development Company (Kyūjitai/Hanja: 東洋拓殖株式會社, Hangul: 동양척식주식회사), established by the Empire of Japan in 1908, was a national enterprise built as a result of Japanese colonial exploitation policy towar ...
). Because of these developments, Japanese landownership soared, as did the amount of land taken over by private Japanese companies. Many former Korean landowners, as well as agricultural workers, became
tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is a person (farmer or farmworker) who resides on land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management, ...
s, having lost their
entitlements
An entitlement is a provision (accounting), provision made in accordance with a law, legal framework of a society. Typically, entitlements are based on concepts of principle ("rights") which are themselves based in concepts of social equality or en ...
almost overnight because they could not pay for the land reclamation and irrigation improvements forced on them. Compounding the economic stresses imposed on the Korean peasantry, the authorities forced Korean peasants to do long days of compulsory labor to build irrigation works; Japanese imperial officials made peasants pay for these projects in the form of heavy taxes, impoverishing many of them and causing even more of them lose their land. Although many other subsequent developments placed ever greater strain on Korea's peasants, Japan's rice shortage in 1918 was the greatest catalyst for hardship. During that shortage, Japan looked to Korea for increased rice cultivation; as Korean peasants started producing more for Japan, however, the amount they took to eat dropped precipitously, causing much resentment among them.
By 1910 an estimated 7 to 8% of all
arable land
Arable land (from the la, arabilis, "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the ...
in Korea had come under Japanese control. This ratio increased steadily; as of the years 1916, 1920, and 1932, the ratio of Japanese land ownership increased from 36.8 to 39.8 to 52.7%. The level of tenancy was similar to that of farmers in Japan itself; however, in Korea, the landowners were mostly Japanese, while the tenants were all Koreans. As often occurred in Japan itself, tenants had to pay over half their crop as rent, forcing many to send wives and daughters into factories or prostitution so they could pay taxes.
By the 1930s the growth of the urban economy and the exodus of farmers to the cities had gradually weakened the hold of the landlords. With the growth of the wartime economy throughout the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the government recognized
landlordism
Concentration of land ownership refers to the ownership of land in a particular area by a small number of people or organizations. It is sometimes defined as additional concentration beyond that which produces optimally efficient land use.
Distri ...
as an impediment to increased agricultural productivity, and took steps to increase control over the rural sector through the formation in Japan in 1943 of the , a compulsory organization under the wartime
command economy
A planned economy is a type of economic system where investment, production and the allocation of capital goods takes place according to economy-wide economic plans and production plans. A planned economy may use centralized, decentralized, part ...
.
The Japanese government had hoped emigration to its colonies would mitigate the population boom in the ''
naichi
is a term to distinguish the area of Japan from its outlying territories. It was an official term in the Japanese colonial empire, pre-war period, distinguishing Japan and its colonies in the Far East. After the end of World War II, the term ...
'', but had largely failed to accomplish this by 1936. According to figures from 1934, Japanese in Chōsen numbered approximately 561,000 out of a total population of over 21 million, less than 3%. By 1939 the Japanese population increased to 651,000, mostly from Japan's western prefectures. During the same period, the population in Chōsen grew faster than that in the ''naichi''. Koreans also migrated to the ''naichi'' in large numbers, especially after 1930; by 1939 there were over 981,000 Koreans living in Japan. Challenges which deterred Japanese from migrating into Chōsen included lack of arable land and population density comparable to that of Japan.
Anthropology and cultural heritage
In 1925, the Japanese government established the
Korean History Compilation Committee
Korean History Compilation Committee was established in June 1925 by the Japanese government. It is also known as "Korean History Compilation Society", "Association of the Compilation of Korean History", "Korean History Compilation Bureau" or "Soci ...
, and it was administered by the Governor-General of Korea and engaged in collecting Korean historical materials and compiling Korean history. According to the ''
Doosan Encyclopedia
''Doosan Encyclopedia'' is a Korean language encyclopedia published by Doosan Donga (두산동아). The encyclopedia is based on the ''Dong-A Color Encyclopedia'' (동아원색세계대백과사전), which comprises 30 volumes and began to be p ...
'', some mythology was incorporated. The committee supported the theory of a Japanese colony on the Korean Peninsula called
Mimana
Mimana (), also transliterated as Imna according to the Korean pronunciation, is the name used primarily in the 8th-century Japanese text '' Nihon Shoki'', likely referring to one of the Korean states of the time of the Gaya confederacy (c. 1st– ...
, which, according to E. Taylor Atkins, is "among the most disputed issues in East Asian historiography."
Japan executed the first modern archaeological excavations in Korea. The Japanese administration also relocated some artifacts; for instance, a stone monument (), which was originally located in the
Liaodong Peninsula
The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...
, then under Japanese control, was taken out of its context and moved to
Pyongyang
Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...
. As of April 2020, 81,889 Korean cultural artifacts are in Japan. According to the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation, not all the artifacts were moved illegally. Adding to the challenge of repatriating illegally exported Korean cultural properties is the lack of experts in Korean art at overseas museums and institutions, alterations made to artifacts that obscure their origin, and that moving Korean artifacts within what was previously internationally recognized Japanese territory was lawful at the time. The South Korean government has been continuing its efforts to repatriate Korean artifacts from museums and private collections overseas.
The
National Palace Museum of Korea
The National Palace Museum of Korea is a national museum of South Korea located in Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul.
History
The museum first began as the "Korean Imperial Museum", which was established in September 1908 and was originally located ...
, originally built as the Korean Imperial Museum in 1908 to preserve the treasures in the
Gyeongbokgung
Gyeongbokgung (), also known as Gyeongbokgung Palace or Gyeongbok Palace, was the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty. Built in 1395, it is located in northern Seoul, South Korea. The largest of the ''Five Grand Palaces'' built by the Joseo ...
, was retained under the Japanese administration but renamed Museum of the Yi Dynasty in 1938.
The Governor-General of Korea instituted a law in 1933 in order to preserve Korea's most important historical artifacts. The system established by this law, retained as the present-day
National Treasures of South Korea
A National Treasure () is a tangible treasure, artifact, site, or building which is recognized by the South Korean government as having exceptional artistic, cultural and historical value to the country. The title is one of the eight State-designa ...
and
National Treasures of North Korea
A National Treasure (국보; 國寶 : ) is a tangible artifact, site, or building deemed by the Government of North Korea to have significant historical or artistic value to the country.
History
The first list of Korean cultural treasures was des ...
, was intended to preserve Korean historical artifacts, including those not yet unearthed. Japan's 1871 Edict for the Preservation of Antiquities and Old Items could not be automatically applied to Korea due to Japanese law, which required an imperial ordinance to apply the edict in Korea. The 1933 law to protect Korean cultural heritages was based on the Japanese 1871 edict.
Gyeongbokgung, the Korean royal palace, was demolished during the Japanese colonial period. In 1911, after the annexation of Korea by Japan, ownership of the property was transferred to the Japanese Governor-General of Korea. In 1915, more than 90% of the buildings were torn down to make room for an exhibition.
Restoration of Gyeongbokgung has been undertaken since 1990. The Government-General Building was demolished in 1996 and the Heungnyemun (2001) and Gwanghwamun (2006–10) were restored according to their original placements and designs.
Anti-Chinese riots of 1931
Due to a waterway construction permit, in the small town of Wanpaoshan in Manchuria near
Changchun
Changchun (, ; ), also romanized as Ch'angch'un, is the capital and largest city of Jilin Province, People's Republic of China. Lying in the center of the Songliao Plain, Changchun is administered as a , comprising 7 districts, 1 county and 3 c ...
, "violent clashes" broke out between the local Chinese and Korean immigrants on 2 July 1931. The ''
Chosun Ilbo
''The Chosun Ilbo'' (, ) is a daily newspaper in South Korea and the oldest daily newspaper in the country. With a daily circulation of more than 1,800,000, the ''Chosun Ilbo'' has been audited annually since the Audit Bureau of Circulations w ...
'', a major Korean newspaper, misreported that many Koreans had died in the clashes, sparking a Chinese exclusion movement in urban areas of the Korean Peninsula. The worst of the rioting occurred in
Pyongyang
Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...
on 5 July. Approximately 127 Chinese people were killed, 393 wounded, and a considerable number of properties were destroyed by Korean residents.
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
further alleged the Japanese authorities in Korea did not take adequate steps to protect the lives and property of the Chinese residents, and blamed the authorities for allowing inflammatory accounts to be published. As a result of this riot, the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Kijūrō Shidehara
Baron was a pre–World War II Japanese diplomat and politician. He was Prime Minister of Japan from 1945 to 1946 and a leading proponent of pacifism in Japan before and after World War II. He was the last Japanese Prime Minister who was a m ...
, who insisted on Japanese, Chinese, and Korean harmony, lost his position.
Korean caste system
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
. In 1911, the proclamation "Matter Concerning the Changing of Korean Names" (') was issued, barring ethnic Koreans from taking Japanese names and retroactively reverting the names of Koreans who had already registered under Japanese names back to the original Korean ones. By 1939, however, this position was reversed and Japan's focus had shifted towards
cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is the process in which a minority group or culture comes to resemble a society's majority group or assume the values, behaviors, and beliefs of another group whether fully or partially.
The different types of cultural assi ...
of the Korean people; Imperial Decree 19 and 20 on Korean Civil Affairs (
Sōshi-kaimei
Sōshi-kaimei (創氏改名, ko, 일본식 성명 강요) was a policy of pressuring Koreans under Japanese rule to adopt Japanese names. It consisted of two parts. Ordinance No. 19, issued in 1939, required ''sōshi'', literally "creatio ...
) went into effect, whereby ethnic Koreans were forced to surrender their traditional use of clan-based
Korean family name
This is a list of Korean surnames, in Hangul alphabetical order. Note: (S) North–South differences in the Korean language, denotes South Korea. (N) North–South differences in the Korean language, denotes North Korea.
The most common Korean fa ...
system, in favor for a new surname to be used in the family register. The surname could be of their own choosing, including their native clan name, but in practice many Koreans received a Japanese surname. There is controversy over whether or not the adoption of a Japanese surname was effectively mandatory, or merely strongly encouraged.
World War II
National Mobilization Law
Deportation of forced labor
The combination of immigrants and forced laborers during World War II brought the total to over 2 million Koreans in Japan by the end of the war, according to estimates by the
Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers
was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the United States-led Allied occupation of Japan following World War II. It issued SCAP Directives (alias SCAPIN, SCAP Index Number) to the Japanese government, aiming to suppress its "milit ...
. In 1946, some 1,340,000 ethnic Koreans were repatriated to Korea, with 650,000 choosing to remain in Japan, where they now form the
Zainichi Korean
comprise ethnic Koreans who have permanent residency status in Japan or who have become Japanese citizens, and whose immigration to Japan originated before 1945, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South ...
community. A 1982 survey by the Korean Youth Association showed that conscripted laborers account for 13 percent of first-generation Zainichi Koreans.
From 1939,
labor shortage
In economics, a shortage or excess demand is a situation in which the demand for a product or service exceeds its supply in a market. It is the opposite of an excess supply ( surplus).
Definitions
In a perfect market (one that matches a sim ...
s as a result of
conscription
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
of Japanese males for the military efforts of World War II led to organized official recruitment of Koreans to work in mainland Japan, initially through civilian agents, and later directly, often involving elements of coercion. As the labor shortage increased, by 1942, the Japanese authorities extended the provisions of the
National Mobilization Law was legislated in the Diet of Japan by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 24 March 1938 to put the national economy of the Empire of Japan on war-time footing after the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War.
The National Mobilization Law had fifty ...
to include the conscription of Korean workers for factories and mines on the Korean Peninsula,
Manchukuo
Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China, Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 afte ...
, and the involuntary relocation of workers to Japan itself as needed.
Of the 5,400,000 Koreans conscripted, about 670,000 were taken to mainland Japan (including
Karafuto Prefecture
Karafuto Prefecture ( ja, 樺太庁, ''Karafuto-chō''; russian: Префектура Карафуто, Prefektura Karafuto), commonly known as South Sakhalin, was a prefecture of Japan located in Sakhalin from 1907 to 1949.
Karafuto became ter ...
, now part of Russia) for civilian labor. Those who were brought to Japan were often forced to work under appalling and dangerous conditions. Apparently Koreans were better treated than laborers from other countries, but still their work hours, food and medical care were such that large numbers died. This is clear from the 60,000 Korean laborers who died in Japan out of the nearly 670,000 who were brought there in the years 1939 to 1945. The total number of deaths of Korean forced laborers in Korea and Manchuria is estimated to be between 270,000 and 810,000.
Available online: The 43,000 ethnic Koreans in Karafuto, which had been occupied by the Soviet Union just prior to Japan's surrender, were refused repatriation to either mainland Japan or the Korean Peninsula, and were thus trapped in Sakhalin, stateless; they became the ancestors of the
Sakhalin Koreans
Sakhalin Koreans are Russian citizens and residents of Korean descent living on Sakhalin Island, who can trace their roots to the immigrants from the Gyeongsang and Jeolla provinces of Korea during the late 1930s and early 1940s, the latter ...
. Korean laborers were also found as far as the
Tarawa Atoll
Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati ''
Battle of Tarawa
The Battle of Tarawa was fought on 20–23 November 1943 between the United States and Japan at the Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, and was part of Operation Galvanic, the U.S. invasion of the Gilberts. Nearly 6,400 Japanese, Koreans, an ...
only 129 of the 1200 laborers survived. Korean laborers also worked in Korea itself, notably in
Jeju
Jeju may refer to:
* Jeju Island (Jejudo), an island near South Korea
* Jeju Province (formerly transliterated Cheju), a province of South Korea comprising Jejudo
**Jeju City, the biggest city on Jejudo
**Jeju dog, a dog native to Jejudo
** Jeju l ...
where in the later stages of the
Pacific War
The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
Korean laborers expanded airfields and built facilities at
Alddreu Airfield
Alddreu Airfield also known as Cheju-do No. 2 (K-40) Air Base was a former Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service and United States Air Force (USAF) air base on southern Jeju Island. It was mostly returned to farm land from the late 1960s onwards, ...
in order to block a US invasion of the Japanese mainland and in 1945 laborers on Songak Mountain (where several airstrips were located) were ordered to smooth down the slope in order to prevent American vehicles from going over.
Most Korean atomic-bomb victims in Japan had been drafted for work at military industrial factories in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the name of humanitarian assistance, Japan paid South Korea four billion yen (approx. thirty five million dollars) and built a welfare center for those suffering from the effects of the atomic bomb.
Korean service in the Japanese military
Japan did not draft ethnic Koreans into its military until 1944 when the tide of World War II turned against it. Until 1944, enlistment in the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
by ethnic Koreans was voluntary, and highly competitive. From a 14% acceptance rate in 1938, it dropped to a 2% acceptance rate in 1943 while the raw number of applicants increased from 3000 per annum to 300,000 in just five years during World War II.
Korea produced seven generals and numerous field grade officers (Colonels, Lieutenant-Colonels and Majors) during 35 years of colonial governance by Japan, despite institutionalized discrimination.
The first and the best-known general was Lieutenant General and Crown Prince
Yi Un
Prince Imperial Yeong, Yi Un, Crown Prince Uimin (also Euimin), also known as Yi Un, Yi Eun, Lee Eun and Un Yi (20 October 1897 – 1 May 1970), was the 28th Head of the Korean Imperial House, an Imperial Japanese Army general and the last crown ...
, who commanded Japanese forces in China and later became a member of the
Supreme War Council
The Supreme War Council was a central command based in Versailles that coordinated the military strategy of the principal Allies of World War I: Britain, France, Italy, the US and Japan. It was founded in 1917 after the Russian revolution and w ...
. The other six were graduates of the
Imperial Japanese Army Academy
The was the principal officer's training school for the Imperial Japanese Army. The programme consisted of a junior course for graduates of local army cadet schools and for those who had completed four years of middle school, and a senior course f ...
. They were: Lieutenant General Jo Seonggeun; Major General Wang Yushik; Lieutenant General Viscount Yi Beyongmu; Major General Yi Heedu; Major General Kim Eungseon (also military aide and personal guard to Prince
Yi Un
Prince Imperial Yeong, Yi Un, Crown Prince Uimin (also Euimin), also known as Yi Un, Yi Eun, Lee Eun and Un Yi (20 October 1897 – 1 May 1970), was the 28th Head of the Korean Imperial House, an Imperial Japanese Army general and the last crown ...
); and Lieutenant General
Hong Sa-ik
Hong Sa-ik (hangul 홍사익;hanja 洪思翊; 4 March 1889 – 26 September 1946), and was also known by the Japanese pronunciation of his name - Kō Shiyoku (Japanese: 洪 思翊) or Kou Shiyoku, was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Jap ...
, who was executed for war crimes committed while commanding the prison camps in the southern Philippines in 1944–1945.
Other Korean officers who served Japan moved on to successful careers in post-colonial South Korea. Examples include
Park Chung-hee
Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...
, who became president of
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
Paik Sun-yup
Paik Sun-yup (; November 23, 1920 – July 10, 2020) was a South Korean military officer. Paik is best known for his service during the Korean War, for being the first four-star general in the history of the South Korean military, and for his ...
, South Korea's youngest general who was famous for his command of the 1st Infantry Division during the defense of the Pusan Perimeter, and Kim Suk-won, a colonel of the Imperial Japanese Army who subsequently became a general of the South Korean army. The first ten of the Chiefs of Army Staff of South Korea graduated from the Imperial Japanese Army Academy and none from the
Korean Liberation Army
The Korean Liberation Army, also known as the Korean Restoration Army established on September 17, 1940, in Chongqing, Chungking, China, was the armed force of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Its commandant was General Ji Cheo ...
.
Officer cadets had been joining the Japanese Army since before the annexation by attending the Imperial Japanese Army Academy. Enlisted Soldier recruitment began as early as 1938, when the Japanese
Kwantung Army
''Kantō-gun''
, image = Kwantung Army Headquarters.JPG
, image_size = 300px
, caption = Kwantung Army headquarters in Hsinking, Manchukuo
, dates = April ...
in Manchuria began accepting pro-Japanese Korean volunteers into the army of Manchukuo, and formed the
Gando Special Force
The Gando Special Force (1 December 1938 - 1945) ( Japanese Hepburn romanization: ''Kantō Tokusetsutai'' ko, 간도 특설대, translit=Gando Teugseoldae) was an independent battalion within the Manchukuo Imperial Army composed primarily of ethni ...
. Koreans in this unit specialized in counter-insurgency operations against communist guerillas in the region of
Jiandao
Jiandao or Chientao, known in Korean as Gando or Kando, is a historical border region along the north bank of the Tumen River in Jilin Province, Northeast China that has a high population of ethnic Koreans. The word "Jiandao" itself, literall ...
. The size of the unit grew considerably at an annual rate of 700 men, and included such notable Koreans as General
Paik Sun-yup
Paik Sun-yup (; November 23, 1920 – July 10, 2020) was a South Korean military officer. Paik is best known for his service during the Korean War, for being the first four-star general in the history of the South Korean military, and for his ...
, who served in the Korean War. Historian Philip Jowett noted that during the Japanese occupation of Manchuria, the
Gando Special Force
The Gando Special Force (1 December 1938 - 1945) ( Japanese Hepburn romanization: ''Kantō Tokusetsutai'' ko, 간도 특설대, translit=Gando Teugseoldae) was an independent battalion within the Manchukuo Imperial Army composed primarily of ethni ...
"earned a reputation for brutality and was reported to have laid waste to large areas which came under its rule."
Starting in 1944, Japan started the
conscription
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
of Koreans into the armed forces. All Korean males were drafted to either join the Imperial Japanese Army, as of April 1944, or work in the military industrial sector, as of September 1944. Before 1944, 18,000 Koreans passed the examination for induction into the army. Koreans provided workers to mines and construction sites around Japan. The number of conscripted Koreans reached its peak in 1944 in preparation for war. From 1944, about 200,000 Korean males were inducted into the army.
During World War II, American soldiers frequently encountered Korean soldiers within the ranks of the Imperial Japanese Army. Most notably was in the
Battle of Tarawa
The Battle of Tarawa was fought on 20–23 November 1943 between the United States and Japan at the Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, and was part of Operation Galvanic, the U.S. invasion of the Gilberts. Nearly 6,400 Japanese, Koreans, an ...
, which was considered during that time to be one of the bloodiest battles in U.S. military history. A fifth of the Japanese garrison during this battle consisted of Korean laborers, where on the last night of the battle a combined 300 Japanese soldiers and Korean laborers did a last ditch charge. Like their Japanese counterparts, many of them were killed.
The Japanese, however, did not always believe they could rely on Korean laborers to fight alongside them. In ''Prisoners of the Japanese'', author Gaven Daws wrote, "
Tinian
Tinian ( or ; old Japanese name: 天仁安島, ''Tenian-shima'') is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of th ...
there were five thousand Korean laborers and so as not to have hostiles ''at their back'' when the Americans invaded, the Japanese killed them."
After the war, 148 Koreans were convicted of Class B and C
Japanese war crimes
The Empire of Japan committed war crimes in many Asian-Pacific countries during the period of Japanese militarism, Japanese imperialism, primarily during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Second Sino-Japanese and Pacific Wars. These incidents have b ...
, 23 of whom were sentenced to death (compared to 920 Japanese who were sentenced to death), including Korean prison guards who were particularly notorious for their brutality during the war. The figure is relatively high considering that ethnic Koreans made up a small percentage of the Japanese military. Judge
Bert Röling
Bernard Victor Aloysius "Bert" Röling (26 December 1906 – 16 March 1985) was a Dutch jurist and founding father of polemology in the Netherlands. Between 1946 and 1948 he acted as the Dutch representative for the International Military Tribu ...
, who represented the Netherlands at the
International Military Tribunal for the Far East
The International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE), also known as the Tokyo Trial or the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, was a military trial convened on April 29, 1946 to try leaders of the Empire of Japan for crimes against peace, conven ...
, noted that "many of the commanders and guards in POW camps were Koreans – the Japanese apparently did not trust them as soldiers – and it is said that they were sometimes far more cruel than the Japanese." In his memoirs, Colonel Eugene C. Jacobs wrote that during the
Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March (Filipino: ''Martsa ng Kamatayan sa Bataan''; Spanish: ''Marcha de la muerte de Bataán'' ; Kapampangan: ''Martsa ning Kematayan quing Bataan''; Japanese: バターン死の行進, Hepburn: ''Batān Shi no Kōshin'') was ...
, "the Korean guards were the most abusive. The Japanese didn't trust them in battle, so used them as service troops; the Koreans were anxious to get blood on their bayonets; and then they thought they were veterans."
Korean guards were sent to the remote jungles of
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
, where Lt. Col. William A. (Bill) Henderson wrote from his own experience that some of the guards overseeing the construction of the
Burma Railway
The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam–Burma Railway, Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). It was built from 1940 to 1943 ...
"were moronic and at times almost bestial in their treatment of prisoners. This applied particularly to Korean private soldiers, conscripted only for guard and sentry duties in many parts of the Japanese empire. Regrettably, they were appointed as guards for the prisoners throughout the camps of Burma and Siam." The highest-ranking Korean to be prosecuted after the war was Lieutenant General
Hong Sa-ik
Hong Sa-ik (hangul 홍사익;hanja 洪思翊; 4 March 1889 – 26 September 1946), and was also known by the Japanese pronunciation of his name - Kō Shiyoku (Japanese: 洪 思翊) or Kou Shiyoku, was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Jap ...
, who was in command of all the Japanese prisoner-of-war camps in the Philippines.
Comfort women
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, many ethnic Korean girls and women (mostly aged 12-17) were forced by the Japanese military to become sex slaves on the pretext of being hired for jobs, such as a seamstresses or factory workers, and were forced to provide sexual service for Japanese soldiers by agencies or their families against their wishes. These women were euphemistically called "
comfort women
Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ia ...
".
According to an interrogation report by
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
in 1944, comfort women were in good physical health. They were able to have a periodic checkup once a week and to receive treatment in case of spreading disease to the Japanese soldiers, but not for their own health. However, a 1996
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
Report detailed that "large numbers of women were forced to submit to prolonged prostitution under conditions which were frequently indescribably traumatic". Documents which survived the war revealed "beyond doubt the extent to which the Japanese forces took direct responsibility for the comfort stations" and that the published practices were "in stark contrast with the brutality and cruelty of the practice.
Chizuko Ueno
is a Japanese sociologist and Japan's "best-known feminist". Her work covers sociological issues including semiotics, capitalism, and feminism in Japan. Ueno is known for the quality, polarizing nature, and accessibility of her work.
Early l ...
at
Kyoto University
, mottoeng = Freedom of academic culture
, established =
, type = National university, Public (National)
, endowment = ¥ 316 billion (2.4 1000000000 (number), billion USD)
, faculty = 3,480 (Teaching Staff)
, administrative_staff ...
cautions against the claim that women were not forced as the fact that "no positive sources exist supporting claims that comfort women were forced labor" must be treated with doubt, as "it is well known that the great majority of potentially damaging official documents were destroyed in anticipation of the Allied occupation".
The
Asian Women's Fund
, also abbreviated to in Japanese, was a fund set up by the Japanese government in 1994 to distribute monetary compensation to comfort women in South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, the Netherlands, and Indonesia.Asian Women's Fund Online MuseuEs ...
claimed that during World War II, the Imperial Japanese Army recruited anywhere from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of women from occupied territories to be used as sex slaves.
Yoshimi Yoshiaki is a professor of Japanese modern history at Chuo University in Tokyo, Japan. He is a founding member of the Center for Research and Documentation on Japan's War Responsibility.
He was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, and studied at the University of ...
asserted that possibly hundreds of thousands of girls and women, mainly from China and the Korean Peninsula but also Southeast Asian countries occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army, as well as Australia and the Netherlands, were forced to serve as comfort women. According to testimonies, young women were abducted from their homes in countries under Imperial Japanese rule. In many cases, women were lured with promises of work in factories or restaurants. In some cases propaganda advocated equity and the sponsorship of women in higher education. Other enticements were false advertising for nursing jobs at outposts or Japanese army bases; once recruited, they were incarcerated in comfort stations both inside their nations and abroad.
From the early nineties onward, former Korean comfort women have continued to protest against the Japanese government for apparent historical negationism of crimes committed by the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
, and have sought compensation for their sufferings during the war. There has also been international support for compensation, such as from the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
, the Netherlands, Canada and the Philippines. The United States passed House of Representatives House Resolution 121 on July 30, 2007, asking the Japanese government to redress the situation and to incorporate comfort women into school curriculum.
Hirofumi Hayashi is a historian, an authority on modern Japanese history, and is a professor of politics at the Kanto Gakuin University. He has been conducting research on the Japanese occupation of Southeast Asia, Japanese war crimes, and war crimes trials includ ...
at the
University of Manchester
, mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity
, established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...
argues that the resolution has helped to counter the "arguments of ultrarightists flooding the mainstream mass media" and warned against the rationalization of the comfort women system.
Religion and ideology
Korean nationalist historiography
Korean nationalist historiography is a way of writing Korean history that centers on the Korean '' minjok'', an ethnically or racially defined Korean nation. This kind of historiography emerged in the early twentieth century among Korean intell ...
, centered on ''minjok'', an
ethnically
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
or
racially
A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...
defined Korean nation, emerged in the early twentieth century among Korean intellectuals who wanted to foster
national consciousness
National identity is a person's identity or sense of belonging to one or more states or to one or more nations. It is the sense of "a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language". National identity ...
to achieve Korean independence from Japanese domination. Its first proponent was journalist and independence activist
Shin Chaeho
Sin Chaeho, or Shin Chae-ho (; November 7, 1880 – February 21, 1936), was a Korean independence activist, historian, anarchist, nationalist, and a founder of Korean nationalist historiography (민족 사학, ''minjok sahak''; sometimes shortene ...
(1880–1936). In his polemical ''New Reading of History'' (''
Doksa Sillon
''Doksa Sillon'' or ''A New Reading of History'' (1908) is a book that discusses the history of Korea from the time of the mythical Dangun to the fall of the kingdom of Balhae in 926 CE. Its author––historian, essayist, and independ ...
''), which was published in 1908 three years after Korea became a Japanese protectorate, Shin proclaimed that Korean history was the history of the Korean ''minjok'', a distinct race descended from the god
Dangun
Dangun (; ) or Dangun Wanggeom (; ) was the legendary founder and god-king of Gojoseon, the first Korean kingdom, around present-day Liaoning province in Northeast China and the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. He is said to be the "gran ...
that had once controlled not only the Korean peninsula but also large parts of
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
. Shin and other Korean intellectuals like
Park Eun-sik
Park Eunsik (September 30, 1859 - November 1, 1925) was a Korean historian and the second President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai during part of 1925. Soon after the impeachment of Syngman Rhee from the preside ...
(1859–1925) and
Choe Nam-seon
Choe Nam-seon (April 26, 1890 – October 10, 1957), also known by the Japanese pronunciation of his name Sai Nanzen, was a prominent modern Korean historian, pioneering poet, and publisher, and a leading member of the Korean independence moveme ...
(1890–1957) continued to develop these themes in the 1910s and 1920s. They rejected two prior ways of representing the past: the
Neo-Confucian
Neo-Confucianism (, often shortened to ''lǐxué'' 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, and originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) in th ...
historiography of
Joseon Korea
Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...
's
scholar-bureaucrats
The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class.
Scholar-officials were politicians and governmen ...
, which they blamed for perpetuating a servile worldview centered around China, and Japanese colonial historiography, which portrayed Korea as historically dependent and culturally backward.
The work of these prewar nationalist historians has shaped postwar historiography in both
North
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography.
Etymology
T ...
and
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
.
Protestant Christian missionary efforts in Asia were quite successful in Korea. American Presbyterians and Methodists arrived in the 1880s and were well received. They served as medical and educational missionaries, establishing schools and hospitals in numerous cities. In the years when Korea was under Japanese control, some Koreans adopted Christianity as an expression of nationalism in opposition to the Japan's efforts to promote the Japanese language and the Shinto religion.Danielle Kane, and Jung Mee Park, "The Puzzle of Korean Christianity: Geopolitical Networks and Religious Conversion in Early Twentieth-Century East Asia", ''American Journal of Sociology'' (2009) 115#2 pp 365–404
In 1914 of 16 million Koreans, there were 86,000 Protestants and 79,000 Catholics. By 1934 the numbers were 168,000 and 147,000, respectively. Presbyterian missionaries were especially successful. Harmonizing with traditional practices became an issue. The Protestants developed a substitute for Confucian ancestral rites by merging Confucian-based and Christian death and funerary rituals.
Soviet invasion of Manchuria
The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian strategic offensive operation (russian: Манчжурская стратегическая наступательная операция, Manchzhurskaya Strategicheskaya Nastu ...
, and the impending overrun of the Korean Peninsula by U.S. and Soviet forces, Japan
surrendered
Surrender, in military terms, is the relinquishment of control over territory, combatants, fortifications, ships or armament to another power. A surrender may be accomplished peacefully or it may be the result of defeat in battle. A sovereign ...
to the Allied forces on 15 August 1945, ending 35 years of Japanese colonial rule.
American forces under General
John R. Hodge
General John Reed Hodge (June 12, 1893 – November 12, 1963) was a highly decorated senior officer of the United States Army. His final assignment before retiring was as Chief of Army Field Forces from 1952 to 1953.
Early life and career
Born ...
arrived at the southern part of the Korean Peninsula on 8 September 1945, while the Soviet Army and some Korean Communists had stationed themselves in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. U.S. Colonel
Dean Rusk
David Dean Rusk (February 9, 1909December 20, 1994) was the United States Secretary of State from 1961 to 1969 under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, the second-longest serving Secretary of State after Cordell Hull from the F ...
proposed to Chischakov, the Soviet military administrator of northern Korea, that Korea should be split at the 38th parallel. This proposal was made at an emergency meeting to determine postwar
spheres of influence
In the field of international relations, a sphere of influence (SOI) is a spatial region or concept division over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military or political exclusivity.
While there may be a formal al ...
, which led to the
division of Korea
The division of Korea began with the defeat of Empire of Japan, Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allies of World War II, Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached ...
.
After the liberation of Korea from Japanese rule, the "Name Restoration Order" was issued on 23 October 1946 by the
United States Army Military Government in Korea
The United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK) was the official ruling body of the Southern half of the Korean Peninsula from 8 September 1945 to 15 August 1948.
The country during this period was plagued with political and eco ...
south of the 38th parallel, enabling Koreans to restore their names if they wished. Many
Koreans in Japan
comprise ethnic Koreans who have permanent residency status in Japan or who have become Japanese citizens, and whose immigration to Japan originated before 1945, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South ...
chose to retain their Japanese names, either to avoid discrimination, or later, to meet the requirements for naturalization as Japanese citizens.
Korean independence movement
Upon Emperor Gojong's death, anti-Japanese rallies took place nationwide, most notably the
March 1st Movement
The March 1st Movement, also known as the Sam-il (3-1) Movement (Hangul: 삼일 운동; Hanja: 三一 運動), was a protest movement by Korean people and students calling for independence from Japan in 1919, and protesting forced assimilation ...
of 1919. A
declaration of independence
A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...
was read in Seoul. It is estimated that 2 million people took part in these rallies. The Japanese violently suppressed the protests: According to Korean records, 46,948 were arrested, 7,509 killed and 15,961 wounded; according to Japanese figures, 8,437 were arrested, 553 killed and 1,409 wounded. About 7,000 people were killed by Japanese police and soldiers during the 12 months of demonstrations.
After suppression of the uprising, some aspects of Japanese rule considered most objectionable to Koreans were removed. The military police were replaced by a civilian force, and
freedom of the press
Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic News media, media, especially publication, published materials, should be conside ...
was permitted to a limited extent. Two of the three major Korean daily newspapers, the '' Tōa Nippō'' and the '' Chōsen Nippō,'' were established in 1920.
Objection to Japanese rule over Korea continued, and the 1 March Movement was a catalyst for the establishment of the
Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea
The Korean Provisional Government (KPG), formally the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, was a partially recognized Korean government-in-exile based in Shanghai, China, and later in Chongqing, during the period of Japanese c ...
by Korean émigrés in Shanghai on 13 April 1919. The modern South Korean government considers this Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea the ''
de jure
In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...
'' representation of the Korean people throughout the period of Japanese rule.
The Japanese colonial rule of Korea after annexation was largely uncontested militarily by the smaller, poorly armed, and poorly trained Korean army. Many rebels, former soldiers, and other volunteers left the Korean Peninsula for
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
and
Primorsky Krai
Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of the ...
in Russia. Koreans in
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
formed resistance groups and guerrilla fighters known as
Dongnipgun
The Korean independence movement was a military and diplomatic campaign to achieve the independence of Korea from Japan. After the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910, Korea's domestic resistance peaked in the March 1st Movement of 1919, which ...
(Independence Army), which traveled across the Korean-Chinese border, using
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
tactics against Japanese forces. The
Japanese invasion of Manchuria
The Empire of Japan's Kwantung Army invaded Manchuria on 18 September 1931, immediately following the Mukden Incident. At the war's end in February 1932, the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo. Their occupation lasted until the ...
in 1932 and subsequent
Pacification of Manchukuo
The Pacification of Manchukuo was a Japanese counterinsurgency campaign to suppress any armed resistance to the newly established puppet state of Manchukuo from various anti-Japanese volunteer armies in occupied Manchuria and later the Communis ...
deprived many of these groups of their bases of operation and supplies. Many were forced to either flee to China, or to join the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
-backed forces in eastern Russia. One of the guerrilla groups was led by the future leader of communist North Korea,
Kim Il-sung
Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
, in Japanese-controlled Manchuria. Kim Il-Sung's time as a guerrilla leader was formative upon his political ideology once he came to power.
Within Korea itself, anti-Japanese rallies continued on occasion. Most notably, the Kōshū Students Anti-Japanese Movement on 3 November 1929 led to the strengthening of Japanese military rule in 1931, after which freedom of the press and freedom of expression were curbed. Many witnesses, including Catholic priests, reported that Japanese authorities dealt with insurgency severely. When villagers were suspected of hiding rebels, entire village populations are said to have been herded into public buildings (especially churches) and massacred when the buildings were set on fire. In the village of Teigan, Suigen District, Keiki Prefecture (now Jeam-ri, Hwaseong, Gyeongggi Province) for example, a group of 29 people were gathered inside a church which was then set afire. Such events deepened the hostility of many Korean civilians towards the Japanese government.
On 10 December 1941, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, under the presidency of
Kim Gu
Kim Gu (, ; August 29, 1876 – June 26, 1949), also known by his pen name Baekbeom (백범; ), was a Korean statesman. He was the sixth, ninth, and president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea; a leader of the Korean indepen ...
, declared war on Japan and Germany. Kim Gu organized many of the exiled Korean resistance groups, forming the "
Korean Liberation Army
The Korean Liberation Army, also known as the Korean Restoration Army established on September 17, 1940, in Chongqing, Chungking, China, was the armed force of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Its commandant was General Ji Cheo ...
". On the other hand,
Kim Il-sung
Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
led tens of thousands of Koreans who volunteered for the
National Revolutionary Army
The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...
and the
People's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five service branches: the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, ...
. The communist-backed
Korean Volunteer Army
The Yan'an faction () were a group of pro-China communists in the North Korean government after the division of Korea following World War II.
The group was involved in a power struggle with pro-Soviet factions but Kim Il-sung was eventually able ...
(KVA, 조선의용군, 朝鮮義勇軍) was established in
Yenan
Yan'an (; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi Province of China, province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers severa ...
, China, outside of the Provisional Government's control, from a core of 1,000 deserters from the Imperial Japanese Army. After the
Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation
The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian strategic offensive operation (russian: Манчжурская стратегическая наступательная операция, Manchzhurskaya Strategicheskaya Nastu ...
, the KVA entered Manchuria, where it recruited from the ethnic Korean population and eventually became the
Korean People's Army
The Korean People's Army (KPA; ) is the military force of North Korea and the armed wing of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Under the ''Songun'' policy, it is the central institution of North Korean society. Currently, WPK General Sec ...
of the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and ...
.
Administrative division
There were 13 provinces in Korea during Japanese rule: Keiki-dō,
Kōgen-dō
is a former Korean province, one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Shunsen (present day Chuncheon, South Korea). The province consisted of what are now the Kangwon and Gangwon provinces of North ...
,
Chūseihoku-dō
is a former Korean province, one of the administrative divisions of Chōsen,https://web.archive.org/web/20170406160926if_/http://www.drben.net/publishImages/Koreas_Report~Sources~Korea_Maps~Historic~1945~Map-Japan-Korea-1945-01~~element1972.jpg ...
,
Chūseinan-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Taiden. The province consisted of modern-day South Chungcheong, South Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality according to the 1936 census:
...
,
Zenrahoku-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Chōsen, with its capital at Jeonju, Zenshū (present day Jeonju, South Korea). The province consisted of what is now the South Korean province of North Jeolla Province, North Jeolla.
Population
Numbe ...
,
Zenranan-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Kōshū. The province consisted of modern-day South Jeolla, South Korea, as well as Jeju Island.
Population
Number of people by nationality according to ...
,
Keishōhoku-dō
was a former province of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Taikyū (contemporary Daegu, South Korea). The province consisted of what is now the South Korean province of North Gyeongsang.
Population
Number of people by nationalit ...
,
Keishōnan-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Fuzan (present-day Busan). The province consisted of modern-day South Gyeongsang, South Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality according ...
,
Heian'nan-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Pyongyang, Heijō. The province consisted of modern-day South Pyongan, North Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality according to the 1936 cen ...
,
Heianhoku-dō
was one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule, with its capital at Sinuiju, Shingishū. The province consisted of modern-day North Pyongan, North Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality according to the 1936 ...
,
Kōkai-dō
was an administrative division of Chōsen, with its capital at Kaishū (now Haeju, North Korea). The province consisted of what is now the Hwanghae Province of North Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality according to the 1936 cen ...
,
Kankyōnan-dō
is a former Korean province, one of the administrative divisions of Korea under Japanese rule. Its capital was Kankō. The province consisted of modern-day South Hamgyong Province, North Korea.
Population
Number of people by nationality accor ...
, and
Kankyōhoku-dō
, alternatively Kankyōhoku Province, Kankyo Hoku, or North Kankyō Province, was a province of Korea under Japanese rule. Its capital was at Seishin (Chongjin). The province consisted what is now the North Korean province of North Hamgyong, as ...
. The administrative capital Keijō was in Keiki-dō.
Economy and exploitation
Economic output in terms of agriculture, fishery, forestry and industry increased by tenfold from 1910 to 1945 as illustrated on the chart to the right.
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...
's
Atul Kohli Atul Kohli is a professor of politics and international affairs at Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University.
Education and Career
Kohli was promoted to full professor in 1991, and was also appointed as David ...
concluded that the economic development model the Japanese instituted played the crucial role in Korean economic development, a model that was maintained by the Koreans in the post-
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
era.
Randall S. Jones wrote that "economic development during the colonial period can be said to have laid the foundation for future growth in several respects." According to Myung Soo Cha of
Yeungnam University
Yeungnam University is a private research university located in Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang, South Korea. The university's predecessors, Taegu College and Chunggu College, were founded in Daegu in 1947 and 1950 respectively. In 1967, the two ...
, "the South Korean developmental state, as symbolized by Park Chung Hee, a former officer of the Japanese Imperial army serving in wartime Manchuria, was closely modeled upon the colonial system of government. In short, South Korea grew on the shoulders of the colonial achievement, rather than emerging out of the ashes left by the Korean War, as is sometimes asserted."
A 2017 study found that the gradual removal of trade barriers (almost fully completed by 1923) after Japan's annexation of Korea "increased population growth rates more in the regions close to the former border between Japan and Korea than in the other regions. Furthermore, after integration, the regions close to Korea that specialized in the fabric industry, whose products were the primary goods exported from Japan to Korea, experienced more population growth than other regions close to Korea did."
There were some modernization efforts by the late 19th century prior to annexation. Seoul became the first city in East Asia to have electricity, trolley cars, water, telephone, and telegraph systems all at the same time, but Korea remained a largely backward agricultural economy around the start of the 20th century. "Japan's initial colonial policy was to increase agricultural production in Korea to meet Japan's growing need for rice. Japan also began to build large-scale industries in Korea in the 1930s as part of the empire-wide program of economic self-sufficiency and war preparation." In terms of exports, "Japanese industry as a whole gained little ... and this is certainly true for the most important manufacturing sector, cotton textiles. This export trade had little impact, positive or negative, on the welfare of Japanese consumer." Likewise in terms of the profitability of Japanese investors: colonial Korea made no significant impact.
According to scholar Donald S. Macdonald, "for centuries most Koreans lived as subsistence farmers of rice and other grains and satisfied most of their basic needs through their own labor or through barter. The manufactures of traditional Korea – principally cloth, cooking and eating utensils, furniture, jewelry, and paper – were produced by artisans in a few population centers."
However, under Japanese rule, many Korean resources were only used for Japan. Economist
Suh Sang-chul
Suh Sang-Chul (1935–1983) was a South Korean economist, educator and administrator.
Biography
He was born as a son of the father, Suh Chang-sun who ran a brewery business and the mother, Gwak Bok-sun in Hongseong, South Chungcheong province ...
points out that the nature of industrialization during the period was as an "imposed enclave", so the impact of colonialism was trivial. Another scholar,
Song Byung-nak
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...
, states that the economic condition of average Koreans deteriorated during the period despite the economic growth. Cha primarily attributed this deterioration to global economic shocks and
laissez-faire
''Laissez-faire'' ( ; from french: laissez faire , ) is an economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies) deriving from special interest groups. ...
policies, as well as Chōsen's rapid population growth; the colonial government's attempts to mitigate this problem were inadequate. Most Koreans at the time could access only a primary school education under restriction by the Japanese, and this prevented the growth of an indigenous entrepreneurial class. A 1939 statistic shows that among the total capital recorded by factories, about 94 percent was Japanese-owned. While Koreans owned about 61 percent of small-scale firms that had 5 to 49 employees, about 92 percent of large-scale enterprises with more than 200 employees were Japanese-owned.
The Japanese government created a system of colonial
mercantilism
Mercantilism is an economic policy that is designed to maximize the exports and minimize the imports for an economy. It promotes imperialism, colonialism, tariffs and subsidies on traded goods to achieve that goal. The policy aims to reduce a ...
, requiring construction of significant
transportation infrastructure
Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, and ...
on the Korean Peninsula for the purpose of extracting and exploiting resources such as raw materials (timber), foodstuff (mostly rice and fish), and mineral resources (coal and iron ore). The Japanese developed port facilities and an extensive railway system which included a main trunk railway from the southern port city of
Pusan
Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...
through the capital of Seoul and north to the Chinese border. This infrastructure was intended not only to facilitate a colonial mercantilist economy, but was also viewed as a strategic necessity for the Japanese military to control Korea and to move large numbers of troops and materials to the Chinese border at short notice.
From the late 1920s and into the 1930s, particularly during the tenure of Japanese Governor-General
Kazushige Ugaki
was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and cabinet minister before World War II, the 5th principal of Takushoku University, and twice Governor-General of Korea. Nicknamed Ugaki Issei, he served as Foreign Minister of Japan in the ...
, concentrated efforts were made to build up the industrial base in Korea. This was especially true in the areas of
heavy industry
Heavy industry is an industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy equipment and facilities (such as heavy equipment, large machine tools, huge buildings and large-scale infrastructure); o ...
, such as chemical plants and steel mills, and
munition
Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weapo ...
s production. The Japanese military felt it would be beneficial to have production closer to the source of raw materials and closer to potential front lines for a future war with China.
Lee Young-hoon
Lee Young-hoon (이영훈, 李榮薰, born 1951 in Daegu, South Korea), Lee Yong-hoon, Rhee Yong-hoon, or Yi Yŏnghun is a former professor of economics at Seoul National University and the president of the Naksungdae Institute of Economic Res ...
, a professor at
Seoul National University
Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a national public research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, Seoul National University is largely considered the most prestigious university in South Korea; it is one of the three "S ...
states that less than 10% of arable land actually came under Japanese control and rice was normally traded, not robbed. He also insists that Koreans' knowledge about the era under Japanese rule is mostly made up by later educators. Many of Lee's arguments, however, have been contested.
According to
Alleyne Ireland
Walter Alleyne Ireland (19 January 1871, Manchester – 23 December 1951) was a British traveller and author on the tropical colonies of the British empire.
Life
His mother was the biographer Annie Elizabeth Nicholson Ireland and his father was th ...
, a British author, he referred to condition of Korea under Japanese rule. As of 1926, he described on his book "The New Korea", "looking forward from 1910, one thing was clear where many things were obscure, namely that Japan, having decided to make Korea part of her Empire, would deem the permanence of her occupation to be a major element of her national policy, to be held intact, at whatever cost, against internal revolt or foreign intrigue.
Alleyne Ireland
Walter Alleyne Ireland (19 January 1871, Manchester – 23 December 1951) was a British traveller and author on the tropical colonies of the British empire.
Life
His mother was the biographer Annie Elizabeth Nicholson Ireland and his father was th ...
"The New Korea" E. P. Dutton. 1926 Chapter I Introductory pp. 2 The Japanese refer with pride to their effective protection of life and property throughout a country but recently overrun by bandits, to the enormous increase during the past fifteen years in every branch of production, with its connotation of increased employment for Koreans, to the constantly mounting number of Koreans appointed to the government service are facts, that cannot be gainsaid. However, the Korean nationalists attribute to them a sinister significance."
Drug trade
Korea produced a small amount of opium during the earlier years of the colonial period, but by the 1930s, Korea became a major exporter of both opium and narcotics, becoming a significant supplier to the illicit drug trade, specifically to the opium monopoly created by the Japanese-sponsored Manchukuo government. The Government-General developed facilities dedicated to the production of morphine and heroin. Emigrant Koreans played an extensive role in drug trafficking in China, especially in
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
, where they were employed as poppy farmers, drug peddlers, or proprietors of opium dens - disreputable jobs that were at the bottom rung of the drug trafficking ladder. The initiation of opium and narcotic production in Korea was motivated by the worldwide shortage of opium and Japan's unfavorable environment for poppy cultivation, making the Japanese entirely dependent on foreign imports to meet domestic demand for medical opium. The Japanese discovered that Korea provided favorable climate and soil conditions for poppy cultivation; not only were the climate and soil conditions more suitable, but land and labor costs were lower than in Japan. Farmers in Korea were aware of the global demand for opium, and welcomed the idea of increasing the amount of land for poppy cultivation, an idea that was introduced to them by Japanese pharmaceutical companies. The sale and consumption of drugs were pervasive in Korea, where the country faced a substantial domestic drug abuse problem, appearing in the form of opium-smoking and morphine addiction. Within Korea, most illicit narcotics were supplied by Japanese druggists.
Changes to Korean culture under Japanese rule
Newspaper censorship
In 1907, the Japanese government passed the Newspaper Law which effectively prevented the publication of local papers. Only the Korean-language newspaper ''Daehan Maeil Shinbo'' () continued its publication, because it was run by a foreigner named
Ernest Bethell
Ernest Thomas Bethell (3 November 1872 – 1 May 1909), who is also known by his Korean name (, ), was a British journalist who founded a newspaper, '' The Korea Daily News'', antagonistic to Japanese rule.
Arrival in Korea
In 1904, Ernest Be ...
. For the first decade of colonial rule, therefore, there were no Korean-owned newspapers whatsoever, although books were steadily printed and there were several dozen Korean-owned magazines. In 1920 these laws were relaxed, and in 1932 Japan eliminated a significant double standard which had been making Korean publication significantly more difficult than Japanese publication. Even with these relaxed rules, however, the government still seized newspapers without warning: there are over a thousand recorded seizures between 1920 and 1939. Revocation of publishing rights was relatively rare, and only three magazines had their rights revoked over the entire colonial period. In 1940, as the Pacific War increased in intensity, Japan shut down all Korean language newspapers again.
Education
Following the annexation of Korea, the Japanese administration introduced a free public education system modeled after the Japanese school system with a pyramidal hierarchy of elementary, middle and high schools, culminating at the
Keijō Imperial University
, colloquially referred to as , was an Imperial University of Japan that existed between 1924 and 1946. This university was established in 1924 in Gyeongseong, known as Keijō during the period of Japanese occupation of Korea, now modern-day S ...
in
Keijō
Keijō, or Gyeongseong, was an administrative district of Chōsen that corresponds to the present Seoul, the capital of South Korea. :ko:경성부, -(Seoul of Korea under Japanese rule)
Honmachi
The central district of Gyeongseong was Ho ...
. As in Japan itself, education was viewed primarily as an instrument of "the Formation of the Imperial Citizen" (황민화; 皇民化; ''Kōminka'') with a heavy emphasis on moral and political instruction. Japanese religious groups such as Protestant Christians willingly supported the Japanese authorities in their effort to assimilate Koreans through education.
During colonial times,
elementary schools
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
were known as "Citizen Schools" (; ; ''kokumin gakkō'') as in Japan, as a means of forming proper "Imperial Citizens" (황국민; 皇国民; ''kōkokumin'') from early childhood. Elementary schools in South Korea today are known by the name ''chodeung hakgyo'' (; ) ("elementary school") as the term ''gungmin hakgyo/kokumin gakkō'' has recently become a
politically incorrect
''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
term.
During the colonial period, Japan established an officially equal educational system in Korea, but it strictly limited the rate of coed education. After the Korean Educational Ordinance was published in 1938, this situation changed slightly. "Primary education consisted of a mandated four years of primary school (''futsu gakkō''). Secondary education included four years of middle school for boys (''koto'' ''futsu'' ''gakkō'') and three years for girls (''joshi'' koto ''futsu gakko'') or two to three years of vocational school (''jitsugyo gakkō''). 1915, the Japanese announced the Regulations for Technical Schools (s''enmon gakko kisoku''), which legalized technical schools (''senmon gakkō'') as post-secondary educational institutions."
In addition, modernized (for the time) Korean educational institutions were excluded from the colonial system. 1911, Japanese government set The Regulations for Private Schools (''Shiritsu gakko kisoku'') which was aimed at undermining these facilities, which showed patriotic awakening.
The public curriculum for most of the period was taught by Korean educators under a hybrid system focused on assimilating Koreans into the Japanese Empire while emphasizing Korean cultural education. This focused on the history of the Japanese Empire as well as inculcating reverence for the
Imperial House of Japan
The , also referred to as the Imperial Family or the House of Yamato, comprises those members of the extended family of the reigning Emperor of Japan who undertake official and public duties. Under the present Constitution of Japan, the Emperor i ...
and instruction in the ''
Imperial Rescript on Education
The , or IRE for short, was signed by Emperor Meiji of Japan on 30 October 1890 to articulate government policy on the guiding principles of education on the Empire of Japan. The 315 character document was read aloud at all important school events, ...
''.
Integration of Korean students into Japanese-language schools and Japanese students in Korean-language schools was discouraged but steadily increased over time. While official policy promoted equality between ethnic Koreans and ethnic Japanese, in practice this was rarely the case. Korean history and language studies would be taught side by side with Japanese history and language studies until the early 1940s under a new education ordinance that saw wartime efforts increased and the hybrid system slowly weakened.
One point of view is that, although the Japanese education system in Korea was detrimental towards Korea's cultural identity, its introduction of public education as universal was a step in the right direction to improve Korea's
human capital
Human capital is a concept used by social scientists to designate personal attributes considered useful in the production process. It encompasses employee knowledge, skills, know-how, good health, and education. Human capital has a substantial ...
. Towards the end of Japanese rule, Korea saw elementary school attendance at 38 percent. Children of elite families were able to advance to higher education, while others were able to attend technical schools, allowing for "the emergence of a small but important class of well-educated white collar and technical workers ... who possessed skills required to run a modern industrial economy." The Japanese education system ultimately produced hundreds of thousands of educated South Koreans who later became "the core of the postwar political and economic elite."
Another point of view is that it was only after the end of Japanese rule with World War II that Korea saw true, democratic rise in public education as evidenced by the rise of adult literacy rate from 22 percent in 1945 to 87.6 percent by 1970 and 93% by the late 1980s. Though free public education was made available for elementary schools during Japanese rule, Korea as a country did not experience secondary-school enrollment rates comparable to those of Japan prior to the end of World War II.
Japanese policies for the Korean language
In the initial phase of Japanese rule, students were taught in Korean in public schools established by ethnic Korean officials who worked for the colonial government. While prior to this schools in Korea had used mostly
Hanja
Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom.
(, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...
Japanese writing system
The modern Japanese writing system uses a combination of logographic kanji, which are adopted Chinese characters, and syllabic kana. Kana itself consists of a pair of syllabaries: hiragana, used primarily for native or naturalised Japanese wo ...
, where most lexical roots were written in Hanja and grammatical forms in Korean script.Pratt, Rutt, Hoare, 1999. ''Korea: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary.'' Routledge. Korean textbooks from this era included excerpts from traditional Korean stories such as ''Heungbujeon/Kōfuden'' ( 흥부전/興夫伝).
In 1921, government efforts were strengthened to promote Korean media and literature throughout Korea and also in Japan. The Japanese government also created incentives to educate ethnic Japanese students in the Korean language. In 1928, the
Korean Language Society
The Korean Language Society is a society of hangul and Korean language research, founded in 1908 by Ju Sigyeong.
Hangul Day was founded in 1926 during the Korea under Japanese rule, Japanese occupation of Korea by members of the Korean Language S ...
inaugurated
Hangul Day
The Korean Alphabet Day, known as Hangeul Day () in South Korea, and Chosŏn'gŭl Day () in North Korea, is a national Korean commemorative day marking the invention and proclamation of Hangul (), the Korean alphabet, by the 15th century Korea ...
(9 October), which was meant to celebrate the
Korean alphabet
The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The let ...
in the face of accelerating Japanization of Korean culture.
The Japanese administrative policy shifted more aggressively towards cultural assimilation in 1938 (''Naisen ittai'') with a new government report advising reform to strengthen the war effort. This left less room for Korean language studies and by 1943 all Korean language courses had been phased out. Teaching and speaking of Korean was prohibited. Although the government report advised further, more radical reform, the 10-year plan would never fully go into effect.
Removal and return of historical artifacts
The Japanese rule of Korea also resulted in the relocation of tens of thousands of
cultural artifact
A cultural artifact, or cultural artefact (see American and British English spelling differences), is a term used in the social sciences, particularly anthropology, ethnology and sociology for anything created by humans which gives information ...
s to Japan. The issue over where these artifacts should be located began during the U.S.
occupation of Japan
Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the
Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States wi ...
. In 1965, as part of the Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea, Japan returned roughly 1,400 artifacts to Korea, and considered the diplomatic matter to have been resolved. Korean artifacts are retained in the Tōkyō National Museum and in the hands of many private collectors.
According to the South Korean government, there are 75,311 cultural artifacts that were taken from Korea. Japan has 34,369, the United States has 17,803, and France had several hundred, which were seized in the
French campaign against Korea
The French expedition to Korea (french: Expédition française en Corée, ) was an 1866 punitive expedition undertaken by the Second French Empire against Joseon Korea in retaliation for the execution of seven French Catholic missionaries. Th ...
and loaned back to Korea in 2010 without an apology. In 2010, Prime Minister of Japan
Naoto Kan
is a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from June 2010 to September 2011. Kan was the first Prime Minister since the resignation of Junichiro Koizumi in 2006 to serve for m ...
expressed "deep remorse" for the removal of artifacts, and arranged an initial plan to return the Royal Protocols of the Joseon Dynasty and over 1,200 other books, which was carried out in 2011.
Anthropology and religion
Japan sent anthropologists to Korea who took photos of the traditional state of Korean villages, serving as evidence that Korea was "backwards" and needed to be modernized.
As Japan established the puppet state of
Manchukuo
Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China, Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 afte ...
, Korea became more vital to the internal communications and defense of the Japanese empire against the Soviet Union. Japan decided in the 1930s to make the Koreans become more loyal to the Emperor by requiring Korean participation in the
State Shinto
was Imperial Japan's ideological use of the Japanese folk religion and traditions of Shinto. The state exercised control of shrine finances and training regimes for priests to strongly encourage Shinto practices that emphasized the Emperor as ...
devotions, and by weakening the influences of both Christianity and traditional religion.
The primary building of
Gyeongbokgung
Gyeongbokgung (), also known as Gyeongbokgung Palace or Gyeongbok Palace, was the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty. Built in 1395, it is located in northern Seoul, South Korea. The largest of the ''Five Grand Palaces'' built by the Joseo ...
Palace was demolished and the
Japanese General Government Building
The Japanese General Government Building ( ko, 조선총독부 청사, ''Joseon-chongdokbu Cheongsa''), also known as the Government-General Building and the Seoul Capitol, was a building located in Jongno District of Seoul, South Korea, from 19 ...
was built in its exact location. The Japanese colonial authorities destroyed 85 percent of all the buildings in Gyeongbokgung.
Sungnyemun
Namdaemun (, ), officially known as the Sungnyemun (, ), is one of the Eight Gates in the Fortress Wall of Seoul, South Korea, which surrounded the city in the Joseon dynasty. It is located in Jung-gu between Seoul Station and Seoul Plaza, ...
, the gate in Gyeongsong that was a symbol of Korea, was altered by the addition of large, Shinto-style golden horns near the roofs, later removed by the South Korean government after independence.
Christianity and communism
Protestant missionary efforts in Asia were nowhere more successful than in Korea. American Presbyterians and Methodists arrived in the 1880s and were well received. During the Japanese colonial period, Christianity became an expression of Korean nationalist opposition to Japan and its assimilation policies. In 1914, out of 16 million people, there were 86,000 Protestants and 79,000 Catholics; by 1934 the numbers were 168,000 and 147,000. Presbyterian missionaries were especially successful. Harmonizing with traditional practices became an issue. Catholics tolerated Shinto rites; Protestants developed a substitute for Confucian ancestral rites by merging Confucian-based and Christian death and funerary rituals.
Missionaries expressed alarm at the rise in communist activity during the 1920s. With the enactment of the
Peace Preservation Law
The was a Japanese law enacted on April 22, 1925, with the aim of allowing the Special Higher Police to more effectively suppress socialists and communists. In addition to criminalizing forming an association with the aim of altering the ''kokuta ...
in 1925, communist literature was banned throughout the Empire of Japan, including Chōsen; in order to avoid suspicion and permit dissemination, it was often disguised as Christian literature addressed to missionaries. Communist concepts, such as class struggle, and its partner nationalist movement were resonating well with some of the peasants and lower-class citizens of Chōsen; this was worrying to some missionaries because of communism's atheist components. At one point, communist students in Keijō held an "anti-Sunday School conference" and loudly protested religion in front of churches. This protest renewed Japanese governmental interest in censorship of communist ideas and language.
Legacy
Many Koreans became victims of Japanese brutality during the colonial period. Korean villagers hiding resistance fighters were dealt with harshly, often with
summary execution
A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
,
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
,
forced labour
Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...
, and
looting
Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...
.Global Security Watch-Korea William E. Berry, Jr., Prager security international 2008, Starting on 1 March 1919, an anti-Japanese demonstration began to spread, and as the Japanese national and military police could not contain the crowds, the army and even the navy were also called in. There were several reports of atrocities. In one instance, Japanese police in the village of Teigan, Suigen District, Keiki Prefecture (now Jeam-ri, Hwaseong, Gyeongggi Province) herded everyone into a church, locked it, and burned it to the ground. They also shot through the burning windows of the church to ensure that no one made it out alive. Many participants of the 1 March Movement were subjected to torture and execution.
Result of the name changes
Although officially voluntary, and initially resisted by the Japanese Colonial Government, 80% of Koreans voluntarily changed their name to Japanese in 1940. Many community leaders urged the adoption of Japanese names to make it easy for their children to succeed in society and overcome discrimination.
A study conducted by the United States
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
states that "the Korean culture was quashed, and Koreans were required to speak Japanese and take Japanese names". This name change policy, called
sōshi-kaimei
Sōshi-kaimei (創氏改名, ko, 일본식 성명 강요) was a policy of pressuring Koreans under Japanese rule to adopt Japanese names. It consisted of two parts. Ordinance No. 19, issued in 1939, required ''sōshi'', literally "creatio ...
(; ), was part of Japan's assimilation efforts. This was heavily resisted by the Korean people. Those Koreans who retained their Korean names were not allowed to enroll at school, were refused service at government offices, and were excluded from the lists for food rations and other supplies. Faced
with such compulsion, many Koreans ended up complying with the Name Change Order. Such a radical policy was deemed to be symbolically significant in the war effort, binding the fate of Korea with that of the empire. A number of prominent ethnic Koreans working for the Japanese government, including General Kō Shiyoku/Hong Sa-ik, insisted on keeping their Korean names. Another ethnic Korean, Boku Shunkin/Park Chun-Geum (박춘금, 朴春琴), was elected as a member of the Lower House from the Tōkyō Third District in the general election in 1932 and served two terms without changing his Korean name, but has been registered as
chinilpa
''Chinilpa'' ( ko, 친일파, lit. "pro-Japan faction") is a derogatory Korean language term that denotes ethnic Koreans who collaborated with Imperial Japan during the protectorate period of the Korean Empire from 1905 and its colonial rule in K ...
by the current Republic of Korea government.
Forced laborers and comfort women
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, about 450,000 Korean male laborers were involuntarily sent to Japan.
Comfort women
Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ia ...
, who served in Japanese military brothels as a form of
sexual slavery
Sexual slavery and sexual exploitation is an attachment of any ownership rights, right over one or more people with the intent of Coercion, coercing or otherwise forcing them to engage in Human sexual activity, sexual activities. This include ...
, came from all over the Japanese empire. Historical estimates range from 10,000 to 200,000, including an unknown number of Koreans. However, 200,000 is considered to be a conservative number by modern historians, and up to 500,000 comfort women are estimated to be taken. These women faced an average of 29 men and up to 40 men per day, according to one surviving comfort woman. However, of the 500,000, less than 50 are alive . Comfort women were often recruited from rural locales with the promise of factory employment; business records, often from Korean subcontractees of Japanese companies, showed them falsely classified as nurses or secretaries. There is evidence that the Japanese government intentionally destroyed official records regarding comfort women.
In 2002, South Korea started an investigation of Japanese collaborators. Part of the investigation was completed in 2006 and a list of names of individuals who profited from exploitation of fellow Koreans were posted. The collaborators not only benefited from exploiting their countrymen, but the children of these collaborators benefited further by acquiring higher education with the exploitation money they had amassed.
The "Truth Commission on Forced Mobilization under the Japanese Imperialism Republic of Korea" investigated the received reports for damage from 86 people among the 148 Koreans who were accused of being the level B and C war criminals while serving as prison guards for the Japanese military during World War II. The commission, which was organized by the South Korean government, announced that they acknowledge 83 people among them as victims. The commission said that although the people reluctantly served as guards to avoid the draft, they took responsibility for mistreatment by the Japanese against prisoners of war. Lee Se-il, leader of the investigation, said that examination of the military prosecution reports for 15 Korean prison guards, obtained from
The National Archives
National archives are central archives maintained by countries. This article contains a list of national archives.
Among its more important tasks are to ensure the accessibility and preservation of the information produced by governments, both ...
of the United Kingdom, confirmed that they were convicted without explicit evidence.
Koreans in Unit 731
Koreans, along with many other Asians, were experimented on in
Unit 731
, short for Manshu Detachment 731 and also known as the Kamo Detachment and Ishii Unit, was a covert biological and chemical warfare research and development unit of the Imperial Japanese Army that engaged in lethal human experimentatio ...
, a secret military medical experimentation unit in World War II. The victims who died in the camp included at least 25 victims from the former Soviet Union and Korea. General Shiro Ishii, the head of Unit 731, revealed during the Tōkyō War Crime Trials that 254 Koreans were killed in Unit 731.http://www.instiz.net/pt/2647658 – KBS Special-Korean Victims of Unit 731. "General Shiro Ishii, the head of Unit 731, revealed during the Tokyo War Crime Trials that 254 Koreans were killed in Unit 731." Some historians estimate up to 250,000 total people were subjected to human experiments.https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/feb/21/japan-excavates-site-human-experiments – Japan unearths site linked to human experiments. "Some historians estimate up to 250,000 people were subjected to human experiments." A Unit 731 veteran attested that most that were experimented on were Chinese, Koreans and Mongolians.https://www.nytimes.com/1995/03/17/world/unmasking-horror-a-special-report-japan-confronting-gruesome-war-atrocity.html?pagewanted=1 – Unmasking Horror – A special report.; Japan Confronting Gruesome War Atrocity. "A Unit 731 veteran attested that most that were experimented on were Chinese, Koreans and Mongolians."
Discrimination against Korean leprosy patients by Japan
Colonial Korea was subject to the same ''
Leprosy
Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...
Prevention Laws'' of 1907 and 1931 as the Japanese home islands. These laws directly and indirectly permitted the
quarantine
A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...
of patients in sanitariums, where forced
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
s and sterilization were common. The laws authorized punishment of patients "disturbing the peace", as most Japanese leprologists believed that vulnerability to the disease was inheritable. In Korea, many leprosy patients were also subjected to hard labor.
The Japanese government compensated inpatients.
Atomic bomb casualties
Many Koreans were drafted for work at military industrial factories in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. According to the secretary-general of a group named Peace Project Network, "there were a total of 70,000 Korean victims in both cities". Japan paid South Korea 4 billion yen and built a welfare center in the name of humanitarian assistance, not as compensation to the victims.
South Korean presidential investigation commission on pro-Japanese collaborators
Collaborators of the Imperial Japanese Army were prosecuted in the postwar period as
Chinilpa
''Chinilpa'' ( ko, 친일파, lit. "pro-Japan faction") is a derogatory Korean language term that denotes ethnic Koreans who collaborated with Imperial Japan during the protectorate period of the Korean Empire from 1905 and its colonial rule in K ...
, or "friendly to Japanese". In 2006
South Korean president
The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (often abbreviated to POTROK or POSK; ), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Korea. The president leads the State Council, and is ...
Roh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun (; ; 1 September 1946 – 23 May 2009) was a South Korean politician and lawyer who served as the ninth president of South Korea between 2003 and 2008.
Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for ...
appointed an investigation commission into the issue of locating descendants of pro-Japanese collaborators from the times of the 1890s until the collapse of Japanese rule in 1945.
In 2010, the commission concluded its five-volume report. As a result, the land property of 168 South Korean citizens has been confiscated by the government, these citizens being descendants of pro-Japanese collaborators."South Korea targets Japanese collaborators' descendants" ''The Telegraph'', 14 July 2010
List of governors-general of Korea
Below is a list of
governors-general of Korea
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
under Japanese rule:
*
Terauchi Masatake
Gensui Count Terauchi Masatake ( ja, 寺内 正毅), GCB (5 February 1852 – 3 November 1919), was a Japanese military officer, proconsul and politician. He was a '' Gensui'' (or Marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army and the Prime Minister o ...
(1910–1916)
*
Hasegawa Yoshimichi
Count was a field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and Japanese Governor General of Korea from 1916 to 1919. His Japanese decorations included Order of the Golden Kite (1st class) and Order of the Chrysanthemum.
Biography
Hasegawa was born ...
(1916–1919)
*
Saitō Makoto
Viscount was a Japanese naval officer and politician. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Saitō Makoto"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 809. Upon distinguishing himself during his command of two cruisers in the First Sino-Japanese War, Saitō rose ...
(1929–1931)
*
Kazushige Ugaki
was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and cabinet minister before World War II, the 5th principal of Takushoku University, and twice Governor-General of Korea. Nicknamed Ugaki Issei, he served as Foreign Minister of Japan in the ...
(1931–1936)
*
Yamanashi Hanzō
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, Army Minister and Governor-General of Korea from 1927 to 1929.
Biography Military career
A native of Osumi District in Sagami Province (part of the present-day city of Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture ...
(1927–1929)
*
Jirō Minami
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and Governor-General of Korea between 1936 and 1942. He was convicted of war crimes and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Life and military career
Born to an ex-''samurai'' family in Hiji, Ōita Prefec ...
(1936–1942)
*
Kuniaki Koiso
was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army, Governor-General of Korea and Prime Minister of Japan from 1944 to 1945.
After Japan's defeat in World War II, he was convicted of war crimes and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Early lif ...
(1942–1944)
*
Nobuyuki Abe
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, Governor-General of Korea, and Prime Minister of Japan.
Early life and military career
Abe was born on November 24, 1875, in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, the son of former samurai Abe Nobumitsu. H ...
(1944–1945)
In popular culture
* ''
Madam Oh
''Madam Oh'' is 1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Secon ...
'', 1965 South Korean film
* ''
Sea of Blood
''Sea of Blood'' () is a propagandist North Korean opera credited to Kim Il-sung. It was first produced as an opera by Sea of Blood Theatrical Troupe (''Pibada Guekdan'') in 1971. It was then later adapted into a novel by the Choseon Novelist ...
'', 1971 North Korean opera
* ''
The Flower Girl
''The Flower Girl'' () is a North Korean revolutionary genre theatrical performance, which was written by the country's sole President Kim Il-sung according to official North Korean sources.2008年03月26日金日成原创《卖花姑娘》5月 ...
Mulberry
''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identif ...
'', 1986 South Korean film
* ''
Modern Boy
''Modern Boy'' () is a 2008 South Korean film about a rich, hedonistic playboy played by Park Hae-il who cannot care less that his country was colonized, and falls head over heels in love with a beautiful independence fighter.
Plot
Seoul, 1937 ...
'', 2008 South Korean film
* ''
Capital Scandal
''Capital Scandal'' (; lit. "Scandal in Gyeongseong") is a 2007 South Korean television series starring Kang Ji-hwan, Han Ji-min, Ryu Jin, and Han Go-eun. It aired on KBS2 from June 6 to August 2, 2007 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for ...
'', 2008 South Korea TV drama
* ''
The Good, the Bad, the Weird
''The Good, the Bad, the Weird'' () is a 2008 South Korean Western action film directed by Kim Jee-woon and starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, and Jung Woo-sung.' The film is inspired by the 1966 Italian Spaghetti Western ''The Good, the Bad and ...
'', 2008 South Korea film
* ''
My Way
"My Way" is a song popularized in 1969 by Frank Sinatra set to the music of the French song "Comme d'habitude" composed by Jacques Revaux with lyrics by Gilles Thibaut and Claude François and first performed in 1967 by Claude François. Its E ...
'', 2011 South Korean film
* ''
Bridal Mask
''Bridal Mask'' () is a 2012 KBS2 period drama based on the popular Korean manhwa by Huh Young-man. Set in Seoul, Korea, during the 1930s Japanese colonial era, the story follows a man named Lee Kang-to, a Korean police officer commissioned by ...
'', 2012 South Korean TV drama
* ''
Assassination
Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
'', 2015 South Korean film
* ''
The Silenced
''The Silenced'' (; lit. ''Gyeongseong School: The Lost Girls'') is a 2015 South Korean mystery- thriller film written and directed by Lee Hae-young, starring Park Bo-young and Uhm Ji-won.
Plot
Set in Gyeongseong in 1938 during the Japanese occu ...
'', 2015 South Korean film
* ''
Spirits' Homecoming
''Spirits’ Homecoming'' (Korean: 귀향) is a 2016 South Korean period drama film written and directed by Cho Jung-rae. It was released in South Korea on February 24, 2016. Production of the film was halted several times due to financial issues, ...
'', 2016 South Korean film
* ''
The Handmaiden
''The Handmaiden'' (; ) is a 2016 South Korean psychological thriller film directed by Park Chan-wook and starring Kim Min-hee, Kim Tae-ri, Ha Jung-woo and Cho Jin-woong. It is inspired by the 2002 novel '' Fingersmith'' by Welsh writer Sarah W ...
'', 2016 South Korean film
* '' The Last Princess'', 2016 South Korean film
* ''
The Age of Shadows
''The Age of Shadows'' (; lit. "Emissary") is a 2016 South Korean period action thriller film directed by Kim Jee-woon and written by Lee Ji-min and Park Jong-dae. The film is set in Shanghai and Seoul in the 1920s and stars Song Kang-ho and Gon ...
Anarchist from Colony
''Anarchist from Colony'' () is a 2017 South Korean biographical period drama film directed by Lee Joon-ik about the life of independence activist Park Yeol, with Lee Je-hoon taking on the titular role. It premiered in South Korea on June 28, 20 ...
'', 2017 South Korean film
* '' Mr. Sunshine'', 2018 South Korean TV show
* ''
Pachinko
is a mechanical game originating in Japan that is used as an arcade game, and much more frequently for gambling. Pachinko fills a niche in Japanese gambling comparable to that of the slot machine in the West as a form of low-stakes, low-st ...
'', 2017 novel by
Min Jin Lee
Min Jin Lee (born November 11, 1968) is a Korean American author and journalist based in Harlem, New York City. Her work frequently deals with Korean and Korean American topics. She is the author of the novels '' Free Food for Millionaires'' ( ...
* ''
The Hymn of Death
''The Hymn of Death'' () is a 2018 South Korean television miniseries based on true events, starring Lee Jong-suk and Shin Hye-sun. It aired on SBS from November 27 to December 4, 2018, and is available on Netflix worldwide.
Synopsis
The ser ...
'', 2018 South Korean TV show
* ''
Different Dreams
''Different Dreams '' () is a 2019 South Korean television series starring Lee Yo-won, Yoo Ji-tae, Lim Ju-hwan and Nam Gyu-ri. It aired four episodes every Saturday on MBC TV from 20:45 to 23:10 ( KST), from May 4 to July 13, 2019.
The series ...
A Resistance
''A Resistance'' is a 2019 South Korean historical drama film directed by Cho Min-ho, starring Go Ah-sung, Kim Sae-byuk, Kim Ye-eun, Jeong Ha-dam and Ryu Kyung-soo.
Summary
Yu Gwan Sun was imprisoned in Seodaemun Prison since March 1, 1919. ...
'', 2019 South Korean film
* ''Whale Star: The Gyeongseong Mermaid'', 2019 webtoon by Na Yoonhee
* '' Beasts of a Little Land'', 2021 novel by Juhea Kim
* ''
Pachinko
is a mechanical game originating in Japan that is used as an arcade game, and much more frequently for gambling. Pachinko fills a niche in Japanese gambling comparable to that of the slot machine in the West as a form of low-stakes, low-st ...
'', 2022 Apple TV+ drama
See also
*
Sōshi-kaimei
Sōshi-kaimei (創氏改名, ko, 일본식 성명 강요) was a policy of pressuring Koreans under Japanese rule to adopt Japanese names. It consisted of two parts. Ordinance No. 19, issued in 1939, required ''sōshi'', literally "creatio ...
*
Japanese war crimes
The Empire of Japan committed war crimes in many Asian-Pacific countries during the period of Japanese militarism, Japanese imperialism, primarily during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Second Sino-Japanese and Pacific Wars. These incidents have b ...
*
Hashima Island
, commonly called , is a tiny abandoned island off Nagasaki, lying about from the centre of the city. It is one of 505 uninhabited islands in Nagasaki Prefecture. The island's most notable features are its abandoned concrete buildings, undistu ...
*
Comfort women
Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ia ...
*
Japan–Korea disputes
Korea and Japan had a long history between each other as immediate neighbors and at the start of the 20th century Korea was ruled by the Imperial Japanese government starting with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910. South Korea and North Korea ...
*
Taiwan under Japanese rule
The island of Taiwan, together with the Penghu Islands, became a dependency of Japan in 1895, when the Qing dynasty ceded Fujian-Taiwan Province in the Treaty of Shimonoseki after the Japanese victory in the First Sino-Japanese War. The sh ...
*
History of Korea
The Lower Paleolithic era in the Korean Peninsula and Manchuria began roughly half a million years ago.
Christopher J. Norton, "The Current State of Korean Paleoanthropology", (2000), ''Journal of Human Evolution'', 38: 803–825.
The earlies ...
Isabella Lucy Bird
Isabella Lucy Bird, married name Bishop (15 October 1831 – 7 October 1904), was a nineteenth-century British explorer, writer, photographer, and naturalist. With Fanny Jane Butler she founded the John Bishop Memorial Hospital in Srinagar i ...
Horace Newton Allen
Horace Newton Allen (April 23, 1858 – December 11, 1932) was a missionary, physician, and American ambassador to Korea. He was the first Protestant missionary in Korea, arriving there on September 15, 1884.
After treating Min Young-ik, a r ...
Walter Stucke
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...