Karl Ivanovich Weber (also Carl von Waeber; russian: Карл Иванович Вебер, – 8 January 1910) was a
diplomat
A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or interna ...
of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...
and a personal friend to
King Gojong of
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 ...
's
Joseon Dynasty
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 r ...
. He is best known for his 1885–1897 service as
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
's first consul general to Korea.
Early life and career
Weber was born to a middle-class family, and expressed an interest in the
history of Asia
The history of Asia can be seen as the collective history of several distinct peripheral coastal regions such as East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East linked by the interior mass of the Eurasian steppe. See History of the Mi ...
from an early age. He graduated from the
University of Saint Petersburg
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
in 1865, and joined the diplomatic service the following year. His first overseas posting was in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
; he was named Russian Consul in
Tianjin
Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...
in 1882.
In Korea
Weber signed the
Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Russia and Korea on 25 June 1884, and moved to
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
in April of the following year as Russia's first official representative to Korea.
He was accompanied by his wife as well as a housekeeper from
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
,
Antoinette Sontag.
[; available in English as ] His wife had personality conflicts with several other members of the
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
and
German expatriate communities of Seoul; in particular, she was believed to be responsible for a malicious rumour in the late 1880s that the German consul,
Ferdinand Krien, held orgies in the German legation.
During his early service in Korea, Weber developed his friendship with King Gojong; when the Russian government made known their intention to transfer him onward to another posting, King Gojong wrote a letter of protest to
Nicholas II of Russia
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pola ...
, dated 2 July 1895, in which he praised Weber's wisdom and asked that he be allowed to remain in Korea longer. His request was fulfilled when
Alexei Speyer, Weber's intended replacement, was instead posted to
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
,
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 ...
.
After the 1895 assassination of
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 ...
, Weber
personally offered King Gojong refuge in the Russian Legation building in Jeongdong (modern-day
Jung-gu, Seoul
Jung District () is one of the 25 districts of Seoul, South Korea.
Jung has a population of 131,452 (2013) and has a geographic area 9.96 km2 (3.85 sq mi), making it both the least-populous and the smallest district of Seoul, and is divided into ...
), where he lived between February 1896 and February 1897.
This time marked the height of Russian influence in Korea; Weber was able to persuade King Gojong to appoint a new cabinet consisting of a "pro-Russian faction" led by
Yi Wan-yong,
Yi Beom-jin, and Yi Yun-yong, and in May 1896 signed the
Komura-Waeber Memorandum with his Japanese counterpart
, granting Russia the right to station four companies of troops in the Korean peninsula, and requiring the Japanese to recognise the new cabinet.
Gojong was also quite impressed with Weber's housekeeper Sontag, and would go on to employ her as
majordomo
A majordomo is a person who speaks, makes arrangements, or takes charge for another. Typically, this is the highest (''major'') person of a household (''domūs'' or ''domicile'') staff, a head servant who acts on behalf of the owner of a large ...
in charge of household affairs after he returned to the palace.
In August 1902, Weber was sent to Korea to participate in the celebration of 40th Anniversary of coronation on 5 October 1902. The celebration was delayed to next year's Spring, and then 30 April 1903.
Later career
Speyer finally arrived to replace Weber in September 1897, whereupon he returned to
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
.
Weber would again visit Seoul in an official capacity in April 1903, on the eve 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 ...
, for further talks with King Gojong. He was a recipient of the
Order of St. Andrew
The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called (russian: Орден Святого апостола Андрея Первозванного, translit=Orden Svyatogo apostola Andreya Pervozvannogo) is the highest order conferred by both the ...
, Russia's highest order of chivalry.
He died in
Niederlößnitz and was buried in
Kötzschenbroda, today both
Radebeul
Radebeul ( hsb, Radobyle) is a town (''große Kreisstadt'') in the Elbe valley in the district of Meißen in Saxony, Germany, a suburb of Dresden. It is well known for its viticulture, a museum dedicated to writer Karl May, and a narrow gaug ...
. His tomb was designed by the architects
Otto Rometsch and
Adolph Suppes, with sculptures by
Ernst Thalheim.
Publications
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See also
*
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 ...
Notes
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Weber, Karl Ivanovich
1841 births
1910 deaths
Diplomats of the Russian Empire
Russian nobility
People from the Russian Empire of German descent
Saint Petersburg State University alumni
Expatriates from the Russian Empire in Korea
People from Meissen (district)
Ambassadors of the Russian Empire to China