The Korean Provisional Government (KPG), formally the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, was a partially recognized Korean

government-in-exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile u ...

based in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, and later in

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

, during the period of Japanese colonial rule in Korea. On 11 April 1919, a provisional constitution providing for a democratic republic named the "Republic of Korea" was enacted. It introduced a presidential system and three branches (legislative, administrative and judicial) of government. The KPG inherited the territory of the former

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 ...

. The Korean resistance movement actively supported the independence movement under the provisional government, and received economic and military support from the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...

("Chinese Nationalist Party"), 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 ...

, and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. After 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 ...

on 15 August 1945, figures such as

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 ...

returned. On 15 August 1948, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was dissolved.

Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (, ; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965) was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Ko ...

, who was the first president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, became the first

President of the Republic of Korea 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 ...

in 1948. The current South Korean government claims through the 1987-amended

constitution of South Korea The Constitution of the Republic of Korea () is the supreme law of South Korea. It was promulgated on July 17, 1948, and last revised on October 29, 1987. Background The Provisional Charter of Korea The preamble of the Constitution of South ...

that there is continuity between the KPG and the current South Korean state, though this has been disputed. The sites of the Provisional Government in Shanghai and

(Chungking) have been preserved as museums.

Background

The government was formed on 11 April 1919, shortly after 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 the same year during the Imperial Japanese colonial rule of the Korean peninsula. The Key members in its establishment included An Changho and

, both of whom were leaders of the

Korean National Association The Korean National Association (; Hanja: 大韓人國民會), also known as All Korea Korean National Association, was a political organization established on February 1, 1909, to fight Japan's colonial policies and occupation in Korea. It w ...

at that time. Changho played an important part in making Shanghai the center of the liberation movement and in getting KPG operations underway. As acting premier, he helped reorganize the government from a

parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democracy, democratic government, governance of a sovereign state, state (or subordinate entity) where the Executive (government), executive derives its democratic legitimacy ...

cabinet system to a

presidential system A presidential system, or single executive system, is a form of government in which a head of government, typically with the title of president, leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch in systems that use separati ...

Military activities

The government resisted the colonial rule of Korea that lasted from 1910 to 1945. They coordinated armed resistance such as the Northern Military Administration Office Army, the Korean Independence Army, and the

Korean Patriotic Organization Korean Patriotic Organization (), also known as Korean Patriotic Corps or Korean Patriotic Legion, was a secret organization that aimed to Assassination, assassinate prominent Japanese figures of the Empire of Japan. It was one of the independence ...

against 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 ...

during the 1920s and 1930s, including at the Battle of Bongoh Town in June 1920 and the

Battle of Chingshanli The Battle of Qingshanli was fought over six days in October 1920 between the Imperial Japanese Army and Korean armed groups in a densely wooded region of eastern Manchuria called Qīngshānlǐ ( ja, 青山里, ''Seizanri''; ko, 청산리, ''Cheo ...

in October 1920. Also, they hugely struck a blow to the Japanese military leadership in Shanghai's Hongkew Park, April 1932. This struggle culminated in the formation of the Korean Volunteer Corps in 1938 and 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 ...

in 1940, bringing together all Korean resistance groups in exile.

World War II

The government duly declared war against the

Axis powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

, Japan and Germany, on 9 December 1941, and the Liberation Army took part in allied action in

and parts of Southeast Asia. These efforts resulted in a guarantee from

, the United States, and the British in the

Cairo Conference The Cairo Conference (codenamed Sextant) also known as the First Cairo Conference, was one of the 14 summit meetings during World War II that occurred on November 22–26, 1943. The Conference was held in Cairo, Egypt, between the United Kingdo ...

of a liberated

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 ...

in the future, which was reaffirmed by the

Soviets Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Nationality policy in th ...

, the United States, and the British in the

Potsdam Conference The Potsdam Conference (german: Potsdamer Konferenz) was held at Potsdam in the Soviet occupation zone from July 17 to August 2, 1945, to allow the three leading Allies to plan the postwar peace, while avoiding the mistakes of the Paris Pe ...

. The Soviets declared war on Japan and invaded northern Korea. The US then struck

Hiroshima and Nagasaki The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the onl ...

which resulted in the

. The Soviets then began to strongly influence the parts of Korean they controlled. 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 ...

, the Korean Liberation Army was preparing an assault against Japanese forces in Korea in conjunction with the US

Office of Strategic Services The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the intelligence agency of the United States during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines for all branc ...

. On 15 August 1945, the Japanese empire began to collapse and Korea finally gained independence a few weeks later, ending 35 years of Japanese occupation. This independence was reaffirmed in the

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 ...

. Thus, the Korean provisional government's goal of ending Japanese rule in Korea was ultimately achieved when the Japanese surrendered on 2 September 1945.

After the Liberation of Korea

After the end of World War II, the US and the Soviets stationed military forces in Korea. The Soviets occupied the northern half of the Korea, declaring war on Japan, and formed the

Soviet Civil Administration The Soviet Civil Administration (SCA) was the government of the northern half of Korea from 24 August 1945 to 9 September 1948 though governed concurrently after the setup of the Provisional People's Committee for North Korea in 1946. Even thoug ...

after the end of World War II. Similarly, the US formed the United States Army Military Government in southern part of Korea. The leading members of Korean Provisional Government disagreed the system of trusteeship applied to the Korean Peninsula. Primarily, both sides of the political spectrum, with the left led by Centre-left politician Lyuh Woon-hyung and the right by Centre-right politician

Kim Kyu-sik Kim Kyu-sik, also spelled Kimm Kiusic (Korean language, Korean:김규식, Hanja:金奎植, January 29, 1881 – December 10, 1950), was a Korean politician and academic during the Korean independence movement and a leader of the Provisional Go ...

, disagreed with this system of trusteeship and resolved to cooperate despite having different opinions on governance. However, the president of the US,

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

declared the

Truman Doctrine The Truman Doctrine is an American foreign policy that pledged American "support for democracies against authoritarian threats." The doctrine originated with the primary goal of containing Soviet geopolitical expansion during the Cold War. It was ...

in March 1947. This doctrine accelerated what would be the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

and left long-lasting implications on the Korean Peninsula.

Formation

The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was founded in 1919 as part of 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 ...

. On 21 January 1919, rumors that

Emperor Gojong Gojong (; 8 September 1852 – 21 January 1919) was the monarch of Korea from 1864 to 1907. He reigned as the last King of Joseon from 1864 to 1897, and as the first Emperor of Korea from 1897 until his forced abdication in 1907. He is known ...

was poisoned by the Japanese imperial family came to light. This culminated in a demonstration that took place at the Emperor's funeral on 1 March. Among the 20 million Koreans present, 3.1 million people participated in the demonstration, about 2.20 million, 10% of the total population. There were 7,500 deaths, 16,000 injured, and 46,000 arrested and detained. The protests, which began in March and continued until May, included 33 people who had signed the Declaration of Independence, but were in fact held by the Japanese police. The independence movement's popularity grew quickly both locally and abroad. After the 1 March 1919, campaign, a plan was set up at home and abroad to continue expanding the independence movement. However, some were hesitant due to their obedience to the occupying powers. At that time, many independent activists were gathered in Shanghai. Those who set up independent temporary offices repeatedly discussed ways to find new breakthroughs in the independence movement. First, the theory of provisional government was developed, and it was generally argued that the government should organize a government in exile against the Chosun governor's office. However, it was argued that the party was not sufficiently equipped to form a government. Shanghai was a transportation hub and also a center of support for the Guangdong government led by Wu Yuan. In addition, there were delegates from Britain, France, Germany, and the United States, which allowed them to escape the influence of Japan. For this reason, independent offices flocked to Shanghai. Independence movements in Shanghai moved more aggressively in the summer of 1919. Seo Byeong-ho, Seung-hyung Cho, Dong-ho Cho, Park Chan-ik, and Sun Woo-hyuk met with the governments from Korea, Manchuria, the Russian Maritime Province and the Americas. Shanghai's independent offices provided accommodation for people from outside the country, centering on the French settlement, and organizing social gatherings for Koreans to create a close network. Around this time, the highly respected independent branch offices of Manchu and the Maritime provinces, such as Dongying, Lee, Shim, Kim DongSam, Shin Chae Ho, Cho Sung Hwan and Chaosang, came to Shanghai and were sent to Korea.

Paris Peace Conference

The Shinhan Youth Party wanted a promise of independence in Korea at the

1919 Paris Peace Conference Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (now Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off the c ...

and dispatched

as a delegate. Since his childhood, he had been studying at the Underwood Academy, where he received a Western education in English, Latin, theology, mathematics, and science. He was multilingual able to speak English, French, German, Russian, Mongolian and Sanskrit as well as Korean, Chinese and Japanese. He delivered the Korean Independence petition to President Woodrow Wilson in the name of the Shinhan Youth Party, and went to Paris, France, in January 1919 to submit a petition in the name of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. However, he was not allowed to attend the Peace Conference because the provisional government had not yet been established. Kim subsequently formed a provisional government to receive the credentials of officially representing the Korean government. Kim's trip to the conference became the motivation for the 1 March Movement and the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. 신한청년당 제출 13개조

Before his departure, Kim ordered the Shinhan Youth Party members to hold an independent demonstration, saying: "Even if sent to Paris, Westerners do not know who I am. To expose and propagate Japanese rule, one must declare independence in Korea. The person to be dispatched will be sacrificed, but what happens in Korea will fulfill my mission well."

communicated with the Shinhan Youth Party in Paris by radio, and they raised money for the lobbying effort. Inspired by

's arguments, the Shinhan Young Youth Party sent people to Korea and met with national leaders such as

Ham Tae-young Ham Tae-young, sometimes Hahm Tae Young, (October 22, 1873 – October 24, 1964) was a South Korean politician, pastor and leader of the Presbyterian Church of Korea. He was the third vice president of South Korea from 1952 to 1956. He was also a ...

and

Cho Man-sik Cho Man-sik ( ko, 조만식; pen-name Kodang; 1 February 1883 – 15 or 18 October 1950) was a nationalist activist in Korea's independence movement. He became involved in the power struggle that enveloped North Korea in the months following t ...

's order for independence demonstrations was the moment when the 1 March 1919 campaign began. Participants at the time of the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea were

, representative of the Shinhan Youth Group, Lyuh Woon-Hyung, Kim Cheol, Sun Woo Hyuk, Han Jin Kyo, Chang Deok soo, Cho Dong Ho, Seo Byung Ho and Kim In Jon. There were 30 people including Nam Hyung Woo,

Shin Ik-Hee Sin Ik-hui (Hangul: 신익히, hanja: 申翼熙) (9 June 1894 – 5 May 1956) was a Korean independence activist and politician during the period of Japanese rule. He was Speaker of the National Assembly during President Syngman Rhee's first t ...

Yi Si-yeong Seongjae Yi Si-yeong (Chosŏn'gŭl: 이시영; Hanja: 李始榮, December 3, 1868 – April 19, 1953) was a Korean politician, independence activist, educator and neo-Confucianist scholar. He was the first vice president of South Korea from ...

Yi Dong-nyeong Yi Dongnyeong (also spelled Yi Dong-nyung) was a Korean independence activist. He served as the fourth (1926), seventh (1927–1930), eighth (1930–1933), tenth (1935–1939), and eleventh (1939–1940) President of the Provisional Government of ...

, Cho Wan Gu,

Sin 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 shorte ...

Jo So-ang Jo So-ang (조소앙, 30 April 1887 – 10 September 1958) was a politician and an educator in Korea under Japanese rule. He participated in the Korean independence movement. He participated in drawing up a draft of the proclamation of the i ...

and Kim Dae Ji. In addition,

participated in the establishment, and

Ahn Changho Ahn Changho, sometimes An Chang-ho (; , November 9, 1878 – March 10, 1938) was a Korean independence activist and one of the early leaders of the Korean-American immigrant community in the United States. He is also referred to by his pen n ...

Yi Dong-hwi Yi Donghwi (; August 2, 1873 ~ January 31, 1935) was a prominent Communist politician of Korea, and the second Prime Minister of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. In 1911, Yi was exiled in Manchuria and moved to Primorsky ...

, and

were appointed between April to September 1919 and entered Shanghai. Hwang Ki-hwan became the chief secretary of the Korea provisional government's French branch.

Korean Imperial Household attempt to join the KPG

Former empire personnel also participated in the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Kim Gajin, who served as an observer of Hwanghae Province and Chungcheongnam-do during the reign of the empire, was a high-ranking official who was defeated in 1910 by the Japanese after being deprived of his country. He formed a secret independent organization called Daedong Dan after the 1 March Movement began in 1919, and served as governor. He was exiled to the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai, China in October 1919, and served as a provisional government adviser.

Kim Gajin, the fifth son of Emperor Gojong of the Korean Empire and one of the prime candidates for the prince, prepared a plan to escape to the Korean Provisional Government. The Prince Imperial Uihwa sent a letter and indicated his intention to participate in the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. In November 1919, the Prince Imperial Uihwa went to Andong, Manchuria, to escape to the provisional government in Shanghai, but was arrested after being apprehended by the Japanese army and forced to return home. The contents of the book, which was sent to the Provisional Government by the King, were published in an independent newspaper article on 20 November 1919. The current day of historians estimated the Prince Imperial Uihwa had thought of 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 ...

and tried to join the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea when he attended the

Roanoke College Roanoke College is a private liberal arts college in Salem, Virginia. It has approximately 2,000 students who represent approximately 40 states and 30 countries. The college offers 35 majors, 57 minors and concentrations, and pre-professional pr ...

in the US. The reason was Prince Imperial Uihwa's colleague was

and he had a relationship with

Establishment of the Provisional Council of the Republic of Korea

On 10 April 1919, 1,000 Chinese and Shinhan Youth Party people became the main actors in the "kimshinburo(Route Pere Robert)" a French tribe in Shanghai. On 11 April 1919, the National Assembly was established as the Republic of Korea, and the Republic of Korea adopted the Provisional Charter of the Republic of Korea as a democratic republic. After appointing

as the prime minister in charge of the administration, he appointed six ministers, including Ahn Chang-ho to the ministry of internal affairs,

to the ministry of foreign affairs,

Yi Donghwi Yi Donghwi (; August 2, 1873 ~ January 31, 1935) was a prominent Communist politician of Korea, and the second Prime Minister of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. In 1911, Yi was exiled in Manchuria and moved to Primorsky ...

to the ministry of defense,

to the ministry of the law, Moon Chang-bum to the ministry of the traffic and Choi Jae-hyung to the ministry of finance. On 11 November, the government announced its establishment. On 22 April 1957 representatives of the 2nd Uijeongwon attended and representatives of the eight Korean provinces with representatives of Russia, China, and USA. The chairman was

Yi Dongnyeong Yi Dongnyeong (also spelled Yi Dong-nyung) was a Korean independence activist. He served as the fourth (1926), seventh (1927–1930), eighth (1930–1933), tenth (1935–1939), and eleventh (1939–1940) President of the Provisional Government of ...

and vice-chairman was Sohn Jung-do elected in this time. The had the same function as the National Assembly, such as the resolution of bills and the election of a temporary president. Prior to this, on 17 March 1919, the Provisional Government of the Korean People's Congress was established in the Russian Maritime Province, followed by the establishment of the Hanseong Provisional Government in Kyungsung on 23 April. The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai raised the issue of integration. Negotiations proceeded between the Korean National Assembly and the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Won Sehun, who was selected as representative of the National Assembly of Korea, came to Shanghai and negotiated. Both argued that the center of the government should be placed in the area, but that only the departments of the subordinate should be placed on both sides. Despite the two arguments, they were eager to establish a single government as well. Finally, on 11 September 1919, the Korean National Assembly of the Russian Maritime Province and the Hanseong Provisional Government of Gyeongseong were incorporated into the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai, China. As a result, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was able to develop into a single unified government representing various independence movements scattered in Korea, China, and Russia, as well as domestic and foreign Koreans.

Representative contents of the Provisional charter of the Republic of Korea

Article 1, The Republic of Korea shall be a

Democratic republic A democratic republic is a form of government operating on principles adopted from a republic and a democracy. As a cross between two exceedingly similar systems, democratic republics may function on principles shared by both republics and democrac ...

. Article 2, The Republic of Korea shall be governed by the Provisional Government's resolution of the Provisional Council of the Republic of Korea. Article 3, The people of the Republic of Korea have no class of men and women, no distinction, and no class of rich and poor, and are all equal. Article 4, The people of the Republic of Korea enjoy the freedom of religion, press, authorship, publication, association, assembly, communication, address transfer, physical and ownership. Article 5, Those qualified as citizens of the Republic of Korea shall have the right to vote and the right to the candidacy of eligibility for election. Article 6, The people of the Republic of Korea have the obligation of education, tax payment, and military service. Article 7, The Republic of Korea joins the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

to exercise the spirit founded by the will of God to the world and further contribute to human culture and peace. Article 8, The Republic of Korea gives preferential treatment to the former

Korean Imperial Household The House of Yi, also called the Yi dynasty (also transcribed as the Lee dynasty), was the royal family of the Joseon dynasty and later the imperial family of the Korean Empire, descended from the Joseon founder Yi Seong-gye. All of his descendant ...

. Article 9, The abolition of the death penalty, corporal punishment, and prostitution system shall be made. Article 10, The Provisional Government shall convene the National Assembly within one year after the restoration of the national territory.

Foreign relations

In 1919, when US President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

advocated for

national self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a '' jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It sta ...

, Rhee promoted the

League of Nations mandate A League of Nations mandate was a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I, or the legal instruments that contained the internationally agreed-upon terms for administ ...

in the United States, and

pushed for independence under the approval of a victorious country in Paris. Eckert, Carter J., Lee, Ki-baik, Lew, Young Ick, Robinson, Michael & Wagner, Edward W. (1990). ''Korea old and new''. Seoul: Ilchokak. The provisional government gained approval from

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

through its diplomatic efforts. Meanwhile, in 1944, the government received approval from the

, the head of the KPG's diplomatic department, met with the French ambassador in Chongqing and was quoted as saying that the

French government The Government of France ( French: ''Gouvernement français''), officially the Government of the French Republic (''Gouvernement de la République française'' ), exercises executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister, who ...

would give unofficial approval to the government in April 1945. However, the government did not gain formal recognition from the US, UK, and other world powers. In 2019, the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...

adopted a specific resolution that stated the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was essential to the success of Korean democracy.

Transition of power

The Korean

government in exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile us ...

was established to lead the independence movement on the Korean Peninsula against colonial rule. It was established on 11 April 1919, in Shanghai, China. On 11 September of the same year, it established a single government in Shanghai by integrating temporary governments such as those of

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 ...

and Russia's Maritime Province. Kim Gu in 1949

The Provisional Constitution was enacted to form the Republic of Korea as a democratic republic. It introduced the presidential system and established separate legislative, administrative and judicial branches. It succeeded the territory of the

. Interim president Rhee was impeached and succeeded by

. Under the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, he actively supported the independence movement, including the organization of the Korean Liberation Army, and received economic and military support from the Chinese Nationalists, the Soviet Union, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. After the liberation on 15 August 1945, temporary government factors such as

returned to Korea. On 15 August 1948, the Korean exile government and the KPG were dissolved. Rhee, who was the first president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, became the first President of the Republic of Korea in 1948. The current South Korean government through the national constitution revised in 1987 states that the South Korean people inherited the rule of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, though this has been criticized by some historians as constituting revisionism.

Celebration

On Thursday, 11 April 2019, the Government of South Korea celebrated the 100th anniversary of build the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Yeouido Park. This time President of South Korea

Moon Jae-in Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...

visited the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Therefore

Prime Minister of South Korea The prime minister of the Republic of Korea (PMOTROK or PMOSK; ) is the deputy head of government and the second highest political office of South Korea who is appointed by the President of the Republic of Korea, with the National Assembly's app ...

Lee Nak-yon Lee Nak-yon (; born 20 December 1952), also known as Lee Nak-yeon, is a South Korean politician who served as the 41st Prime Minister of South Korea from 2017 to 2020. A member of the Democratic Party of Korea, he is the longest-serving prime ...

, Speaker of the National Assembly

Moon Hee-sang Moon Hee-sang (Korean: 문희상; Hanja: 文喜相; born 3 March 1945) is a South Korean politician. He has a bachelor's degree in law from Seoul National University. He is a member of the National Assembly, and was the interim leader of the New ...

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: app ...

Park Han-ki and many of the (members of Independent activists' descendant or surviving family)'s peoples joined the 100th Anniversary of the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. In this celebration Liberation Association's peoples read the "Provisional charter of the Republic of Korea". South Korean actor

Kang Ha-neul Kang Ha-neul (born Kim Ha-neul on February 21, 1990) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in television dramas ''The Heirs'' (2013), ''Misaeng: Incomplete Life (2014)'', ''Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo'' (2016), ''When the ...

read the storytelling style about the Dream of Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea's peoples and ex-member of

K-pop K-pop (), short for Korean popular music, is a form of popular music originating in South Korea as part of South Korean culture. It includes styles and genres from around the world, such as pop, hip hop, R&B, experimental, rock, jazz, gos ...

boy band

Shinee Shinee ( ; ko, 샤이니, Syaini; ja, シャイニー, Shainī; stylized as SHINee) is a South Korean boy band formed by SM Entertainment in 2008. The group's musical impact in their native country has earned them numerous accolades and th ...

and South Korean actor

Onew Lee Jin-ki (; born December 14, 1989), better known by his stage name Onew, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, actor and host. Born in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi-do, Onew was discovered at the 2006 SM Academy Casting and signed a contract with ...

performed the military musical titled Shinheung Military Academy.

List of presidents

Prime ministers and presidents

(11 September 1919 – 21 March 1925) – Impeached by the provisional assembly :ko:이승만 **

(16 June 1924 – 11 December 1924) – Acting **

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 presid ...

(11 December 1924 – 24 March 1925) – Acting * Park Eun-sik (24 March 1925 – September 1925)

Presidents of the Governance and State Council Directory

* (September 1925) – Acting *

Yi Sang-ryong Yi Sang-ryong (November 24, 1859 – June 15, 1932) was a Korean Liberation activist, serving as the third president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea from 1925 to 1926. Yi Sang-ryong, along with Yi Si-yeong and Yi Dong-nyun ...

(September 1925 – January 1926) *

Yang Gi-tak Yang Gi-tak (April 2, 1871 – April 20, 1938) was one of the leaders of Korean independence movement who served as the 9th president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea from 1933 to 1935. Korea Daily News In 1904, Yang and ...

(January 1926 – 29 April 1926) * Yi Dongnyeong (29 April – 3 May 1926) * Ahn Chang-ho (3 – 16 May 1926) * Yi Dong-nyeong (16 May – 7 July 1926) *

Hong Jin Hong Jin (27 August 1877 – 9 September 1946), also known as Hong Myeon-hui, was a leader of the Korean independence movement. He is also sometimes known by his pen name Mano (만오, 晩悟), and his Christian name, Andre. He was born under th ...

(7 July – 14 December 1926) *

Kim Koo 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 ...

(14 December 1926 – August 1927)

Chairmen of the State Council

* Yi Dongnyeong (August 1927 – 24 June 1933) * (24 June 1933 – October 1933) * Yi Dongnyeong (October 1933 – 13 March 1940) – Died in office * Kim Koo (1940 – March 1947) * Syngman Rhee (March 1947 – 15 August 1948) – Became the first 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 ...

(24 July 1948 – 26 April 1960)

Gallery

File:Birthplace of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea.jpg, No. 50, Ruijin No. 2 Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai, the birthplace of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea File:Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea.jpg, Photo memorializing the establishment of the Provisional Government, 1919 File:Entrance of Provisional Government of ROK in Shanghai.JPG, Site of the Provisional Government in Shanghai File:Lakeside Building Cluster 12 2021-04.jpg, Site of the Provisional Government in Hangzhou File:Liuzhou Lequnshe Jiuzhi 2014.03.01 13-44-16.jpg, Provisional Government in

Liuzhou Liuzhou (; , IPA Pronunciation:) is a prefecture-level city in north-central Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. The prefecture's population was 3,758,700 in 2010, including 1,436,599 in the built-up area made of 4 urban ...

File:Daihan Minguok Limshi Zhengfu.jpg, Museum of the Provisional Government in

File:Taegeukgi in Provisional Government of ROK, Shanghai.JPG, Taegeukgi in the Provisional Government headquarters in Shanghai File:Office of Kim Gu in Provisional Government of ROK, Shanghai.JPG, Office of Kim Gu in the Provisional Government headquarters in Shanghai File:大韩民国临时政府对日宣战书.JPG, Declaration of war against the

by the Provisional Government File:Migration of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, NMKCH.jpg, Migration map of the Provisional Government

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea 1919 in Korea

Korea, Republic of South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

Korean independence movement Political history of Korea

Republicanism in Korea States and territories established in 1919 States and territories disestablished in 1948 1919 establishments in Korea 1948 disestablishments in Korea