Lee Bong-chang (August 10, 1900 – October 10, 1932) was a Korean independence activist during the

Japanese occupation of Korea Between 1910 and 1945, Korea was ruled as a part of the Empire of Japan. Joseon, Joseon Korea had come into the Japanese sphere of influence with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876; a complex coalition of the Meiji period, Meiji government, military ...

. In 1932, he attempted unsuccessfully to assassinate Japanese emperor

Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

with a

hand grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...

, which became known as the Sakuradamon Incident.

Biography

Born in Hanseongbu (present-day

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 ...

) to Lee Jin-gyu (이진규, 李鎭奎), Lee Bong-chang was raised in poverty. He graduated from Munchang Elementary School in

Yongsan Yongsan District (, ) is one of the 25 districts of Seoul, South Korea. Yongsan has a population of 231,685 (2020) and has a geographic area of , and is divided into 19 '' dong'' (administrative neighborhoods). Yongsan is located in central Seoul ...

, later working as a shop clerk and an apprentice railroad engineer. In 1925, he traveled to Japan with his older brother, Lee Beom-tae. He was adopted by a Japanese family in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

and took on the Japanese name Kinoshita Shoichi (木下昌一). He vowed to jump into the independence movement rather than wander around thinking that the Japanese invasion threatened the livelihood of the Korean people. In December 1930, he moved to Shanghai, China, and visited office in January 1931 to appeal for his dedication to the independence movement, but the executives of the group did not accept his behavior as suspicious. However, Kim Gu, the president 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 ...

and the leader of the independence movement, recognized Lee Bong-chang's true intentions. Lee joined the Korea Patriotic Legion, which Kim had organized, and made plans to assassinate

, the Japanese emperor. After obtaining grenades, Lee made an oath at Kim Hae San's residence on December 13, 1931, saying: "I do swear, with singleness of heart, to become a member of the Korea Patriotic Legion, which is dedicated to restoring independence and liberty to our fatherland, and to slaughter the enemy's leader." A commemorative photograph was then taken with Lee holding a hand grenade in each hand. He then set off for

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 ...

on December 17. Lee Bong-chang declaration

On January 8, 1932 at the Sakuradamon (櫻田門) gate of Tokyo's Imperial Palace, Lee Bong-chang hurled a pair of hand grenades at Hirohito. One of Hirohito's guards was injured, but the Japanese emperor escaped harm. Lee was arrested on the spot. He was sentenced to death in a

secret trial A secret trial is a trial that is not open to the public or generally reported in the news, especially any in-trial proceedings. Generally, no official record of the case or the judge's verdict is made available. Often there is no indictment. ...

, and was hanged at

Ichigaya is an area in the eastern portion of Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. Places in Ichigaya *Hosei University Ichigaya Campus *Chuo University Graduate School *Ministry of Defense headquarters: Formerly GHQ of the Imperial Japanese Army; following World W ...

Prison.

Legacy

After Korea achieved independence, Kim Gu interred Lee's remains at

Hyochang Park Hyochang Park is a park in Yongsan Districtof Seoul, South Korea. It was originally the cemetery of royal noble consort Ui of the Seong clan (hangul: 의빈 성씨), her only son (and King Jeongjo's first son) Crown Prince Munhyo (hangul: 문효 ...

, along with those of

Yoon Bong-Gil Yun Bong-gil (21 June 1908 – 19 December 1932) was a Korean independence activist who set off a bomb that killed several Japanese dignitaries in Shanghai's Hongkew Park (now Lu Xun Park) in 1932. He was posthumously awarded the Republic of Kor ...

and

Baek Jeong-Gi Baek Jeong-gi (백정기, 19 January 1896 – 5 June 1934) was a Korean anarchist independence fighter during the Japanese occupation. Early life He was born in Buan, North Jeolla. After death In 1946, Pak Yol recovered the remains of Le ...

(백정기, 白貞基). Their grave site is known as the Graves of the Three martyr (삼의사묘, 三義士墓). A statue of Lee wielding a hand grenade is also located at the park. Lee was posthumously awarded the

Order of Merit for National Foundation The Order of Merit for National Foundation (Hangul: 건국훈장) is one of South Korea's orders of merit. It is awarded by the President of South Korea for "outstanding meritorious services in the interest of founding or laying a foundation for th ...

(Order of the President) in 1962.

References

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 ...

, ''Baekbeomilji, Volume 2'', Chapter 2: The Heroic Deeds of Lee Bong-chang and Yoon Bong-Gil (이봉창과 윤봉길의 의거). {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Bong-chang 1900 births 1932 deaths Korean independence activists People convicted on terrorism charges People executed by Japan by hanging People from Seoul Recipients of the Order of Merit for National Foundation Executed Korean people 20th-century executions by Japan People executed for treason against Japan Failed regicides Hirohito People executed for attempted murder Korean assassins Executed assassins

Biography

Legacy

See also

References