Park Yung-hyo or Bak Young-hyo (; 1861 – 21 September 1939) was a

Korean 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 ** ...

politician from the

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 re ...

, an enlightenment activist, diplomat and pro-Japanese collaborator. He was one of the organizers of the Gapsin Coup of 1884, in which progressive political elements attempted to overthrow the conservative Korean government. He become Prince Consort Geumneung through his marriage to Princess Yeonghye, King Cheoljong's daughter.

Early life and education

Park Yung-hyo was born in

Suwon Suwon (, ) is the capital and largest city of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea's most populous province which surrounds Seoul, the national capital. Suwon lies about south of Seoul. It is traditionally known as "The City of Filial Piety". With a populati ...

, south of

Hanseong 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 of ...

. He was the third son of Park Won-yang and his mother was Lady Yi of the Jeonui Yi clan. By birth, he also had a distant connection with the Royal Family: his 7-great-grandfather was Park Se-gyo (朴世橋, 박세교; 1611 – 1663), the only son of

King Seonjo Seonjo of Joseon (26 November 1552 – 16 March 1608) was the fourteenth king of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea from 1567 to 1608. He was known for encouraging Confucianism and renovating state affairs at the beginning of his reign. However, politi ...

's 5th daughter, Princess Jeongan (정안 옹주; 1590 – 1660), and Park Mi, Prince Consort Geumyang (박미 금양위, 朴瀰錦陽尉; 1592 – 1645). On April 3, 1872, he was chosen to be the spouse of Princess Yeonghye (영혜옹주; 永惠翁主), the only living daughter of King Cheoljong, the 25th King of the

. However, the princess passed away merely three months after their wedding. Together with

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 ...

, Park was a strong supporter of the Dongnipdang, or “Enlightenment Party”, which sought to reform the government, economy, and military by incorporating Western technology and methodology, so that Korea would become stable enough to withstand increasing foreign encroachment. He accompanied Kim on his visit 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 ...

, meeting with various influential Japanese politicians, including

Fukuzawa Yukichi was a Japanese educator, philosopher, writer, entrepreneur and samurai who founded Keio University, the newspaper '' Jiji-Shinpō'', and the Institute for Study of Infectious Diseases. Fukuzawa was an early advocate for reform in Japan. His ...

Career

He is credited with creating the first Korean national flag, in 1882.Bak Yeonghyo:Korean historical person information

Gapsin Coup

Park was one of the leaders of the 1884 Gapsin Coup that attempted to overthrow the government and institute Western-style reforms. The coup attempt lasted only three days before its suppression by Chinese troops. He was forced to flee to Japan, where he initially stayed with Fukuzawa Yukichi, before moving on to

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

Subsequent career

Park served briefly as Minister of the Interior and Prime Minister in 1895, playing an important role in opening up Korea. However, following the Gabo Reform and the 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 ...

, Park fled to Japan once again, where he remained until 1907. On his return, he accepted the post of Royal Household Minister under Yi Wan-yong. Following the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1910, in which Korea was annexed to the Empire of Japan, Park was awarded with the ''

kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. They succeeded the feudal lords () and court nobles (), but were abolished with the 1947 constitution. Kazoku ( 華族) should not be confused with ' ...

'' title of marquess (''koshaku'') in the Japanese peerage, and a seat in the House of Peers in the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paralle ...

. He served as Director of the

Bank of Chosen A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

in 1918, Chairman of the Korean Economic Association in 1919, first president of ''

The Dong-a Ilbo The ''Dong-A Ilbo'' (, literally ''East Asia Daily'') is a newspaper of record in Korea since 1920 with a daily circulation of more than 1.2 million and opinion leaders as its main readers. ''The Dong-A Ilbo'' is the parent company of Dong-A M ...

'' newspaper in 1920, president of the Kyungbang Corporation, chairman of the Korea Industrialization Bank in 1921, and advisor to the

Government-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 ...

’s Central Institute.

Family

Among Park's granddaughters was Park Chan-ju (박찬주, 朴贊珠) (11 December 1914 – 13 July 1995), who was the mother of

Yi U Colonel Prince Yi U (15 November 1912 – 7 August 1945) was a member of the imperial family of Korea as a prince, the 4th head of Unhyeon Palace, and a lieutenant colonel in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. He was killed ...

(이우, 李鍝) (15 August 1912 - 7 August 1945) and grandmother of

Yi Cheong Yi Cheong (born 23 April 1936) is a member of the former Imperial Family of Korea and was a Korean-Japanese noble during Korea under Japanese rule in 1945–1947. He is a great-great-grandson of Heungseon Daewongun and the eldest son of Yi U ...

(이청, 李淸) (born 23 April 1936).

Writings

* '' Sahwa giryak'' (사화기략, 使和記略)

References

External links

Park Young-hyo:Daum

Park Young-hyo:Korean historical People's Information

Park Young-hyo:navercast

Park Young-hyo:naver

Park Young-hyo:nate
{{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Yung-hyo 1861 births 1939 deaths 19th-century Korean people Korean independence activists Korean revolutionaries People from Suwon Korean collaborators with Imperial Japan Kazoku Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Politicians of the Korean Empire Officials of the Korean Empire Joseon Kazoku