Seoul Metropolitan Library ( ko, 서울도서관) is a Metropolitan Library in

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 ...

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 ...

. It is located in

Taepyeongno Taepyeongno is a major thoroughfare in the central districts of Seoul, South Korea and the second longest road next to Sejongno in the Gangbuk area. With a 1.1 km length and a 50 m width, Taepyeongno originates at 139 Sejongno in Jongno-gu and ter ...

, Jung-gu, the heart of Seoul, facing the

Seoul City Hall Seoul City Hall is a governmental building for the Seoul Metropolitan Government in South Korea, in charge of the administrative affairs of Seoul. It is located in Taepyeongno, Jung-gu, at the heart of Seoul. It is connected to City Hall Station ...

and

Seoul Plaza Seoul Plaza is a central plaza located in front of Seoul City Hall at Taepyeongno, Jung-gu, Seoul, Jung-gu in Seoul, South Korea. It was reopened on 1 May 2004, by Seoul Metropolitan Government, with the purpose of providing the public an open sp ...

, next to the City Hall Station on

Seoul Subway Line 1 Seoul Metropolitan Subway Line 1 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is a rapid transit and commuter rail line which links central Seoul, South Korea to Soyosan Station in the northeast, Incheon in the southwest, and Sinchang (Soonchunhyang Univ.) ...

History

The building was first built by the

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 ...

in 1926 during the Japanese occupation. Registered as Cultural Heritage No. 52, initially was used as the headquarters of the governor-general of Korea. At the end of the

Third Battle of Seoul The Third Battle of Seoul, also known as the Chinese New Year's Offensive, the January–Fourth Retreat ( ko, 1•4 후퇴) or the Third Phase Campaign Western SectorThe Eastern Sector is the First and Second Battles of Wonju. (), was a battle ...

in 1951 during the Korean War, communist Chinese and North Korean troops fought successfully in chasing out US and UN forces out of the city before marching through ruined

to the building and then planting a North Korean flag on its roof, carried out by a Chinese PVA platoon. The city hall was expanded 6 times. The main building is a designated registered cultural property of the Republic of Korea. The North building was built in 1962 and the new building in 1986. Both were demolished in 2006 to make way for a new city hall construction. Original plans called for the historic building to be razed and replaced with a new design, but support for preservation put a halt to demolition. The Cultural Properties Committee, under the Cultural Heritage Administration, registered the building as a historic relic. Eventually, a compromise was reached, preserving the front building facing Seoul Plaza, and allowing construction of a modern building behind the old one. A large digital clock for the building was installed in 1975, and replaced with an analogue counterpart when

Lee Myung-bak Lee Myung-bak (; ; ; born 19 December 1941) is a South Korean businessman and politician who served as the 10th president of South Korea from 2008 to 2013. Before his presidency, he was the CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction, and the ma ...

was mayor of Seoul. Following the competition for a new city hall, the building was reconstructed and reopened as library. The building, registered as a cultural asset, has been converted into a library with a collection of more than 200,000 books.Seoul City Hall’s metamorphosis pleases book lovers
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Public transportation

* City Hall Station (Seoul) * City Hall Station (Seoul)

References

External links

Seoul Metropolitan Library
(Korean site) {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Seoul Libraries in Seoul Education in Seoul Jung District, Seoul

History

Public transportation

See also

References

External links