''Wonsu'' is the highest military rank in the armed forces of
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
and
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 ...
.
Historical
The title of ''Wonsu'' or its variations had been used as the title of high-ranking military commanders in Korean history since
Goryeo
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...
Dynasty onward. For example,
Gwon Yul
Gwon Yul (; December 28, 1537 - July 6, 1599) was a Korean Army General and the Commander-in-chief (도원수; 導元帥) of the Joseon Dynasty, who successfully led the Korean forces against Japan during the Japanese invasions of Korea (임진 ...
, a famous general in 16th century who rose to the supreme command of Korean forces during
Imjin War
The Imjin River ( in South Korea) or Rimjin River ( in North Korea) is the 7th largest river in Korea. It flows from north to south, crossing the Demilitarized Zone and joining the Han River downstream of Seoul, near the Yellow Sea. The river i ...
held the title of "Do-Wonsu", roughly translated as "high marshal".
North Korea
![DPRK-Army-OF-10a](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/DPRK-Army-OF-10a.svg)
''Wonsu'' is a rank in the
Korean People's Army
The Korean People's Army (KPA; ) is the military force of North Korea and the armed wing of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Under the ''Songun'' policy, it is the central institution of North Korean society. Currently, WPK General Sec ...
of
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
, equivalent to
marshal
Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...
in other armies. This rank is held by all
Supreme Leaders of the DPRK.
While he was the
Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army
The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Democratic People's Republic of Korea (Korean: 조선민주주의인민공화국무력 최고사령관) is the commander-in-chief of the Korean People's Army, the military of North Korea. The office ...
,
Kim Il-sung
Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
became North Korea's first marshal during the Korean War by the decision of the
Supreme People's Assembly
The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA; ) is the unicameral legislature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. It consists of one deputy from each of the DPRK's 687 constituencies, elected to five-year ...
, the
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...
parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
of North Korea, on February 4, 1953. Period photographic evidence demonstrates that the early marshal shoulder board rank insignia was the same as that of the current vice marshal shoulder boards (a large star overlain with the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea coat-of-arms).
The rank of vice marshal (''
chasu
''Ch'asu'' () is a superior military rank of North Korea, often translated as Vice Marshal. The rank is senior to that of ''Daejang'' (General) and junior to that of ''Wonsu'' (Marshal). The rank is seldom bestowed upon the professional militar ...
'') is unique to the North Korean ranking system. Vice marshal was first conferred in February 1953 on
Choe Yong-gon. Sources suggest that the shoulder board rank insignia for marshal and vice marshal then became a single large star without the state coat-of-arms (for marshals) and the state coat-of-arms without a star (for vice marshals). By the time the next conferral of rank to vice marshal was awarded (1985), the shoulder board rank insignia for marshal and vice marshal had taken on their current design.
The next change in the DPRK marshal ranks took place in 1992 when the rank of ''
dae wonsu
''Taewŏnsu'' (; literally grand marshal, usually translated as generalissimo) is the highest possible military rank of North Korea and is intended to be an honorific title for Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. The rank is senior to that of Wonsu. The ...
'' or grand marshal (full title grand marshal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea) was created for Kim Il-sung. At this time the rank of marshal was divided into two ranks: the rank of marshal with the title "marshal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea" (''konghwaguk wonsu'') was conferred upon Kim Il-sung's son
Kim Jong-il
Kim Jong-il (; ; ; born Yuri Irsenovich Kim;, 16 February 1941 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from 1994 to 2011. He led North Korea from the 1994 death of his father Kim ...
, and the same rank but with the title "marshal of the Korean People's Army" was conferred upon
O Jin-u
O Jin-u (March 8, 1917 – February 25, 1995) was a North Korean general and politician. He served with Kim Il-sung's partisan unit and eventually rose through the ranks of the North Korean Army. He distinguished himself during the Korean War an ...
. In 1995, two other military officers were conferred the rank of marshal with the title "marshals of the Korean People's Army", i.e.
Choe Kwang
Marshal Choe Kwang (; July 17, 1918 – February 21, 1997) was a prominent military leader in North Korea.
Biography
He graduated from the Soviet Military School and served as captain in the Northeast Anti-Japanese Army until the end of the Jap ...
and
Ri Ul-sol
Ri Ul-sol (리을설; 14 September 19217 November 2015) was a North Korean politician and military official. He played an important role in the administrations of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, achieving the rank of Marshal of the Korean People's ...
. Insignia of rank of the two grades of marshal are different (with the insignia for marshal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea being more like that of grand marshal—the grand marshal insignia has a larger wreath encompassing the marshal's star—but is smaller as it is below the star itself).
Also, in 1992 eight other generals were promoted to vice marshal at which time in North Korea there was one grand marshal, one marshal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, one marshal of the Korean People's Army and eight vice marshals.
The rank (as marshal of the DPRK) was bestowed to
Kim Jong-un
Kim Jong-un (; , ; born 8 January 1982) is a North Korean politician who has been Supreme Leader of North Korea since 2011 and the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 2012. He is a son of Kim Jong-il, who was North Korea's sec ...
in 2012.
On April 15, 2016,
Kim Yong-chun
Kim Yong-chun (4 March 1936 – 16 August 2018) was a North Korean soldier and politician. He was a leader of the North Korean military. He held the North Korean military rank Chasu (Vice Marshal), was Vice Chairman of the National Defense Commi ...
and
Hyon Chol-hae
Hyon Chol-hae ( ko, 현철해/玄哲海;August 13, 1934 – May 19, 2022) was a North Korean military officer.
He was born in Country Yanji,Province Jilin,Manchukuo.
During the Korean War, Hyon served as Kim Il-sung's bodyguard, a role which ...
were promoted to the rank of Marshal of the Korean People's Army, the first promotions of active duty officers after 21 years.
List of Marshals of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
List of Marshals of the Korean People's Army
South Korea
( ko, 원수), known in English as "General of the Army of the Republic of Korea" or "Admiral of the Fleet of the Republic of Korea", is the highest
military rank
Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a ...
of the
Republic of Korea
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 east ...
(ROK) armed forces and is the combined equivalent of a
field marshal
Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...
,
fleet admiral and
marshal of the Air Force in other nations. The rank is senior to that of . only exists on paper, and has never been held by an officer of the South Korean Armed Forces. According to the Armed Forces Personnel Act of National Defense Law of the Republic of Korea, the is appointed from the who has distinguished achievements.
The rank insignia for is heavily influenced by United States military insignia of
General of the Army and
General of the Air Force
General of the Air Force (GAF) is a five-star general officer rank and is the highest possible rank in the United States Air Force. General of the Air Force ranks immediately above a general and is equivalent to General of the Army in the Unit ...
for Army and Air Force. While the rank insignia for the Navy remains the same the sleeve insignia for a naval officer promoted to the rank is the same sleeve insignia of
Fleet admiral used in the United States Navy.
Homophone
Coincidentally, ''wonsu'' is
also a word meaning "mortal enemy" (怨讐). The two words have different
etymologies
Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words and ...
and
hanja
Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom.
(, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...
, but in South Korea are
homophonous
A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same (to varying extent) as another word but differs in meaning. A ''homophone'' may also differ in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (p ...
and so are written identically in
hangul
The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The let ...
. In North Korea, the government has addressed the issue by changing the word for "enemy" to "wonssu" (원쑤).
See also
*
Yuan Shuai
() was a Chinese military rank that corresponds to a marshal in other nations. It was given to distinguished generals during China's dynastic and republican periods. A higher level rank of ''Dayuanshuai'' (), which corresponds to ''generalissi ...
, the Chinese equivalent, written identically in
Hanja
Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom.
(, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...
/
Hanzi
Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are known as ''kanji' ...
*
Republic of Korea Armed Forces
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength of ...
*
Korean People's Army
The Korean People's Army (KPA; ) is the military force of North Korea and the armed wing of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Under the ''Songun'' policy, it is the central institution of North Korean society. Currently, WPK General Sec ...
*
Six-star rank
In the United States Armed Forces, a six-star rank is a proposed rank immediately superior to a five-star rank, possibly to be worn by the General of the Armies or Admiral of the Navy; however, this correlation was never officially recognized b ...
References
Citations
Sources
*
{{italictitle
Military ranks of South Korea
Military ranks of North Korea
Five-star officers