The Japan–Korea Agreement of August 1905 was made between representatives of the

Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

and the

Korean Empire The Korean Empire, officially the Empire of Korea or Imperial Korea, was a Korean monarchical state proclaimed in October 1897 by King Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. The empire lasted until the Japanese annexation of Korea in August 1910. Dur ...

in 1905. Negotiations were concluded on August 13, 1905.Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). ; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated August 13, 1905."

Treaty provisions

This treaty granted permission to Japanese vessels to navigate coastal and inland waters of Korea. The treaty preamble asserted that the

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

of His Majesty the

Emperor of Japan The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...

and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of His Majesty the

Emperor of Korea Imperial titles were used in various historical Korean states before the 14th century and at the turn of the 20th century: Early Korean states used ''Daewang'' (대왕; 大王, "great king"), ''Taewang'' (태왕; 太王, "greatest king"), an ...

were "respectively duly empowered" to negotiate and to agree upon the specific language of the proposed bilateral treaty:Scott, * Article I. Japanese vessels shall be at liberty to navigate along the coasts and in inland waters of Korea for the purpose of trade in accordance with the stipulations of the present Agreement, which, however, shall not be applicable to navigation between the open ports. * Article II. Licenses shall be obtained for all Japanese vessels to be employed in navigation of the coasts and inland waters, upon reporting through the Japanese Consular Officers to the Korean Customs the names and residence of the owners, the names, types and carrying capacity of the vessels, as well as the limits within which such vessels are to navigate. Licenses shall be available for one year from the date of their issue. * Article III. Upon receipt of the licenses, fees shall be paid to the Korean Customs .... * Article IV. Japanese vessels may freely navigate within the limits specified, but shall not proceed to any place not in Korean territory, except in case of stress of weather or other emergency, or in case special permission has been obtained from the Korean Customs.Scott, * Article V. The licenses shall be carried on board the vessels during their voyages and shall be shown whenever requested by the Korean Customs, or by local officials of Korea, or by the Chiefs of villages duly authorized by such local officials. * Article VI. Japanese shipowners shall have liberty to lease land for the purpose of building warehouses at the places where their vessels call. Such owners may also construct piers or wharves on the banks and coasts with the permission of the Korean Customs. * Article VII. In case of infraction of the present Agreement by a Japanese vessel, the Korean Customs may cause the license of such vessel to be confiscated, or may refuse to issue a new one, if the offence be found, upon examination, to be of a grave nature. * Article VIII. When a Japanese vessel, or the crew thereof, infringes the stipulations of the present Agreement or of other treaties, or when a member of the crew commits any crime, the Japanese Consular Officers shall deal with the case in accordance with the provisions of the treaties and the laws of Japan. * Article. IX. The present Agreement shall remain in force for a period of fifteen years from the date of its signature, and after the expiration of such period, further arrangements may be made by mutual agreement. ::: Hayashi Gonsuke,

(dated, the 13th day of the 8th month of the 38th year of Meiji) ::: Yi Ha-yeong, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (dated, the 13th day of the 8th month of the 9th year of Gwangmu)

Recision

This "alleged treaty" was contrived in a coercive process; and Koreans sought to invalidate the unwanted consequences by presenting evidence to the international community. For example, * 1905:

Emperor Gojong of the Korean Empire Gojong (; 8 September 1852 – 21 January 1919), personal name Yi Myeongbok (), later Yi Hui (), also known as the Gwangmu Emperor (), was the penultimate Korean monarch. He ruled Korea for 43 years, from 1864 to 1907, first as the last king ...

wrote personally to the heads of state in those countries having treaties with Korea; and the Korean government filed formal appeals and sent formal cable notices, but these diplomatic gestures were unavailing. * 1907: In what is sometimes called the "

Hague Secret Emissary Affair The Hague Secret Emissary Affair () resulted from Emperor Gojong of the Korean Empire sending confidential emissaries to the Second Peace Conference at The Hague, the Netherlands, in 1907. Background Throughout much of the late 19th Century, K ...

," Korean emissaries sought unsuccessfully to seek international assistance at the

Hague Convention of 1907 The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 are a series of international treaties and declarations negotiated at two international peace conferences at The Hague in the Netherlands. Along with the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions were amon ...

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

in 1907. * 1921: Korean representatives attempted to gain a hearing at the

Washington Naval Conference The Washington Naval Conference (or the Washington Conference on the Limitation of Armament) was a disarmament conference called by the United States and held in Washington, D.C., from November 12, 1921, to February 6, 1922. It was conducted out ...

of 1921; but the effort was ineffective. This treaty was confirmed to be "''already null and void''" by

Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea The Treaty on Basic Relations Between Japan and the Republic of Korea ( Japanese: ; ) was signed on June 22, 1965. It established basic diplomatic relations between Japan and South Korea. Background As Korea was not a signatory state of the T ...

concluded in 1965. In 2010, Japan argued that the chronological point of reference for "already null and void" was August 15, 1948, when the government of the Republic of Korea was established. This point of view is disputed by the Korean analysis, which construes the 1965 treaty as acknowledgment of the nullification of all Japanese-Korean treaties and agreements from 1904 onwards.Lee Man-yeol
"For a view of history that puts us at the center,"
''Northeast Asian History Foundation News.'' 2010.

References

;General * Eckert, Carter J.,

Ki-baik Lee Ki-baik Lee (; 1924–2004) was a Korean historian. He was born in Jeongju-gun, in North Pyeongan province in what is today North Korea. He graduated from the Osan School in 1941, attending Waseda University in Tokyo but ultimately graduating fr ...

, Young Ick Lew, Michael Robinson, and Edward W. Wagner. (1990). ''Korea Old and New: A History.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
OCLC 23071907
* Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). ''Korea's Appeal to the Conference on Limitation of Armament.'' Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office
OCLC 12923609
* United States. Dept. of State. (1919). ''Catalogue of treaties: 1814–1918.'' Washington: Government Printing Office
OCLC 3830508
* Scott, James Brown. (1921). ''Korea, Treaties and Agreements.'' Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
OCLC 459192091
{{DEFAULTSORT:Japan-Korea Agreement of August 1905 Japan–Korea relations Unequal treaties 1905 in Japan 1905 in Korea Treaties concluded in 1905 Treaties of the Empire of Japan Treaties of the Korean Empire August 1905 Bilateral treaties of Japan

Treaty provisions

Recision

See also

References