Kim Chaek (, 14 August 1903 – 31 January 1951) was a

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 borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

n revolutionary, military general, and politician. His birth name was Kim Hong-gye ().

Life

200px, left, Choe Yong-gon, Kim Chaek, Kim Il, and Type 49 submachine guns from President Kim Il Sung">PPSh-41.html" ;"title="Kang Kon receiving the first domestically produced PPSh-41">Type 49 submachine guns from President Kim Il Sung, 1949. Kim Chaek was born in Kimchaek, Sŏngjin, North Hamgyong Province, North Hamgyong, Korea, in 1903. He and his family fled to Manchuria after Korea under Japanese rule, Korea was colonized by Japan. In 1927, Kim joined the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

and the Anti-Japanese movement to oppose the Japanese occupation. He was imprisoned for his resistance activities. After his release from prison, Kim joined the

Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army The Northeast Counter-Japanese United Army, also known as the NAJUA or Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army, was the main Counter-Japanese guerrilla army in Northeast China (Manchuria) after the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931. Its prede ...

in 1935 and fought alongside

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 led as its first Supreme Leader (North Korean title), supreme leader from North Korea#Founding, its establishm ...

. He fled to the Soviet Union to escape the Japanese conquest of the partisans in 1940. He lived in

Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( ) is the largest city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about north of Vladivostok. As of the 2021 Russian c ...

where he met with Kim Il Sung and formed the 88th Special Brigade. After the

Soviet invasion of Manchuria The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation or simply the Manchurian Operation () and sometimes Operation August Storm, began on 9 August 1945 with the Soviet Union, Soviet invasion of the Emp ...

, he returned to Korea along with the Soviet Army in 1945. On September 9, 1948, the

Democratic People's Republic of 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 borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

was established, Kim became the industry minister and deputy prime minister under Kim Il Sung. He was appointed number 2 Committee Vice Chairman in the

Workers' Party of Korea The Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), also called the Korean Workers' Party (KWP), is the sole ruling party of North Korea. Founded in 1949 from a merger between the Workers' Party of North Korea and the Workers' Party of South Korea, the WPK is ...

. In the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, he was a commander of the North Korean troops on the front lines. A Japanese history of the Kim Il Sung family claims that Kim Chaek was purged when he was found responsible for the failure at the

Inchon landing The Battle of Inchon (), also called Inchon landing, was an amphibious invasion and a battle of the Korean War that resulted in a decisive victory and strategic reversal in favor of the United Nations Command (UN). The operation involved some ...

, and died in January 1951 after an American military air raid bombing or was assassinated following a power struggle. Kim Il Sung's memoir ''

With the Century ''Reminiscences: With the Century'' () is the autobiography of Kim Il Sung, founder and former president of North Korea. The memoirs, written in 1992 and published in eight volumes, retell Kim's life story through his childhood to the time of ...

'' states instead that Kim died of heart failure after a long night of work.Kim Il-sung (1998) ''With the Century'' vol. 8

Posthumous honours

Views from Yanggakdo International Hotel 05

After his death, Kim Chaek's birthplace Haksong County, combined with the neighboring city of Songjin, was formally renamed to

Kim Chaek City Kimch'aek (), formerly Sŏngjin (Chosŏn'gŭl: 성진, Hancha: 城津), is a city in North Hamgyong Province, North Korea. It was an open port in 1899. It has a population of 207,699. Etymology The city received its current name in 1951 during ...

to commemorate his life and accomplishments.

Kim Chaek University of Technology Kim Chaek University of Technology () is a university in North Korea, on the banks of the Taedong River in Pyongyang. It is named after General Kim Chaek. The university's programs in nuclear reactors, nuclear electronics, nuclear fuel and nucle ...

in Pyongyang and

Kim Chaek Iron and Steel Complex Kim Chaek Iron & Steel Works () is the largest steel mill in North Korea, named after national independence hero and military official Kim Chaek. It is located in Songpyong-guyok, Chongjin, North Hamgyŏng Province. It was established by Nippon ...

Chongjin Chŏngjin (; ) is the capital of North Korea's North Hamgyong Province (함경북도) and the country's List of cities in North Korea, third-largest city. Sometimes called the City of Iron, it is located in the northeast of the country. History ...

are also named after him. He was awarded North Korea's

National Reunification Prize The National Reunification Prize () is an award of North Korea, bestowed by the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly upon people who have contributed to the reunification of Korea. The award was instituted in 1990. Recipients 1990 * An Ji ...

in 1998.

Work

* Feature-length epic "Mt. Paektu" 《장편 대서사시 백두산》

References

*''Korea, a century of change'' by Jürgen Kleiner page 275 *''Korea Web Weekly'
Remembering Kim Chaik
*''Kim Jong Il Biography''. Pyongyang: Foreign Languages Publishing House for Literature, 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Chaek 1903 births 1951 deaths People from Kimchaek Government ministers of North Korea North Korean generals Recipients of the National Reunification Prize Vice premiers of North Korea Members of the 1st Central Committee of the Workers' Party of North Korea Members of the 2nd Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Members of the 2nd Political Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Members of the 2nd Standing Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Members of the 1st Supreme People's Assembly People of 88th Separate Rifle Brigade North Korean military personnel killed in the Korean War Korean resistance members Korean revolutionaries Korean expatriates in the Soviet Union Burials at the Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery Heroes of the Republic (North Korea)