Korean Independence Research Articles

The Principle of Righteousness and the Chosŏn–Ming and ROK–ROC Security Commitments*

This study addresses the question of why some decision‐makers and political elites in Chosŏn and the Republic of Korea (ROK) remained committed to the Ming Dynasty and the Republic of China (ROC) when the latter had declined in power. Based on the social psychological literature on righteousness, we explore this relationship through the lens of spontaneous and binding mechanisms. The former refers to voluntary help after reciprocity has been internalized as a duty, and the latter suggests that although individuals are reluctant to help, the fear of violating righteousness motivates continued commitment. Using the most‐different case design, this study finds supporting evidence from both the Chosŏn and the ROK periods. Specifically, Chosŏn loyalist officials insisted on aiding the weakened Ming and dethroned the rationalist King, Gwanghaegun. Moreover, those Korean elites who lived through the Korean Independence Movement and the Korean War emphasized diplomatic ties with the ROC even after the ROC lost its UN seat in 1971. By integrating social psychology and constructivism literature, the findings illuminate how the norms of righteousness shape decision‐makers' foreign policy and alliance commitment preferences.

The Establishing of the Korean Volunteer Corps and the Chinese Nationalist Government’s Mobilizing the Korean Independence Movement into Anti-Japanese War

The Establishing of the Korean Volunteer Corps and the Chinese Nationalist Government’s Mobilizing the Korean Independence Movement into Anti-Japanese War

｢조선독립에 대한 감상｣의 서지적 관계와 내용 분석

｢조선독립에 대한 감상｣의 서지적 관계와 내용 분석

Reflections on the Challenges of Musical Representations of Korean Historical Texts in Cord Meijering’s <i>Marsyas for Percussion Solo Symphony</i> (2018/19)

This article explores Dutch-German Composer Cord Meijering’s (b. 1955) intercultural translation practices in his piece Marsyas for Percussion Solo Symphony, which premiered in Darmstadt in 2019. This work is based on Greek mythology and the history of the Korean Independence Movement with Eastern and Western percussion. The above-mentioned premiere occurred on the 100th anniversary of the Korean Independence Movement and received intense acclaim from the international audience. However, although Meijering interprets Korean history using a comparison with a Greek myth, he produces a cultural jetlag by replacing the relationship between the dominant and subordinate with the relationship between God and humans. He supplements his understanding of Korean history during the compositional process in cooperation with Korean percussionist Eunbi Jeong. By thoroughly discussing the text of the Declaration of Independence with her, applying traditional Korean percussion instruments, and performing techniques, I argue that Meijering has been able to produce a piece which delivers the spirit of the Korean Independence Movement to an international audience. By reviewing the audience’s reception of the piece, I present how Meijering searched for the modern history of Korea, apart from the influence of his Western cultural roots, and how he represented Korean historic-political events within a Western symphonic form by advancing Korean traditional music. In contemplating the potential of reflexive globalism, this paper raises questions regarding how he in exploring Korea, reevaluates non-Western cultures with a reflective consciousness, acknowledging and respecting the values and heritage inherent in this culture.

The Conservative Turn in Memory Policies of the the Republic of Korea

The subject of the study is public disagreements on certain issues of Korean history. The study aims to determine the theoretical principles underlying the memory policies of the conservative government of Yun Seokyeol. On the example of the controversy over the transfer of the bust of the Korean independence movement fighter Hong Beomdo and the restoration of the legacy of Syngman Rhee, the author shows what arguments conservatives and progressives make to defend their position, what tools and techniques they use to establish a certain interpretation of history as the dominant one. The reason for the dispute about the legacy of the fighters for Korean independence, who belonged to the left wing of the national liberation movement, was the decision of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Korea to move the bust of Hong Beomdo, installed in front of the Military Academy, to another place. This decision caused protests from progressive political parties and public organizations, which accused the Yun Seokyeol’s government of an anti-communist approach and disdain for independence fighters. The dispute over Hong Beomdo’s bust also showed that there is no unity among conservatives on this issue. The government of Yun Seokyeol, largely, proceeds in its memory policies from the theoretical approach of the “new right,” the far-right group of the South Korean conservatives, which diminish the importance of anti-Japanese resistance, especially the left wing, in restoring Korean state sovereignty. At the same time, the “new right” proponents highly appreciates the role of the first President Syngman Rhee in the establishment of the Republic of Korea, ensuring its security and prosperity. The conservative government supports public initiatives to restore the positive image of Syngman Rhee, who resigned as a result of the 1960 April Revolution. Progressives have an extremely negative attitude towards conservative’s attempts to revive the legacy of Syngman Rhee, who was guilty of the presidential election fraud and political repressions.

宋冕秀의 생애와 在中獨立運動

Song Myeon-su(1910~1950) has lived a remarkable life as an independence activist, but his existence has been known only in fragments in his studies. In this article, we tried to summarize the entire life of Song Myeon-su and find its meaning, focusing on the parts that have not been revealed so far. Song Myeon-su graduated from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou since he defected to Shanghai, China in the 1930s and launched independence movements in Liuzhou and Chongqing after the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War. He is a person who has been active as an ‘intermediate executive’ in the field of political propaganda and cultural propaganda in the Korean Liberation Army, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, and the Provisional Assembly. He has a history of joining the National Revolutionary Party while studying in Guangzhou, but he continued his activities mainly in the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, the Provisional Assembly, and The Korean Independence Army. In short, what can be seen through Song Myeon-su’s life is that he is not negligent in cultural improvement along with the development of armed struggle. Therefore, a space for free intellectual and emotional exchange was provided in the space where ‘young people’ including Song Myeon-su gathered, and where they were located, various bronchial tubes and publications were always accompanied. In addition, young people in the provisional government desperately tried to protect the Hangul type in the evacuation path of the provisional government. This shows how the provisional government’s 27-year evacuation route in China has made efforts to protect national culture and improve culture along with the development of armed struggles.

프랑스어 기술 한국 고전서사 연구

This study aims to investigate the identity of classical Korean narratives in French, and based on this, to explore the possibility of expanding the field of Korean literature research and to refine the research methodology. This study focuses on three classic Korean narrative texts written in French by Seo Young-hae: Autour d’une vie coréenne(1929), Miroir, cause de malheur (1934), and La fille d’un cordonnier (unknown). The last text, in particular, is the first to be introduced in this study and translated that Seo Young-hae has been writing Korean classical narratives in French throughout her stay in France.
 This book, described in French by a Korean native author, has classical narratives as its main object of description. The classical Korean narratives, reinterpreted from Seo’s perspective, represent Korea as he interpreted it, or Korea as he translated it. The pursuit of Korean independence, which was consistent with his stay in France with a clear purpose, and his understanding of the Korean tales based on it, are the fundamental elements that constitute Seo’s rewriting, or translation. Therefore, this paper will examine how Seo interprets and translates Korean classical narratives by focusing on the external and internal relationships surrounding writing. To do so, I will analyze the three texts interactively and examine the adaptation of classical narratives and the linguistic and cultural translation of Korean classical narratives through them. While Seo emphasizes the inheritance of folk traditions and customs, he also emphasizes that it is not simply an inheritance without transformation, and that existing traditions can be reconstructed within an expanding network rather than closedly linked. This is Seo’s interpretation of the classics, tales, and oral tradition, and his hope for a post-modern Korea.

Российская революция и корейское партизанское движение на Дальнем Востоке

The Great Russian Revolution of 1917-1921 not only gave impetus to the movement for the liberation of Korea from the colonial rule of Japan, but also created a situation in which Koreans living on the territory of the former Russian Empire had to determine their side in the unfolding grandiose cofrontation of the blazing civil war. Under these conditions, Korean partisan detachments of various ideological orientations appeared in the Russian Far East. Most of them took an active part in the fight against foreign invaders and White Guards. However, the vicissitudes of the development of the Korean partisan movement in the region turned out to be very tortuous and contradictory. They were influenced by both the situation and evolution of the Korean independence movement, as well as acute ideological and political contradictions within the emerging Korean leftist movement. The article examines the mutual influence of conflicts within the Russian and Korean leftist movements in 1918-1922.

해방 이전 정운수의 생애와 독립운동

The primary focus of this paper is to illuminate the life and contributions of Chung Woonsoo(鄭雲樹) to the Korean independence movement and explore its significance. The period that this study focuses on is from 1903, when he was born, to right after the liberation of Korea in 1945. Chung was educated predominantly at Protestant schools during the Japanese colonial era and further pursued theological studies in the United States.
 His activism gained prominence during the Asia-Pacific War. Chung discerned the intricate link between the culmination of World War II and the restoration of Korean sovereignty. As a response, he fervently engaged in independence efforts in both America and China.
 In Washington, D.C., Chung played various roles in the Korean Commission, aiding Syngman Rhee. He embarked on campaigns to secure support and empathy from Americans for the Korean independence cause and spearheaded initiatives to highlight Korea’s quest for autonomy within the American public sphere.
 In 1944, Chung was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Army. Subsequently, he was dispatched to China via Burma and assigned to the U.S.
 14th Air Force in 1945. During this tenure, he took part in ‘The Eagle Project’, a collaborative endeavor between the Korean Independence Army(KIA) and the U.S. Office of Strategic Services(OSS). His responsibilities fostering KIA-OSS military collaborations, training communications for KIA’s Second Detachment members, and orchestrating advance operations into Korea.
 Chung’s dedication to the independence movement was unwavering. Heemployed a gamut of strategies(from diplomacy and propaganda to direct armed resistance) in his relentless pursuit to end Japanese oppression and reinstate Korea’s sovereignty. Even though the anticipated advance operation into Korea did not materialize, Chung’s instrumental role in bolstering the collaboration between the KIA and OSS undeniably elevated the stature of both the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea and the KIA.

3·1 운동과 대한민국 임시정부 수립에 미친 미주 독립운동의 영향

This paper examines how the March 1st Movement and the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was affected by the Korean Independence Movement in the United States which started in the aftermath of World War I. Korean immigrants considered the victory of the United States in the war as a victory of democracy and believed that the future independent government of Korean should be modeled upon the American democratic system. This idea was delivered by Rhee Syng-man to Hyun-soon soon after he heard that a provisional government would be established in Shanghai. Rhee emphasized this once again during the First Korean Congress in Philadelphia. These thoughts shared by the Korean immigrants at the time had a great influence on the Provisional Charter of the Republic of Korea. Many scholars have understood the so-called mandatory theory as an argument put forward by Rhee Syng-man and Jeong Han-kyung, but this paper has revealed that this was an official resolution approved by discussions within the Korean National Association. Rhee maintained this position for some time even after the March 1st Movement, but he changed his position and insisted on full independence after hearing that the provisional government would found in Shanghai. This idea was emphasized during the First Korean Congress and also in his letter to President Wilson in April of 1919. The theory that Rhee Syng-man planned the March 1st Movement was a widespread theory argued by advocates of Rhee Syng-man, but there are no evidences that support his planning or direction regarding the March 1st Movement in the Korean peninsula. Nonetheless, many people thought that Rhee had been involved in the movement, which led him to become president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Rumors have made history.

프랑스 내 한국학 현황과 독립운동사 연구의 활성화 방안

Korean Studies research in France has achieved remarkable growth both quantitatively and qualitatively due to Korea's economic growth and increasing cultural influence. Currently, in-depth research is being conducted across all fields, expanding the scope to Korean studies as a whole, not just Korean language education. Unfortunately, however, the field of research on the history of the independence movement is far from the interest of institutions, researchers, and students. In this situation, the emergence of the Korean-French Independence Movement History Research Association (Libertas), founded in 2017, is encouraging. Members held several international academic conferences related to the history of the Korean independence movement, and achieved significant results through active activities such as excavation of a large number of materials and posthumous writings of independence activists. Although the framework for research and dissemination of the history of the Korean independence movement in France has been established, it is still in a basic state due to realistic limitations. Financial and academic support, as well as the interest and active participation of many researchers in Korea, are needed to vitalize research on the history of the independence movement.

중국 학계의 한국독립운동사 연구 경향과 성과(1992~2021)

Before the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and ROK, Chinese academic circles had begun to study the Korean Independence Movement, but lay particular emphasis on the early anti-Japanese independence activities such as the “Conscript Movement” and the “March 1st Movement”. In the early 1980s, with the advance of China’s reform and opening-up policy, scholars in mainland China began to pay attention to the history of Korean independence movement under the influence of the Chinese Society of Korean History. After the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and ROK in 1992, with the help of the governments and academic circles, several research centers have been established, such as Yanbian University ,Jilin Academy of Social Sciences, Fudan University, Peking University,etc. Several publications, such as Contemporary Korea and Chinese Journal of Korean Studies, have been published successively, and the history of Korean Independence Movement has shown a vigorous development trend.
 Chinese academic circles focus on the March 1st Movement, the Korean Provisional Government, the Korean armed forces in China, the Korean independence movement and CPC, as well as the Korean diaspora, propaganda activities, and mutual understanding between China and ROK. Chinese academic circles have a relatively accurate grasp of the macro background, but lack of attention to the domestic history of ROK. In recent years, due to the fluctuation of Sino-ROK relations, the academic exchanges and the number of works on the history of the independence movement in China and ROK appear signs of relative decline.
 The academic circle should attach importance to and support the development and utilization of academic resources in the central and western regions of China, and actively promote the academic exchange and talent reserve between the two sides.

The Status of Studies on the Korean Independence Movement in the U.S.

The Republic of Korea has been among the United States’ most reliable allies over the past seventy years. The two countries have developed a security alliance and an economic relationship that is mutually beneficial; for example, the United States has armed forces stationed on the Korean Peninsula, and South Korea is America’s sixth largest trade partner. However, despite the closeness of the two nations, American society has remained Eurocentric. As a result, most Americans know little about South Korea, its history, or its struggles against Japanese colonialism, which are critical to Korean nationalism. This essay is an assessment of what Americans know about the Korean independence movement and how to rectify American ignorance of the Korean struggle for freedom.

일본외교사료관 소장 자료로 본 신흥무관학교

The materials related to Shinheung Military Academy, owned by the Diplomatic Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, along with materials left by independence activists, such as Seokju’s posthumous death, Baekha Diary, and Won Byeongsang’s memoirs, must be very important for the study of Shinheung Military School. Among the materials used in the study of Shinheung Military Academy, the most mentioned are the materials left by independence activists. However, in order to more clearly reveal the reality of Shinheung Military Academy, it is urgent to utilize the materials owned by the Diplomatic Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Although it contains a lot of incomplete information such as spying, it is of high usefulness as it provides relatively extensive information on the current status of Korean migration in the West Gando region and of organizations directly or indirectly related to Shinheung Military Academy, such as Gyeonghaksa, Bumindan, and Jasakgye. The materials possessed by the Japanese Diplomatic Archives are reports of consuls and vice-consuls of consulates dispatched to the country, and secret agents, and are essential data for research on the history of the Korean independence movement. In particular, the reports of the spies were evidence that revealed the ‘inner life of the independence movement’ of those who had deeply infiltrated the Korean independence movement world.
 Sinheung Military Academy was the organization that the Japanese paid the most attention to in the West Gando region. It was because it was an organization that encompassed both the aspect of cultivating the independence army and the aspect of being the center of Korean society. Therefore, among the materials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Shinheung Education Association, Livelihood Association, and Shingye, etc, which have not been revealed so far, are considered to be data that will reveal more abundantly the reality of the independence movement of Shinheung Military School and outlying organizations and the situation related to bomb production and importation into Korea in the future. In addition, there is an aspect in which research on the Bumindan and the Han Chinese Association has not been relatively progressed compared to the known status so far.

The Wilsonian Toolbox

Following the founding of the League of Nations and as the wave of idealism that came to be known as the Wilsonian Moment swept the planet, the Korean independence movement gathered to appeal against Japanese colonial rule. This article sets out to uncover how the idealism of Wilsonialism and the establishment of the League of Nations provided independence movements such as the Korean with a toolbox of arguments along with a platform on which to be heard. It also analyses how these arguments changed from the Koreans’ initial appeal in 1919 to an attempt made in 1932 following a period of increasing conflict surrounding Japan through the 1920s and early 30s. This article demonstrates how the inspirational effect of the Wilsonian Moment and the League of Nations had profound effects on marginalized movements such as the Korean and their ability to argue their case in the world in the face of political turmoil, international crises, and global power struggles.

Global War and Anti-Radical Legislation: Japan and the Peace Preservation Law of 1925

ABSTRACT Japan’s military participation in the First World War was relatively brief but the war and the ideas it unlocked exerted an impact up to and after the Second World War. Japan experienced an economic boom during the war resulting in an exponential increase in the cost of rice. This sparked a serious challenge to the Japanese state. The ensuing rice riots of 1918 saw the government forced to deploy more troops to suppress them than it had sent to intervene on behalf of White Russian forces in Siberia in the same year. Further, the ‘Wilsonian Moment’ emboldened the Korean independence movement in 1919. When the war ended on the Western Front in 1918, Japan was involved in military intervention in Eastern Russia, was quelling domestic unrest, and facing a major threat to the stability of its empire. Although enacted in 1925, the Peace Preservation Law grew directly from the events beginning in the final year of the First World War. The law was the instrumental platform for the construction of Japan’s infamous thought control apparatus of the 1930s and the policing of Japan’s formal and informal empires. This paper traces the wartime origins of the Peace Preservation Law in the context of the state of exception and how the First World War and the Russian Revolution forced Japan to rethink its conception of sovereignty.

Collective memory of the Korean independence fighter Beom-do Hong in Soviet Korean Literature

Abstract: The study reveals the political and ideological journey of Beom-do Hong, a Korean independence fighter and general as reflected in the historical novel of Soviet Korean writer Kim Se-il. Due to to the lack of historical records on Beom-do Hong, stories on his deeds before and after the Japan's annexation of Korea remained at the level of legends. In Korean society, his figure is seen within opposing positions and discourses; to some he is a national hero; to others a communist collaborator. This investigation of the historical novel as a medium for the transmission of shared memories based on the protagonist's battle diary and the recollections of his comrades will fill the gap in the historical memory and contribute to alleviating social political conflicts. Memorial heritage is closely linked to the intangible aspects of heritage, which is an essential driver of development.

김중건의 사회개혁사상에 보이는 도가철학의 문제

Kim Jung-Geon (1889-1933), one of the Korean independence activists during the period of Japanese colonial rule in Korea, developed a social reform theory with his own ideology called “Wonjong (元宗)”. Wonjong was his compilation of philosophical ideologies of all ages and countries, mainly consisting of two thoughts: Geukwon (極元) and Daegonghwa Muguk (大共和無國, anarchic- republicanism) - the former refers to his cosmological worldview, and the latter is a social reform ideology. In particular, the concept of “Muguk (無國, no country)” has a key role in his ideology and is closely related to a conception of the ideal society in Taoism. In this context, we herein reviewed on distinguishable features of his “Muguk-ism (anarchism)” from the Taoism and thus obtained the following conclusions. First, the thought of Kim Jung-Geon took clear inspiration from Zhuangzi. Second, instead of merely accepting or referring to Taoist thought, he sharply criticized inherent fatalistic and passive attitudes in Taoism and built up active and practical ideology by himself. Third, as he developed the social reform ideology to save the people against the Japanese invasion in the late Joseon Dynasty, he rejected Wuwei (無為, inaction), the core concept of Taoism, but accepted Yuwei (有爲, action) to promote social reform in the real world. He did not remain as a hermit or view the world in the ideological context of Taoist philosophy; he defected to Manchuria and lead the resistance movements to achieve his ideal society and to free Korea from the Japanese military and political rule. It is concluded that Kim Jung-Geon is a very rare and creative thinker across East Asia at the time, who critically made a compilation of philosophical ideologies of all ages and countries in critical viewing and applied to the real world to establish a practical methodology. His Taoism-based social reform ideology was not limited to the Japanese rule; it is sufficiently convincing even today in light of views that point out the crisis of civilization and the need for new social reform theory in this highly industrialized modern society. Furthermore, the further studies are also needed on his position in the history of Korean Philosophy as a philosopher at the beginning of the introduction of Western philosophy.

태평양전쟁 초기 중국의 팽창주의와 미국의 한반도 신탁통치 결정(1941~1943)

After the outbreak of the Pacific War, the importance of China on the Asian battlefield had greatly increased as Britain and the U.S. were on the defensive. The Kuomintang government took the opportunity of China’s rise in international status to try to dominate the issues regarding the independence of Asian colonies so as to ensure China’s leadership in Asia after the War. With regard to Korea, Chiang Kai-shek actively sought a commitment to Korean independence and recognition of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Chungking by the Great Allied Powers, with the primary purpose of preventing the development of Soviet-supported Korean group in postwar Korea. BR The U.S. policy toward Korea, in the earlier stages of the War, was gradually developed in response to these demands from China. Considering China’s active demands in Korea, the U.S. agreed to Korean independence but refused to recognize the Provisional Government of Korea. The consideration of Soviet interests was the main reason why the U.S. refused. The U.S. thought that the Soviet Union also had significant geographical and historical interests in Korea and therefore believed that the Soviet Union would not be absent from the post-war negotiation table on the Korean issue. In late 1942, Chiang took advantage of the serious crisis in the Soviet Union during the Battle of Stalingrad to make more aggressive demands to Roosevelt to exclude the Soviet Union from the Korean issue. Chiang’s positive attitude toward the Korean issue alerted the U.S. to Chiang’s territorial ambitions for postwar Korea. This concern of the U.S. over Chiang’s expansionism added urgency to the decision of international trusteeship over Korea.

김중건의 원종(元宗)과 한의사 신홍균의 항일 독립운동

Japanese colonial rule ultimately aimed at destroying Korean history, culture, and its national spirit. Korean traditional medicine is a precious national asset containing the spirit and philosophy of the Korean people that has been preserved for 5,000 years. Based on Japan’s policy guidelines of assimilation, the Government-General of the Japanese Empire attempted to root out Korean traditional medicine, which had accumulated a national tradition and spirit. With the beginning of Japanese colonial rule, the alien rulers in Korea launched a program of subjugating the medical system of Joseon to Western medical science under the name of modernization. This article is a historiographic and biographic study on the life of Shin Hong-gyun, a Korean Independence Army (military surgeon) member, who bravely joined the battle of Daejeonjaryeong (大甸子嶺). It was Kim Jung-geon who led Shin Honggyun to join the difficult path of the anti-Japanese struggle. Kim Jung-geon founded Wonjong (元宗), which aimed to renovate Korean society to present a new ideal world called Daegonghwamukuk (大共和無國). He developed his strategy of the anti-Japanese independence movement through implementing a social reform, Ubokchon (魚腹村), which embodied his philosophy and experience. The relationship between Shin and Kim lasted for 17 years through their collaborative works in the anti-Japanese independence movement and social reform. This article introduced the trajectory of how Kim Junggeon’s philosophy influenced Shin Hong-gyun’s determination to join the independence army.