HISTORY
 |
Korea is one of the oldest countries in the world
and has a long and distinguished history and cultural heritage.
However, it remained relatively unknown to the Western world until
the 20th century.
This changed with the official division of the
country into North and South Korea after the Second World War
and with the onset of the Korean War in 1950. |
The Ancient Period (pre-57 B.C.)
The Korean people belong to the Altaic race that
originated in the Neolithic period around 5000 B.C. Ancestors
of modern day Koreans established settlements along rivers and
in coastal areas of the Korean Peninsula. The people were originally
hunter-gatherers who began rice cultivation by 2500 B.C. They
were aided by Chinese agricultural technology that appeared in
Korea during the period. This was followed by more Chinese imports
by 1200 B.C. in the form of bronze tools and the development of
iron tools by 500 B.C.
Advancements in agriculture and technology helped
people create a powerful state around 1000 B.C. called Old Chosun,
which spanned parts of Manchuria and sections of the northern
peninsula of Korea. Other large tribal states emerged after 500
B.C.
The period around 400 B.C. saw some Korean farmers
migrating to southern Japan, which explains Korean influence in
early Japanese agriculture. After the Han China invasion in 109
B.C. Korea saw a dramatic increase in Chinese influence accompanied
by economic exploitation. Korea was to remain closely tied to
China for centuries. It was also a period when the country assimilated
cultural, political and social structures from China.
The Three Kingdoms Period (57 B.C. to 668 A.D.)
After the Chinese invasion of Korea, three powerful
kingdoms emerged: Silla, Paekche and Koguryo This period was named
after those kingdoms founded by three legendary leaders Hyokkose,
Alchi and Talhae. Using mythology and political ideas adopted
from the Chinese, these rulers built power monarchies. Their aggressive
nation-building efforts resulted in a long period of warfare.
The period of warfare was brought to an end when Silla, with the
help of the Chinese Ta'ng dynasty, overthrew Paekche and Koguryo
and unified the three kingdoms.
The Silla Rule (668-935)
The Silla dynasty had conquered most of the Korean
Peninsula by 668 A.D. The land experienced significant social,
cultural and political changes during this period. Tribes divided
into clans and clans into family units. Economic activity expanded
and spread into diverse areas. Chinese culture significantly influenced
the Korean people during this period.
Buddhism is said to have officially arrived in
372 A.D. with a Chinese monk, although it may have been present
in the land since the first century A.D. Korea's growing contact
with China saw Buddhist religion and culture flourish. Some of
the most impressive Buddhist monuments were built during this
period. The region was also very active in maritime trade in East
Asia and with Arab traders.
The kingdom went into a decline late in the ninth
century and the country was divided into three rival states that
called themselves the "latter three kingdoms."
The Koryo Kingdom (918-1392)
In 918, Wang Kon took over the "latter three
kingdoms" and changed the name of the kingdom to "Koryo"
from which the modern name "Korea," is derived. Wang
Kon was a leader in one of the rebel forces that was led by Kung'ye
against the Silla dynasty. When Kung'ye established the Kingdom
of Later Koguryo, Wang Kon rebelled against Kung'ye and took over
Koguryo. Then, in 936, Wang Kon led Koryo against the other two
latter kingdoms, defeated them and established his rule over the
entire nation.
The region saw political, social and cultural
progress. In 1231, the Mongols who had conquered much of Asia
and Eastern Europe invaded Koryo. During the next three decades,
the Mongols invaded Korea six times. As a result, although Korea
managed to retain its independence, it remained dominated by the
Mongol empire. 34 kings ruled and expanded the kingdom until it
fell in 1392.
Korea supported the Chinese Ming dynasty when
they defeated the Mongol empire. This stance led to a dissent
in the Korean ranks. The king was advised by one military official
to discard the pro-Ming approach, which was disliked by other
officials who plotted to overthrow the king. Yi Song-gye, a military
leader, managed to do this in 1388 and carried out sweeping reforms
in the country until 1392. As the reforms reduced the power of
the elite, there was widespread bitterness, which gave rise to
an anti-Yi movement. After a series of internal uprisings in which
many top officials were killed, the Koryo dynasty fell in 1392.
The Choson Kingdom (Yi Dynasty) 1392-1910
Yi Song-gye established the Yi dynasty of the
Kingdom of Choson that ruled Korea until 1910. During the period,
27 kings ruled the kingdom. The beginnings of the Yi dynasty were
full of violent power struggles, brought about by disagreements
among the royal family members as to who would be the next of
kin to rule the nation. Korea saw Chinese influences come in during
this period. This period saw a society emerge with clear distinctions
among different classes of people based on the Confucian concepts.
During this period, Buddhism was not supported by the state and
Choson established Confucianism as the state religion and the
region's rituals, philosophy and social norms were influenced
by Confucianism.
In the 16th century, Korea was invaded by the
Japanese ruler Toyotomi Hideyoshi as a first step in his attempt
to conquer China. The Ming Dynasty that ruled China during this
period came to Korea's rescue and defeated the Japanese invaders.
Korea was again invaded, this time by the Manchus, a nomadic race
from continental Asia, in the 17th century. The Manchus forced
the Koreans to bow down to them before going on to conquer China.
Korea suffered greatly during these wars and thereafter the Choson
government followed a policy of seclusion, restricting its interactions
with China and Japan to a minimum.
A period of peace lasted until the 1850s. During
this time Korea looked down upon military pursuits in keeping
with Confucian traditions; instead there was great emphasis on
scholarly learning. While Korea continued to trade with Qing China,
relations were cut off from Japan who was also following an isolationist
policy.
The nineteenth century saw the entry of European
powers into Asia in search of trade, diplomatic ties, and colonial
conquests. Korea resisted these efforts for a long time, which
earned it the name "Hermit Kingdom." Resistance resulted
in naval battles with the French and Americans in the 1860s and
1870s.
Eventually, Korea was forced to open its doors
to trade, not by western powers but by Japan. The Kanghwa Treaty
signed with Japan in 1876 gave Japan special trading rights in
Korea. This was followed by treaties with the United States and
major European nations.
By the end of the 19th century, rivalry over Korea
resulted in a war between Japan and China (1894-95) and between
Japan and Russia (1904-05). Japan won both wars, annexed Korea
as a colony and brought about the end of Korea's independence
and the end of the Yi dynasty. After emerging victorious in the
war with Russia, Japan, with the support of the US, wanted the
Korean government to sign a treaty, which would place them under
the protection of the Japanese. However, the Korean emperor refused
to approve the treaty. The Japanese responded by taking away the
government's powers, abolished the army and discarded the police
and judiciary in 1907. This led to thousands of Koreans emigrating
to Russia, Manchuria and the United States. Many of those who
remained formed associations to preach nationalism. After an international
peace conference at The Hague failed to assist Korea in its attempts
at regaining sovereignty, there were widespread clashes between
Korean nationalists and Japanese troops, between 1907 and 1910.
The rule of the Yi dynasty finally ended when
the Japanese laid siege on Emperor Sunjong's palace in 1910 and
forced him to approve the treaty of annexation, which united Japan
and Korea, so as to maintain "peace and stability in Korea
and to promote the prosperity and welfare of Koreans."
Japanese Colonial Rule (1910-1945)
The expected peace and stability did not materialize
and the Korean people suffered much humiliation and exploitation
in the period from 1910 to 1945. The Japanese used a militaristic
ruling style and crushed any dissent from the local people. Nationalist
feelings and racial consciousness were suppressed by abolishing
Korean newspapers and magazines and the only newspapers were in
Japanese. Political and social organizations were banned as was
public assembly. Religious services were conducted under surveillance
and many religions leaders and scholars were arrested.
However, the Japanese regime relaxed somewhat
as a response to the nationwide protest of 1919 in which over
two million people participated. The protest exposed Japanese
atrocities to the world and the colonists responded by allowing
a small degree of freedom of expression. Some papers and magazines
were allowed to publish, albeit under heavy supervision. People
could also associate themselves with organizations so long as
they did not voice anti-Japanese sentiments.
Meanwhile, some positive effects of the Japanese
rule were that Korea saw rapid industrial, economic, technological
and cultural growth. However, harsh measures were re-introduced
from 1937-1945 to aid the Japanese war effort in the Second World
War and Korean men and women were drafted to aid the Japanese
army. Instruction of Korean language in schools was banned, and
the people were forced to adopt Japanese surnames. People were
asked to attend Japanese religious ceremonies while churches and
mission schools were closed down. In 1940, the permission to publish
Korean newspapers was also revoked.
Japanese colonial rule in Korea came to an end
after the Japanese emperor's acceptance of the Potsdam ultimatum
of the Allies. The ultimatum was given to Japan by the US, Great
Britain and Russia who met in Potsdam near Berlin. It stated that
Japan must immediately agree to unconditionally surrender, or
face "prompt and utter destruction". Japan rejected
the ultimatum, which resulted in the bombing of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in August 1945. Japan surrendered immediately thereafter,
on August 14.
After World War II, a republic was set up in the
southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a communist government
was installed in the north. However, both North and South Korea
had declared in their constitution that the entire Korean peninsula
was their national territory.
The communist government of North Korea made it
their goal to liberate the southern part from western influences
and reunify it with the North. With this aim in mind, North Korea
under the leadership of Kim Il-sung, invaded South Korea in 1950
with support and encouragement from Russia. South Korea was supported
by the United States and United Nations troops in a war that lasted
three years and killed 3 million Koreans, a million Chinese and
over 50,000 Americans.
The war ended with a truce and Korea was separated
by a heavily guarded de-militarized zone, at the 38th parallel.
Thus, what was intended as a temporary division of the land, decided
upon by whether the USSR or the US took Japanese surrender in
the peninsula, became a more permanent arrangement.
Recent History (1953-Present)
The Korean economy was shattered by the war. Postwar
reconstruction was supported by enormous amounts of foreign aid
(in the North from Communist countries such as Russia, China and
East Germany and in the South chiefly from the United States)
and intensive government economic development programs. The greatest
industrial advances were made during the 1960s. North Korea made
progress in industrial growth while South Korea concentrated on
feeding its people.
While North Korea saw rapid economic growth in
the initial years, South Korea's road to stable and sustained
economic growth started with the adoption of democratic ideals
with the assistance of the United Nations. There were two not
very successful attempts at establishing a democratic government
from 1948-1961, followed by a brief military rule from 1961-63.
This was followed by three different governments whose leaders
imposed their own versions of democracy.
One of these governments, (1963-72), led by President
Park, spoke of a "limited" democracy that attempted
to restrict civil liberties and freedom of speech. This was an
effort to follow Japan's model of bureaucracy and military leadership,
which had brought about considerable economic progress in Japan.
The regime ended with great unrest and the implementation of martial
law to contain civil unrest.
The following regime (1972-79) was troubled by
domestic unrest among dissidents, and straining of international
relations with Japan and the United States and repressions of
civil liberties. The situation worsened as large-scale demonstrations
led to the implementation of martial law. The limited democracy
ended with the death of President Park who was killed by the director
of the country's secret service in October, 1979. Though Park's
rule had obstructed democracy, it had also transformed the country
into a prosperous, industrial nation.
The period after this (1981-88) also saw great
unrest with the government failing to restore direct election
and freedom of the press. This government fell in 1988 with the
election of President Roh Tae-woo who initiated reforms such as
liberalization of press laws, restoration of civil rights and
freedom of forming associations.
South Korea's present per capita income is far
greater than that of North Korea. North Korea's growth was hampered
by its restrictive economic policies and political ideology of
self-reliance. As for South Korea, although the nation suffered
a severe financial crisis in 1997, it continued to make a solid
recovery.
South Korea, once known to be one of the world's
poorest agrarian societies, undertook economic development in
earnest since 1962. An outward-oriented economy used exports as
the engine of growth, which contributed greatly to the economic
transformation of Korea. Based on such a strategy, many successful
development programs were implemented. In the present, South Korea
is a major trading nation and a force to reckon with in world
affairs.
While communication between the two Koreas has
been at a minimum, there have been several attempts at reconciliation
between the two. The first joint declaration on peace and reconciliation
was signed in 1972, followed by a more extensive agreement on
non-aggression, exchange and co-operation in 1991.
In June 2000, a historic North-South summit took
place between the South's President Kim Dae-jung and the North's
leader Kim Jong-il. In December 2000, President Kim Dae-jung became
the first Korean to win the Nobel Peace Prize, for his lifelong
commitment to democracy and human rights in Asia.
However, hostility and conflicts between the two
Koreas is a cause of concern for the world, especially with North
Korea's significant spending on defense facilities. In 2002, South
Korea made demands that North Korea discard its nuclear program
but these were not met.
The current president is Roh Moo-hyun, appointed
by the country's first national primary election system in November
2002. His policy thrust has been in positioning the country on
par with the region's economic power like Japan and enhancing
relationships with North Korea.
Source: Introduction to history and culture (Andrew C. Nahm)
& www.columbia.edu
Source: (http://www.ehistory.com/world/CountryView.cfm?ID=114)
http://www.nsa.gov/publications/publi00022.cfm#2
- about the Korean War.
