History of Korea

My recollections and excerpts from the books I have read about the Koreas. Notably by Michael J Seth

A lot of Chinese influence can be found on the peninsula of Korea. It was almost the part of Chinese mainland.

Mountains can be seen in whole of Korea. Another common item is rice which is eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. If you're eating rice, it means economy is good, if not, there is a cause of worry.

Fables of kings and their birth are rich and baroque. Divine births on mountains or simply appearing out of nowhere - kings and royals were truly exotic and full of mystical powers. Powers which not only ordinary humans possessed but animals too, as per the stories.

Perhaps this is why Kims were able to fool the population so easily.

Jealousy among beautiful young women is a common theme in Korean stories.

Korean history of 600 to 900 is full of killings and power struggles.

The three states of Gorguyeo, Baejko and Silla fought a bloody for a century. In the end, Silla aided by Tang dynasty of China, defeated Gorguyeo, who has thwarted the Tang in many wars, and this defended Baejko and Silla as well.

Silla flourished and then went into decay just like all medieval empires.

In 958, Gwangjing introduced civil service exams for government officials which led to immense improvement in functioning of the government. A new class emerged which was uniform since they had all done the same exam to acquire the right to work in government.

Finally, Korea was united as a kingdom called Goryeo or Korea. There were threats from tribes from Manchuria and the Mongols.

The Chinese influence was overbearing in Korean society of aristocrats, commoners and low born in terms of Dressing, literature, and food.

However, in Goryeo, men and women mixed freely in aristocrats, did all activities, even bathed together unlike the Chinese culture.

Card games were popular and early known card games have come from Korea.

Women could inherit property, keep property, head households in Korean society but not work in the government, which was a job for men.

Koreans resisted the Mongols for almost 50 years. A matter of pride to have resisted the forced of Genghis Khan, who had conquered China in 1279. Finally, when Goryeo or Korea fell into the hands of Kublai Khan, it was still a minimal interference in the Korean culture as they were too far in a corner.

Being a part of an empire, which spanned far and wide, Korea witnessed the influence of the Turks, Mongols, Chinese, Russians, and Arabic travelers, which helped enrich the cosmopolitan culture.

In the 14 and 15 the centuries, Confucianism or neo-Confucianism from China came to Goryeo or Korea. The scholars who practiced Confucianism demanded complete adherence to its principles. They wanted Confucianism to be the state religion instead of Buddhism, which they said was an immoral way of living. Monks lived as celibates, thus ignoring their responsibility to family and state, indulged in politics and were self-centered.

Confucianism later promoted a system of monitoring the monarchs called censorate and classic mat.

Young people less than 21 were inducted into censorate. The classic mat used to keep an eye on the kings with historians around them to record what they spoke and their facial expressions.

Emperor Sejong

In Confucius society, the role of woman was reduced from the earlier Korean society. Woman now remained inside walls and no mixing was allowed. They had to be pious to husband and any hint of going astray was enough to force them to use a paedo (kirpan), a small dagger to take their own life.

Woman were restricted to remain inside walls and house entrances were different for them.

A bell system would announce the hours when the women can use the roads.

Despite all this Joseon (as it was called then) society was a hedonistic one. Yangban or gentlemen, paid visits to kisaeng, who were beautiful, literate, and well-mannered women raised to be companions to yangban. A modern escort. Some were so accomplished that they became famous poets.

Some low status women were called as mudang who practiced shamanism. Though Confucianism didn't approve it, presence of ghosts was widely believed and despite mudang woman's low status, none questioned her powers.

On new year day, as directed by Confucianism, children wear their best clothes and pay respects to parents, who give them red envelopes or Ang Paws.

In Confucianism, family is at the center, there is no god or afterlife. Each person in family has a special role, and society is like an extended family.

Three-year mourning was compulsory at the loss of a family member.

Joseon trade was poor because of no rivers and sea. Most of it was done by carrying A Frame size backpacks by crossing the mountains.

Merchants were looked upon as villains who create their wealth illegally. A cause of poor trade in Korea. A hatred for capitalism?

In 16th century, Japan attacked Korea and occupied parts up To Seoul. The Chinese helped to push them away. This is the first multi country war of the modern era.

The hermit kingdom moniker came at the same time. While the Chinese rule was barbaric, the Japanese were too outré for the refined culture of the Koreans. They wanted to stay away from both and thus the entire world for them at the time.

Late 19th century

Yangben - privileged landowners and officials

Jungin - noble class of technicians, artisans, doctors, engineers and musicians

Sangmin - farmers, laborer, and military

Cheonmin - lowest class slaves to criminals

Korea became more Confucian than Confucius. 

At the end of 19th century, Korea had a choice to make. Either they could follow the China model in which to oppose the Western influence and preserve their politics, economy and society, culture, and tradition. Or they could follow Japan in terms of accepting the Western ways of modernization, industrialization, and trade practices.

 In 1895, Japan defeated China in the quest for control over Korea, and finally Korea was independent of the Chinese domination. Japan also defeated Russia in the Russo Japanese war in 1904. The Russian Czar Nicolas II wanted the access to the warm water ports for commerce in Korea. Also, the Russians were providing protection for the Korean king. This victory by Japan was of great pride because it was the first time and Asian power had defeated an occidental power. 

The number of deaths in this war far outnumbered the deaths caused by any disease.

A lot of Korean feel that the United States who mediated the peace treaty in the Russo Japanese war, acceded Korea in the hands of Japan to maintain their control over the Philippines.  

The annexation by Japan formerly in 1910 marked the beginning of the Japanese rule for the next 35 years.

The Japanese rule was brutal in terms of curbing any Korean resistance. With any whiff of anti-colonial powers conspiring, Japanese police and army would round up anyone they believed, involved in anti-imperial activities. The governor general, appointed by the King, had absolute powers over Korean matters. 

Korea's history is filled with such kind of vagaries, vagaries of the external environment and the geopolitics. On one side you have great powers like Russia and China. And while the other side Japan is always looking at Korea as a portal to the Asian landmass. In a way the island of Korea becomes an invaluable asset to either of these three powers. China wishes no disturbance in the peninsula while Japan uses it as an access to the Asian mainland.  Russia also thinks that their rear flank is secure if they control Korea.

Modern times

In 1904, after Japan defeated Russia, Korea became a Japanese protectorate.

Next 35 years, Korea remained a Japanese colony.

Japanese rule was ruthless. One reason was that a quarter of a million Japanese were stationed in the peninsula. Compare that to number of British in India against a 15 times larger population. Japanese were everywhere, tax collector, inspectors, school masters, regulators. They interfered in all matters.

March first movement

Hardline Army rule to more liberal anglophile admirals. The same was shown in the Amazon Prima show The man in the high castle. Why is that? Navy more liberal?

The March 1 movement although failed to achieve much but still it is considered as the first significant movement of resistance against the Japanese rule. One of the things it did was to unite the disparate indigenous and external nationalist groups- Koreans which were living in different parts of the world came together. In Japan, the Korean students united to demand independence; in Korea, the Buddhists and Christians came together for the purpose of calling for liberation. The disparate nationalist groups and exiled from the Korean Provisional Government in Shanghai with Syngman Rhee as president. 

Similar events were taking place in India as well. Subash Chandra Bose established a provisional government with assistance from the Japanese. It is ironic that while the Japanese were occupying the Korean Peninsula, there was a call for a provisional government to oppose their rule. Likewise, Subhash Chandra Bose was working towards the same goal, but against British rule with Japanese support.

The march 1, or the samil movement, as it is called helped to enforce a stronger Korean identity.  It became the focal point of unity of indigenous groups, external groups, progressives, conservatives, students, religious leaders, radical and elites in the history of Korea's struggle for independence. As brutal Japanese rule was, and there were many things which stood out. Japanese shut down all the newspapers in the Korean language, except for one, which was used as a tool to convey the Imperial messages. And the other most hated element of the Japanese assimilation policy was the name order edict, which required Koreans to give up their Korean names and adopt a Japanese name. By 1944, most had lost their names.  A lot of young women from Korea were used as the comfort women for the Japanese soldiers to have sex with soldiers.

Now this is a very sensitive matter to explore, and maybe a matter of research if any credit is given to Japan for playing a role in Korea's modern development.

When a superior power like Japan was ruling over Korea. They were trying to impose their Emperor's agenda over the minds of the Koreans. They were telling them that Japan's rule over Korea is legitimate. They were trying to push away the Korean culture and impose the Japanese culture over the population. But how do you do it? Well, you do it by having more schools, in which the Japanese language is taught to promote the Japanese culture. But in doing so, the literacy increases, and the local population ultimately benefits out of it. Yes, the purpose is political, but still, some benefits come to the ruled country. 

If land is exploited, better methods of farming are learnt by the locals. Manufacturing increases, oil and gas, coal production increases. 

Korea had the best infrastructure in Asia after 1945 though everything was built to help the imperial Japanese. 

And the same thing happened with India. During the regime of the British, they were trying to run the government in the Queen's name but to do so they had to build railways, build, postal services etc. They had to build schools. They had to have the government services for which education was needed. And the local population had to participate in it. So, Indians too did benefit a lot during the English rule.

1910-45

From the Korea perspective, Japanese rule was most oppressive, traumatic period for most Koreans. Apart from laying a railway network, Japanese did little for the Koreans. Everything was done to promote the state, every effort of a household was towards promoting the totalitarian regimes.  Trade, education, and industrial growth suffered. Many Koreans escaped to Western world, forming a front to launch nationalistic revolution.

Some were enamored by Lenin's Marxist ideas while others found Mahatma Gandhi's nonviolent movement. However, nothing worked against the Japanese, who efficiently subdued all such groups before they became dangerous.

A lot of women were sent as pleasure women for the Japanese soldiers in the war, many of which committed suicide.

For once, the Japanese remained confused, should they assimilate Korea into one or Korea remains a part of the empire? They had to limit Korea language in schools to stop letting nationalism grow, However, superior Japanese were not ready to accept Koreans as their own.

Intermarriage was rare.

Japan's defeat in the World War II brought a new era in Korean history. The allies who won the war, were not prepared to deal with this issue.

Hurriedly, they divided the peninsula along the 38th parallel just for the control purposes. No one had an idea that this would become the most hardened line in the history of Korea or in the world.

In the north, things were easy as Soviets knew what that they wanted.  Infact, the people liberation societies, working across Korea were in action to find leaders and structure for government. Soviets worked with them but had an agenda of having a communist government, under their influence.

Of the minor group of leaders available, one was Kim Ill sung, who had done guerilla warfare against the Chinese, but was nothing more than a needle prick to them. However, he and his friends were totally enshrined into communism and even wore Soviet style military uniforms. He came to Korea and was immediately liked by the Soviets as leader which they promoted.

Americans had no idea whatsoever. South was in total chaos.

The Korean war

Once the government were formed in both states of north and south, both started plans for unification.

Since south was more in chaos, north started fomenting anti government feeling and finally launched an attack in 1950. They took Seoul and Syngman Rhee government fled to Busan. US forces under general Macarthur and UN forces regained control after initial unbalance and forced north forces away and took Pyongyang. However, now the Chinese came to the rescue of Kim Ill sung and forced back South and US forces. They took Seoul again but were again forced back. The war was now in stalemate.

When both nations' armies took control, the general sentiment in the population was against it. Though everyone wanted unification, people in south didn't like North taking over Seoul and vice versa.

War dragged on after 1951, and US stepped up the bombing of North, worse than what they did to Japan.

China, who was about to invade Taiwan and capture it were thwarted by US forces available nearby.

Casualties were huge on both sides and the process of unification failed forever.

Both Kim Ill sung and Syngman Rhee decided to make their nations strong enough to take over by their own and not needing the allies.

While Kim was purging his opposition, Rhee s administration was besotted by corruption.

Seoul was left with half standing buildings and rubble while Pyongyang was nearly flattened.

North population was decimated while 300,000 died in South.

In some ways, Kim ll sung was responsible for the war and thus hardening the line forever.

The Korean War started on June 21, 1950, when North Korean forces supported by tanks, heavy artillery and air power rolled across the 38th parallel in an all-out mechanized military invasion. North Korea was supported by Stalin who provided military assistance secretly in the form of ammunition, money, training, and equipment and by China, where Mao Zedong sent several thousand Korean troops from China. Kim Il Sung was very confident that the victory will be swift, and he convinced Stalin and China to support him.

The United States send the troops to defend South Korea and General MacArthur take control from Syngman Rhee. The capital cities of Seoul and Pyongyang change hands for a total of six times.

Stalin died in March 1953. It became an opening for the settlement and an exchange for the prisoners of war. The war ended after three years after heavy casualties for either side and at a tremendous cost.

 Military casualties 140,000 South Koreans; 34,000 Americans; more than 640,000 North Koreans and over 1 million Chinese.  Over 3 million Koreans were killed. 

The economies of the countries were shattered, the war losses measure was about 6.9 billion US dollars in South Korea, North Korea it was even higher.

 Japan benefited from the war because its economy benefited by providing the supplies for the world.

USS Pueblo : The capture of the USS “Pueblo,” a Navy intelligence ship, and its 83 crewmen by North Korean patrol boats off the coast of North Korea happened on January 23, 1968. The United States, maintaining that the “Pueblo” had been in international waters, began a military buildup in the area. It also initiated negotiations that resulted in an agreement that secured the release of the 82 surviving crewmen (one died from wounds suffered during the capture) on December 23, 1968. The agreement allowed the United States to publicly disavow the confession the crew had signed, admitting the ship’s intrusion, apologizing, pledging to cease all future action, and acknowledging the truth of confessions obtained during captivity.

The ship now lies in North Korean Museum as a symbol of its military might.

North Korea’s victory over Italy in 1966 Soccer world Cup: The result is still considered one of the World Cup's biggest ever upsets, with Italy – holders of a then joint-record two world titles – having been widely expected to face no difficulty in comfortably beating North Korea, who were making their tournament debut.

The only lady featured on Korean currency is “Shin Saimdang.” She lived in the early 16th Century and was at the time and still now a popular artist and poet in addition to being the mother of Yi I (he appears on 5000 WON note) which shows her link to Confucianism a major part of South Korean history.

After Syngman Rhee was ousted in a coup by Park Chung Hee, it started the era of a great development and dictatorial regime of Park Chung Hee from 1962 to 1970.  Park tried to shut down the opposition, but it was never fully purged, as it was in the case of North Korea. The election kept happening and Park was able to defeat his opponents by slender margins. The opponents almost won 45 to 50% vote, but Park managed to win slightly higher and claim the presidency.

Park was a former military leader and fought in the World War II. He was quite mesmerized by and complimented Japan's militaristic policies. Park also sang at the armed forces to South Vietnam in support of American troops fighting in the Vietnam War to show that we are against the communist regime.

In South Korea although, groups were opposed to Park’s decision to normalize diplomatic relations with Japan, but he signed the Treaty on basic relations between Japan and Korea. Japan provided South Korea 300 million Won in grants 200 million in loan and 300 million in commercial credit for its occupation of Korea and the use of Comfort Woman labor slaves.

The chaebols - Daewoo, Hyundai, LG and Samsung. Park’s focus was on the upgradation of South Korean economy from 1972 to 77; five-year plans which focused on heavy industries such as electronics, machinery, petrochemicals, or shipping. He also started the nuclear program with the help of countries like France and UK, Israel, and Norway. But once the US came to know about this planning, it was ultimately halted in the 1980s after Park was replaced. There was an attack on Park in which his wife was killed. He was ultimately assassinated by the director of KCIA Kim Jai Gyu.

Once Brezhnev had replaced Khrushchev as Soviet Union's leader, relations between North Korea and Soviet Union got better and Soviet Union supported North Korea's nuclear program with technology transfers and by sending their own scientists to the country. China had conducted their nuclear program, first nuclear test in October 1964.

In January 1968, Kim Ill Sung sent 31 commandos to kill Park Chung Hee. He managed to reach within meters of Park’s residence, but ultimately, they were repelled by South Korean police forces. 29 were killed, one was taken prisoner and one escaped back. 

After USS Pueblo, North Korea also shot a US spy aircraft flying over the East Sea, killing its 31 crew members.

Instead of economy, Kim Il Sung focused on weapons and military rather than the light industry and agriculture; image over substance, propaganda over performance.

North Korea made significant efforts to disrupt the 1986 Asian Games in South Korea, as well as the 1988 Olympic Games. During the 1986 Asian Games, they attempted to rally fellow communist countries in Asia to boycott the event, achieving some success. However, their main target for cooperation, China, chose to participate in the games. Faced with the failure of their boycott call, North Korea resorted to detonating a bomb at Gimpo Airport, resulting in the deaths of five individuals. Similarly, at the Olympic level, they urged all communist nations to boycott the games, but the Soviet Union and China declared their intention to attend. Subsequently, North Korea reverted to its previous tactic of bombing a Korean Air flight, causing an explosion over the Andaman Sea that claimed the lives of 15 passengers. The individual responsible for planting the bomb was apprehended and extradited to South Korea, where he later revealed that Kim Jong Ill had personally ordered the attack on the South Korean flight.

Meanwhile, The South had taken the Democratic path. There were demonstrations across the country, but they were mainly to show the strength of the nascent democracy. The elections are not rigged. Everybody accepted the results of elections. Even the opposition although continued to oppose the policies, but there was no hint that they did not believe in their democracy.

In response to the Olympic Games, compared to 1988 and North Korea, began the construction of Rugyong Hotel 1987. But it was never completed because of lack of funds and support after the fall of the Soviet Union.

In 1989, North Korea organized a World Festival for students from Utah, which spanned eight days and was attended by 22,000 delegates from 177 countries. Nevertheless, despite the event, the delegates and guests were closely monitored. This was the first time for the North Korean people to see individuals from Western democracies and the US who were clearly not as destitute as portrayed by the North Korean government before.

In 1989, the events unfolded in the Eastern Europe, the fall of the Soviet Union, opening of the borders between the Soviet vassal states and the Western democracies. The execution of Nicolai Cecescue in Romania gave Kim Il Sung the lessons that opening up the economy and market reforms is not going to help him continue with the regime.

In 1993, Samsung chairman Lee Kun Hee asked the firm’s management and employees to change everything except your wife and children. He asked Samsung to change the strict hierarchies, focus on innovation and get started with the revolution that would one day make sense in the most innovative tech firms in the world.

The Kim Dae Jung administration initiated a comprehensive effort to bolster the entertainment sector, utilizing direct financial incentives, tax credits for exports, and partnerships with international television networks. This strategy successfully propelled the South Korean entertainment industry onto the global stage. Additionally, Kim Dae Jung introduced the Sunshine Policy, leading to enhanced relations between the two Koreas. This resulted in South Korea offering assistance to North Korea and Pyongyang permitting tourists from the South to visit the picturesque Mount Geumgang, a stunning landmark in the Korean Peninsula.

On July 13, 2000, Kim Dae Jung flew to Pyongyang to meet the North Korean leader Kim Jong Ill. This was the first time the leaders of the two countries had ever met after the Korea had been divided into two.

In 2019 Korean movie “Parasite” became the first film, not in English to win the Oscar. For the best pictured. Black girl band symbolizes the mainstream popularity of K-POP.