March 1st Movement

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(Redirected from March 1st (Samil) Movement)
March 1st Movement
Part of the Korean independence movement
DateMarch 1, 1919 (1919-03-01)
Location
Korea under Japanese rule
MethodsNonviolent resistance
March 1st Movement
Hangul
3·1 운동
Hanja
Revised RomanizationSamil Undong
McCune–ReischauerSamil Undong

The March 1st Movement, also known as the Sam-il (3-1) Movement (Korean: 3·1 운동), was a significant protest movement in early 1919 by Korean people that called for independence from Imperial Japan and a stop to the forced assimilation into Japanese culture. It is also sometimes referred to as the Man-se Demonstrations (Korean: 만세운동; Hanja: 萬歲運動; lit. Ten-thousand Year Movement). It is remembered as one of the earliest and largest protest movements for Korean independence, and remembered as a catalyst for future independence activities. Thirty-three Korean cultural and religious leaders issued a proclamation, supported by thousands of students and civilians in Seoul. There were over 1,000 demonstrations in many other cities. These were brutally suppressed, with Korean historian Park Eun-sik reporting about 7,500 killed and 16,000 wounded, and 46,000 arrested.

Korea eventually achieved independence decades later after the surrender of Japan at the end of World War II. Today, March 1st is celebrated as a national holiday in South Korea, but not in North Korea.[1]

Background[edit]

See also: Korea under Japanese rule

In 1910, Japan formally annexed Korea. Japanese rule was initially especially tight. Japan took control over Korea's economy, and began a process of Japanization: forced cultural assimilation. Resistance was violently suppressed, and freedom of speech and press were tightly controlled.[2][3] Months before the protests, a number of events occurred that heightened Korean discontent and stirred independence sentiment.[2]

After the conclusion of World War I in 1918, United States President Woodrow Wilson published his Fourteen Points, which included the right of national self-determination.[4][2] Inspired by this, Korean-American independence activists such as Syngman Rhee, Min Chan-ho [ko], and Jeong Han-gyeong [ko] attempted to send a Korean representative to the 1919–1920 Paris Peace Conference, but the United States denied them permission to go. According to the analysis of Kim Jin-bong (김진봉), Wilson had intended for the statement to apply mostly the former colonies of the defeated Central Powers, which Japan was not a part of.[2]

Just days after the beginning of the Paris Peace Conference, Gojong, the former emperor of Korea, died on January 21, 1919. Japan reported that Gojong had died from natural causes, but he had reportedly been healthy just until his death. Koreans widely suspected that Japan had poisoned him [ko]; this was thought especially credible because previous attempts had been made on his life.[5]

Inspired by the ideals of self-determination, and incensed by the United States' rebuffing of the Korean representatives, by the brutality of Japanese rule, and by Gojong's death, Korean students studying in Tokyo publicly proclaimed and distributed a February 8 Declaration of Independence.[4][6][2] The students were arrested en masse by Japanese authorities, although news of their act reached Korea.[7]

Organization[edit]

In late 1918, leaders of the native Korean religion Cheondoism, including Kwǒn Tong-chin [ko] and O Se-chang, reached a consensus that nonviolent resistance and turning international public opinion against Japan would be effective in advocating for Korea's independence. They also agreed that they needed assistance from other major groups in Korea.[2]

They dispatched representatives to negotiate and secure the cooperation of major politicians and groups in Korea. This took months, and they were initially so disheartened that they considered abandoning their plan. However, the events of January and February 1919 caused a spike in pro-independence activism, and they quickly secured a number of significant alliances. They gained the support of several former government officials from the Korean Empire, although they were rebuffed by Joseon-era politicians Park Yung-hyo and Han Kyu-sŏl. They also secured alliances from major Christian and Buddhist groups around Korea. They also gained the support of a number of student organizations.[2]

They decided to schedule their protest for the same day as Gojong's public funeral, in order to capitalize on the large amounts of public gatherings. The funeral was initially scheduled for March 3. However, it was rescheduled to March 1 for religious reasons.[2][clarification needed]

From February 25 to 27, representatives from these various groups held a series of secret meetings in Seoul, during which they produced and signed the Korean Declaration of Independence. From 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on February 27, they printed 21,000 copies of the declaration at the printing facilities of Posǒngsa [ko], a publisher affiliated with Cheondoism. On the morning of the 28th, they distributed these copies around the peninsula, to members of the Korean diaspora, to U.S. President Wilson, and to participants in the Paris Peace Conference. That day, they held a final meeting and reviewed their plans for the protests.[2]

They initially planned to start the protest at Tapgol Park in Seoul, where they'd invite thousands of students to hear the reading of the declaration. However, worries that they were putting the students in danger caused them to change the starting location to the restaurant Taehwagwan [ko] in Insa-dong. This eventually led to a miscommunication, where the students were invited to the park regardless.[2]

Beginning[edit]

Around noon on March 1, 1919, twenty-nine of the thirty-three signers of the Korean Declaration of Independence gathered in Taehwagwan in preparation to start the protest. However, the Korean restaurant owner An Sun-hwan (안순환; 安淳煥) secretly reported the meeting to the Japanese Government-General of Chōsen, and around eighty Japanese military police officers rushed over and arrested them.[2]

Meanwhile, around 4,000 to 5,000 students had assembled at Tapgol Park after they had heard there was going to be an announcement there. They were unaware that most of the protest's organizers had been arrested.[2]

At 2 p.m., an unidentified young man went up before the crowd and began reading the Korean Declaration of Independence aloud. Near the end of the document's reading, cheers of "long live Korean independence" (대한독립 만세) erupted continually from the crowd, and they filed out onto the main street Jongno for a public march.[2]

Protests and spread[edit]

Crowds march in Seoul (1919).

Massive crowds assembled in Pagoda Park, Seoul to hear a student, Chung Jae-yong, read the declaration publicly. Afterwards, the gathering formed into a peaceable procession, which the Japanese military police attempted to suppress. Special delegates associated with the movement also read copies of the independence proclamation from appointed places throughout the country at 2 p.m. on that same day.

Approximately 2,000,000 Koreans had participated in the more than 1,500 demonstrations.[8]

Japanese response[edit]

Korean Christians were crucified in the aftermath of the protests (1919).

Several thousand Koreans were massacred by the Japanese police force and army.[8] The frequently cited The Bloody History of the Korean Independence Movement (한국독립운동지혈사; 韓國獨立運動之血史) by Park Eun-sik reported 7,509 people killed, 15,849 wounded, and 46,303 arrested. From March 1 to April 11, Japanese officials reported 553 people killed, and more than 12,000 arrested. They said that 8 policemen and military were killed, and 158 wounded. As punishment, some of the arrested demonstrators were executed in public.[9]

Even as Japan suppressed the protestors, an independence activist named Yu Gwansun persisted. She was arrested and tortured to death by Japanese police. Now often called "Big Sister Yu Gwansun", she is considered a martyr and national heroine in Korea.[10]

Japanese observers had diverse reactions to the protests. Journalist and colonial government official Hosoi Hajima had celebrated the 1910 Japanese annexation, but saw the March 1st Movement as emblematic of Japan's failure to act as a proper "big brother" in the years since. Others agreed that the protest was serious, but still salvageable.[11]

The colonial government changed many of its policies in the following years. It continued suppression of the protestors, while dismissing the March 1st Movement as the "Chosun Manse Violent Public Disorder Incident" (조선 공공 만세 폭력 사건). Governor-General Hasegawa Yoshimichi accepted responsibility for the loss of control (although most of the repressive measures leading to the uprising had been put into place by his predecessors); he was replaced by Saito Makoto.

Some measures eased pressure on Korea. The military police were replaced by a civilian force. Limited press freedom was permitted under what was termed the 'cultural policy', which led to the creation of several Korean newspapers, such as The Dong-a Ilbo.[11] Many of these lenient policies were reversed during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II.

Legacy[edit]

March 1st Movement celebrations in Seoul, 2013

The March 1st Movement provided a catalyst for the Korean Independence Movement, which was crucial to the spread of Korea's independence movement to other local governments, including Hoengseong. Given the ensuing suppression and hunting down of activists by the Japanese, many Korean leaders went into exile in Manchuria, Shanghai and other parts of China, where they continued their activities. The Movement was a catalyst for the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai in April 1919. It also influenced the growth of nonviolent resistance in India and many other countries.[12]

On May 24, 1949, South Korea designated March 1st as a national holiday. General Choe Hong-hui dedicated the first of the three patterns (삼일 틀 – Sam-il teul) trained by III-degree black belts of Taekwondo to the Sam-il Movement.

International reaction[edit]

United States and Korea[edit]

In the May, 1920 issue of Scribner's Magazine an article entitled "Korea's Rebellion: the part played by Christians" appeared.[13]

President Woodrow Wilson issued his Fourteen Points in January 1918. The points included… in terms of US relations with Korea, "a free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims."[14]

However, as manifested at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, Wilson was not interested in challenging global power relations. Since Japan was one of the victors and Korea was its colony, a discussion of the status of Korea was not undertaken.[14] In general, except for depriving the defeated Germany of its overseas colonies, the US did not interfere with any colonial empire.

In April 1919, the US State Department told the ambassador to Japan that "the consulate [in Seoul] should be extremely careful not to encourage any belief that the United States will assist the Korean nationalists in carrying out their plans and that it should not do anything which may cause Japanese authorities to suspect [the] American Government sympathizes with the Korean nationalist movement."[15]

From April 12 to 14, 1919 the First Korean Congress was convened in Philadelphia by Philip Jaisohn in support of the independence of Korea.

Delegation[edit]

Japan violently suppressed the March First Movement. The United States remained silent.[14] Despite this, the Korean National Association planned a three-man delegation in the United States to attend the Paris Peace Conference and attempt to represent Korea's interests. Dr. Rhee (representing Hawai'i), Rev. Chan Ho Min (representing the West Coast) and Dr. Henry Han Kyung Chung (representing the Midwest) were selected, but they were unable to attend. They encountered visa problems and feared that the delegates may not be allowed to reenter the United States.[16]

A delegation of overseas Koreans, from Japan, China, and Hawai'i, did make it to Paris. Included in this delegation was Kim Kyu-sik (김규식), a representative from the Korean Provisional Government in Shanghai.[14] After considerable effort, he managed to arrange passage with members of the Chinese delegation to the peace conference. He traveled on a Chinese passport and under a Chinese name in order to evade the Japanese police. The Chinese were eager for the opportunity to embarrass Japan at the international forum, and several top Chinese leaders at the time, including Sun Yat-sen, told U.S. diplomats that the peace conference should take up the question of Korean independence. Beyond that, however, the Chinese, locked in a struggle themselves against the Japanese, could do little for Korea.[17]

The United States did not pay substantial attention to these individuals, and the delegation was blocked from official participation as Korea was classified as a Japanese colony.[18]

The failure of the Korean nationalists to gain support from the Paris Peace Conference ended the possibility of foreign support.[19]

Commemorations[edit]

Centennial Anniversary of March 1st Independence Movement and Korean Provisional Government
Centennial Anniversary Ceremony for March 1st Independence Movement March 1, 2019
Native name 3ㆍ1운동 및 대한민국임시정부 수립 100주년 기념사업
DateFebruary 6, 2018 – June 30, 2020 (2018-02-06 – 2020-06-30)
LocationSouth Korea
Theme100th Anniversary of the March 1st Movement and the establishment of Korean Provisional Government
Organised byGovernment of South Korea
The Presidential Commission on Centennial Anniversary of March 1st Independence Movement and Korean Provisional Government(2018-2020)

South Korea[edit]

The March 1st Movement is commemorated annually by South Koreans to pay respect to participants of the Korean independence movement, as well as to celebrate Korean independence. This is done by prominent display of the Flag of South Korea in businesses and homes, as well as festivals, concerts, events, and activities. The Korean Declaration of Independence is read in Tapgol Park on the day, as was done in 1919.[20]

In 2018, President Moon Jae-in's administration established the Commission on the Centennial Anniversary of March 1st Independence Movement and the Korean Provisional Government (KPG) to celebrate these occasions.[21] The KPG was the government-in-exile of Korea during the Japanese occupation, and a predecessor of the current government. North Korea refused to participate in the joint project of the anniversary due to "scheduling issues".[22] The commission ceased its operation in June 2020.

Seoul Metropolitan Government stated the March 1st movement as "the catalyst movement of democracy and the republic for Korean people."[23]

Centennial Ceremony for March 1st

North Korea[edit]

In the North, the day is remembered as "The People's Uprising Day" (인민 봉기일), and taught as the day that Kim Il Sung's family took the lead of the independence movement. Kim would have been around eight years old around 1919. It is commemorated as a relatively minor holiday, with mostly central and few local celebrations. The events are geared towards inciting anti-American and anti-Japanese sentiment.[1][24]

The epicenter of the movement is taught as being Pyongyang instead of Seoul, and the contributions of figures who became influential in the later South Korean government are downplayed. The 33 national representatives who are considered to have led the movement in the South are replaced by Kim Hyong-jik, Kim's father. Those 33 representatives are instead described as having surrendered immediately after reading their declaration. Furthermore, eight-year-old Kim is described as leading a march for some 30 li from the Mangyongdae neighborhood of Pyongyang to the Potong Gate, also in Pyongyang.[24]

While scholars in both the South and North are in relative consensus that the movement was doomed to fail (at least in the short term), North Korean textbooks argue that the movement failed because of bourgeois interference and the lack of a central proletariat revolutionary party to lead it.[24]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Kim, Hyeon-gyeong (1 March 1997). "In North Korea, March 1st is distortedly taught as being caused by the Kim Il-sung family". MBC News. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 김, 진봉, "3·1운동 (三一運動)", Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean), Academy of Korean Studies, retrieved 2024-04-29
  3. ^ 정, 진석; 최, 진우. "신문 (新聞)". Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean). Academy of Korean Studies. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  4. ^ a b Neuhaus, Dolf-Alexander (2017). ""Awakening Asia": Korean Student Activists in Japan, The Asia Kunglun, and Asian Solidarity, 1910–1923". Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review. 6 (2): 608–638. doi:10.1353/ach.2017.0021. S2CID 148778883.
  5. ^ "Did you know that ...(22) The coffee plot". The Korea Times. 2011-09-09. Retrieved 2017-09-06.
  6. ^ "English Text of Feb. 8 Declaration of Independence Found". KBS World. 2014-09-17. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
  7. ^ 박, 성수, "2·8독립선언서 (二八獨立宣言書)", Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean), Academy of Korean Studies, retrieved 2024-04-29
  8. ^ a b "March First Movement | Korean history". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  9. ^ Ebrey, Patricia Buckley, and Walthall, Anne (1947). East Asia : a cultural, social, and political history (Third ed.). Boston. ISBN 9781133606475. OCLC 811729581.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ McMurray, Nathan. "Society: The March 1st Independence Movement and its big sister". 10 Magazine. Retrieved 2015-05-05. [permanent dead link]
  11. ^ a b Caprio, Mark E. (2011). "Marketing Assimilation: The Press and the Formation of the Japanese-Korean Colonial Relationship". The Journal of Korean Studies. 16 (1): 16–17. doi:10.1353/jks.2011.0006. ISSN 0731-1613. JSTOR 41490268.
  12. ^ "Why Did Mao, Nehru and Tagore Applaud the March First Movement? - :: KOREA FOCUS ::". Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2009-06-27.
  13. ^ Peffer, N. (1920). "Korea's Rebellion: the part played by Christians". Scribners Magazine. 67 (5): 513.
  14. ^ a b c d Hart-Landsberg, Martin (1998). Korea: Division, Reunification, & U.S. Foreign Policy. Monthly Review Press. p. 30.
  15. ^ United States Policy Regarding Korea, Part I: 1834–1941. US Department of State. pp. 35–36.
  16. ^ Chang, Roberta (2003). The Koreans in Hawai'i: A Pictorial History, 1903–2003. University of Hawaii Press, p. 100.
  17. ^ Manela, Erez (2007). The Wilsonian Moment. Oxford. pp. 119–135, 197–213.
  18. ^ Kim, Seung-Young (2009). American Diplomacy and Strategy Toward Korea and Northeast Asia, 1882–1950 and After. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 64–65.
  19. ^ Baldwin, Frank (1972). The March First Movement: Korean Challenge and Japanese Response. Columbia University.
  20. ^ Crew, Trazy (2021-02-24). "March 1st Independence Movement Day in Korea". Trazy Blog. Retrieved 2021-07-20.
  21. ^ "March 1st Independence Movement and Korean Provisional Government >Memories & Gratitude>March 1st Independence Movement>March 1st Independence Movement". Archived from the original on 2020-06-16. Retrieved 2020-03-14.
  22. ^ Gibson, Jenna (Mar 1, 2019). "Korea Commemorates 100th Anniversary of March 1st Independence Protests".
  23. ^ "서울 볼거리 구경하기 – 서울에 아름다움을 느껴보세요". Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  24. ^ a b c Han, Yeong-jin (28 February 2006). "Eight-year-old boy Kim Il-sung gathered the independence movement and travelled 30 li". Daily NK. Retrieved 8 March 2023.

Further reading[edit]

  • Baldwin, Frank (1972). The March First Movement: Korean Challenge and Japanese Response. Columbia University Press.
  • Cumings, Bruce (1997). Korea's Place in the Sun: A Modern History. New York: W.N. Norton and Company.
  • Han, Woo-keun (1988). The History of Korea. U of Hawaii Press.
  • Hart, Dennis. "Remembering the nation: construction of the March First movement in North and South Korean history textbooks" Review of Korean Studies (Seoul) 4, no. 1 (June 2001) pp. 35–59, historiography
  • Kim, Juhea (2021). Beasts of a Little Land. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 117–131. ISBN 9780063093577.
  • Ko, Seung Kyun. The March First Movement: A Study of the Rise of Korean Nationalism under the Japanese Colonialism Koreana Quarterly: A Korean Affairs Review (Seoul) 14, no. 1–2 (1972) pp. 14–33.
  • Ku, Dae-yeol. Korea Under Colonialism: The March First Movement and Anglo-Japanese Relations (Royal Asiatic Society, Seoul, 1985) online review
  • Kwon, Tae-eok. "Imperial Japan's 'civilization' rule in the 1910s and Korean sentiments: the causes of the national-scale dissemination of the March First Movement" Journal of Northeast Asian History 15#1 (Win 2018) pp. 113–142.
  • Lee, Timothy S. "A political factor in the rise of Protestantism in Korea: Protestantism and the 1919 March First Movement." Church History 69.1 (2000): 116–142. online
  • Palmer, Brandon. "The March First Movement in America: The Campaign to Win American Support." Korea Journal (2020), 60#4 pp 194–216
  • Shin, Michael (2018). Korean national identity under Japanese colonial rule: Yi Gwangsu and the March First Movement of 1919. Routledge.
  • Wells, Kenneth M. "Background to the March First Movement: Koreans in Japan, 1905–1919." Korean Studies 13.1 (1989): 5–21. online

External links[edit]

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