Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
JAPANESE COLONISATION
Since recorded time, external forces have cast designs upon Korea, a small peninsula
among giants - Japan to the east, China and Mongolia to the west. Brutal invasions - many
lasting and painful - comprise the fabric of Korean history. None weighs as heavily on the
Korean psyche as the annexation by Japan just after the turn of the 20th century.
Korean geomancy (feng shui, or pungsu-jiri in Korean, meaning the study of the patterns of
wind and water) decreed Seoul's location: the Han River supplied yin force and access to the
sea, and the Bukhan mountain range supplied yang energy and protection from the north.
Japan long had its sights on the strategic peninsula. So when a large-scale peasant rebel-
lion raged uncontrollably in Korea in 1894, Japan stepped in to 'help'. One year later,
Japanese assassins would fatally stab Queen Min, King Gojong would abdicate in 1907,
and in 1910 the cession would be complete.
This period marked the subjugation, and attempted eradication, of Korean identity.
Locals were made to take Japanese names and were forbidden to speak their national
tongue. As Japan exploited Korea's resources, only 20% of Koreans were able to even start
elementary school. Though some Koreans collaborated with their colonial rulers and
reaped great profit, most were unable to rise above second-class citizenship in their own
land.
Korea was uniied in AD 918 with the start of the Goryeo dynasty (from which comes the
name 'Korea'). The uniication would persevere - with Seoul at the centre - until the country's
division following WWII, solidiied by the Korean War.
KING SEJONG'S GIFT
As the seat of government, Seoul has born the brunt of bad policies during periods of lacklustre rule, but has
reaped the fruits of the thinking of its wisest leaders. The greatest of these leaders was King Sejong (r 1418-50),
a scholar-king of unmatched abilities who sponsored many cultural projects, consolidated border defences and
served as a model of Confucian probity. At his direction, court scholars devised the phonetic
hangeul
alphabet, a
simple system of writing the Korean language that made it possible for anyone to learn to read. King Sejong's al-
phabet is one reason why Korea enjoys universal literacy today.
