Park Seung-hwan
Park Seung-hwan 박승환 | |
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Born | Hanseong, Gyeonggi, Joseon | September 7, 1869
Died | August 1, 1907 Hanseong, Gyeonggi, Korea | (aged 37)
Allegiance | Korea |
Branch | Imperial Korean Army |
Years of service | 1897 – 1907 |
Rank | Major |
Known for | Organizing the Battle of Namdaemun |
Park Seung-hwan was a Korean major, war hero and independence activist of the Korean Empire. He was known for organizing the Battle of Namdaemun after his suicide as a response to the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1907 and the abdication of Emperor Gojong.
Biography
He was born on September 7, 1869, in Hanseong, Gyeonggi as the eldest of three children of Park Joo-pyo and Namyang Hong. In 1887, he took the exam in Mugwa and on September 28, 1896, he entered the Korean Empire Military Academy . He graduated on March 21, 1897, and was commissioned as a lieutenant colonel in the Imperial Korean Army. Afterwards, on November 11, 1899, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in the army and was appointed as the platoon commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Chamryeong Regiment and on July 23, 1900, he was promoted to the rank of captain. On February 15, 1904, he was promoted to major of the Imperial Korean Army and took the command of the 1st Battalion of the 1st Chamryeong Regiment.
While serving as the 1st Battalion Commander of the 1st Chamryeong Regiment, he entered the palace when Emperor Gojong was forcibly taken away by the Japanese in 1907 and attempted to restore the throne, but he stopped because he was afraid of harm to King Gojong. On August 1, 1907, he gathered officers above a battalion commander or higher at the Japanese military headquarters to disband the army. Park then committed suicide with a pistol and wrote a suicide letter which read:
I couldn't defend my country as a soldier and I couldn't show my loyalty as a servant. Jongmyo Shrine and Sajik had already been destroyed, and the country's defense disappeared accordingly. Since I am a soldier, I cannot afford to live in peace.
When Park's suicide became known, some of the soldiers of the 1st Chamryeong under him became enraged and started an anti-Japanese uprising, which lead to the Battle of Namdaemun. After the battle was put down, the Imperial Japanese government defamed Park's suicide. In 1909, An Jung-geun assassinated Itō Hirobumi at Harbin Station to avenge Park's death.
Legacy
After his death, in 1962, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Order of Merit for National Foundation by the Government of South Korea. In August 2003, he was selected as the national figure of South Korea.
Family
Park had a son named Park Jeong-hup and he had 2 grandchildren, Park Dae-jong and Park Wang-jong.