[2024년 중3역사] 6-1 국민 국가의 수립(1) / 개항기 국민 국가 수립을 위한 노력

Summary

The lesson traces Korea’s efforts to establish and preserve a modern, independent nation from Heungseon Daewongun’s rule through Japan’s annexation of Korea in 1910. It emphasizes the sequence of reforms, popular movements, foreign intervention, and resistance. Some auto-generated subtitle terms appear mistranslated; the standard historical names are used below.

1. Heungseon Daewongun and Resistance to Western Powers

• After King Gojong took the throne as a child in 1863, his father, Heungseon Daewongun, governed on his behalf.
• He sought to restore order after decades of political dominance by powerful families. His measures included abolishing the Bibyeonsa and many seowon, and introducing systems intended to ease burdens on the people.
• The 1866 Byeongin Persecution of Catholics prompted a French expedition to Korea. Korean forces resisted, and the French withdrew, taking Korean cultural materials, including royal protocols.
• The General Sherman incident and the 1871 U.S. expedition to Ganghwa Island (Sinmiyangyo) also ended with foreign forces withdrawing after Korean resistance.
• After German businessman Ernst Oppert attempted to rob the tomb of Daewongun’s father, Daewongun further rejected diplomatic and trade relations with Western powers and erected anti-foreign steles.

2. Opening of Ports and Domestic Unrest

• When Gojong began ruling in his own right in 1873, debate grew over opening Korea to foreign trade and adopting modern institutions.
• Japan used the Unyo incident as a pretext to pressure Korea into the 1876 Treaty of Ganghwa. It was Korea’s first modern treaty with a foreign country, but it was unequal: Korea opened Busan, Wonsan, and Incheon and accepted Japanese privileges, including coastal surveying rights.
• The government introduced modernization measures, including new military institutions and overseas missions.
• Dissatisfaction helped spark the Imo Mutiny (1882), in which soldiers and urban lower-class people attacked the Japanese legation and seized the palace. Qing forces suppressed the uprising, and Qing interference in Korean affairs increased.
• In 1884, reformers including Kim Ok-gyun and Park Yeong-hyo staged the Gapsin Coup. They sought a modern state and the abolition of social hierarchy, but Qing forces defeated the coup and its leaders fled abroad.

3. Donghak Peasant Movement and the Gabo Reforms

• After the opening of ports, economic exploitation by Qing China and Japan worsened conditions for peasants. The Donghak Peasant Movement, led by Jeon Bong-jun, began in 1894.
• After a series of victories, the peasant army captured Jeonju. The government called on Qing troops for help, prompting Japan to send troops as well.
• The peasant army agreed to disband under the Jeonju settlement, which called for the withdrawal of both foreign armies and the implementation of reform proposals. The movement established jipgangso in Jeolla to carry out reforms.
• Its demands included land redistribution, abolition of social classes, and permission for widows to remarry. The lesson presents the movement as anti-feudal and aimed at correcting social injustice.
• When Japan refused to withdraw and occupied Gyeongbokgung Palace, the Sino-Japanese War began. The peasant army rose again, but its later campaign was defeated by Japanese forces.
• The Gabo Reforms (1894) abolished the civil service examination system and the status system, permitted widows to remarry, reorganized government finances, standardized weights and measures, introduced immediate tax payment, and established judicial independence. The abolition of social hierarchy was a key demand shared by both the Gapsin reformers and Donghak peasants.

4. Eulmi Incident, Agwanpacheon, and the Korean Empire

• After Japan won the Sino-Japanese War, Russia, France, and Germany intervened to limit Japan’s gains. This is known as the Triple Intervention.
• Queen Min (later Empress Myeongseong) sought Russian support to counter Japan. Japan’s assassination of her in 1895 is known as the Eulmi Incident.
• The Eulmi Reforms included an order requiring men to cut their hair, adoption of the solar calendar, and establishment of elementary schools.
• In 1896, Gojong took refuge at the Russian legation in the Agwanpacheon. This checked Japan’s influence but increased Russian interference and weakened Korea’s standing as an independent state.
• Seo Jae-pil founded the Independent Newspaper and helped organize the Independence Club. It promoted sovereignty and public awareness through the Independence Gate, debates, speeches, and public assemblies. The Manmin Joint Assembly encouraged broad public participation and called for political rights.
• Gojong returned to the palace and proclaimed the Korean Empire in 1897. The Daehan Gukje declared the empire sovereign and independent while affirming strong autocratic rule. The lesson notes that it had a constitutional character.
• Through the Gwangmu Reforms, Gojong sought to strengthen commerce and industry and adopt selected elements of Western civilization.

5. Japanese Encroachment and Resistance

• Japan’s victory in the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05) strengthened its position in Korea. In 1905, it forced the Eulsa Treaty on Korea, depriving the country of diplomatic rights and establishing the Residency-General, initially headed by Itō Hirobumi.
• Resistance included:
  • The Eulsa righteous armies, including forces associated with Choe Ik-hyeon and Shin Dol-seok.
  • Public protest, including Jang Ji-yeon’s article “A Day of Tears and Sorrow” in the Hwangseong Sinmun.
  • Gojong’s dispatch of envoys to the Hague Peace Conference to expose the treaty. The mission failed after Japanese obstruction, and Japan used it as a pretext to force Gojong’s abdication.
• Under the 1907 Japan–Korea treaty, Japan further took control of Korean affairs, including judicial and police powers, and disbanded the Korean army. Righteous-army forces later attempted an advance on Seoul.
• The Patriotic Enlightenment Movement aimed to build national strength through education and industry. The lesson names the Boanhoe, Daehan Jaganghoe, and Shinminhoe, which established schools and overseas bases for independence activity. It also highlights Yang Gi-tak’s journalism and Shin Chae-ho’s historical scholarship.
• Individual resistance included Ahn Jung-geun’s assassination of Itō Hirobumi.
• Korea was annexed by Japan in 1910, ending its sovereignty.

6. Dokdo

The lesson rejects Japan’s claim to Dokdo, stating that Japan declared it “ownerless” during the Russo-Japanese War and incorporated it through a 1905 Shimane Prefecture notice. It cites historical records, including the Korean Empire’s imperial edict, as evidence that Dokdo was Korean territory.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Speaker: Teacher Lim (림쌤), the sole narrator and instructor.
• Historical publications and records mentioned: Independent Newspaper (Dongnip Sinmun), Hwangseong Sinmun, Daehan Maeil Sinbo, the Korean Empire’s imperial edict concerning Dokdo, and the Daehan Gukje.
• No interviewees or additional speaking guests appear in the subtitles.