뉴스레터

This year marks the 120th anniversary of the Donghak Peasant Revolution, which is remembered as a great movement that arose to, internally, break down feudalism and, externally, defend the national sovereignty against imperialist Japan's aggression. And at the center of this movement was Jeon Bong-jun, the supreme leader of the Donghak Peasant Troops. Back in 1893, while followers of Donghak were campaigning to clear their executed founder's name, Jeon Bong-jun initiated the Anti-Japan, Anti-West Movement to reject the foreign influence, before he in January 1894 started a peasant uprising in his base in Gobu, Jeolla Province, and then in March of the same year initiated the Donghak Peasant Revolution in earnest by joining forces with Sohn Hwa-jung in issuing declaration in Mujang, Jeolla Province.

It is known that Jeon Bong-jun was born in 1855 in Gochang, North Jeolla Province. At the time of his birth, Korea was not yet in direct contact or confrontation with the Western powers. But China, a country in a close relationship with Korea, had already lost the Opium War in 1842, and with the conclusion of the Nanjing Treaty with the U.K., the Sino-centric world order had begun to collapse. In the end, after two invasions from the Western powers, Korea yielded to Japan's pressure to open up and signed the 1876 Korea-Japan Treaty. Afterwards, Korea also signed treaties with the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France, and Russia, and became an arena for competition between Japan and China among other powers. The year 1885 saw the U.K. occupation of Keomundo in Korea, and a move within Korea, led by the king, to conclude a secret treaty with Russia.

Jeon Bong-jun spent his 20s and 30s watching these developments. It appears that he also viewed the pillage by foreign powers as a crisis for Korea, so he joined Donghak and began preparing a movement against foreign influence. Noting that Donghak (Eastern Learning) was a religion in response to Western Learning, Jeon Bong-jun tired to get in touch with Prince Heungseon (Daewongun), the father of King Gojong, who was placed under the state of political house arrest. This attempt to associate with Daewongun seems to have been motivated by the fact that Daewongun was one of the leading opponents of foreign influence.

Mobilizing the Revolutionaries through the Initiation of the Anti-Japan, Anti-West Movement

In late 1892, when followers of Donghak initiated the movement to clear the name of their founder Choi Je-woo, who they thought had been executed on false charges, it was more of a religious movement. However, once Jeon Bong-jun become actively involved, the movement produced the Anti-Japan, Anti-West slogan stating that foreign influence should be rejected. And it went on to become the center around which revolutionaries began to be mobilized.

A painting that features Donghak Peasant Troops rising up under the leadership of Jeon Bong-jun

Here are some examples of Anti-Japan, Anti-West slogans at that time: "Pack up and return to your country as soon as possible, or you will pay for your crime as we will suppress you with our armor of loyalty and shield of justice on coming March 7," and "We are in an extreme crisis as our enemies, Japan and the Western powers, have advanced into the heart of our country. Millions of us are determined to fight as one to our death to keep loyalty to our country by defeating both Japan and the West."

The powers were startled. The U.K. and Germany considered using the battleships that were anchoring in Incheon. Japan prepared to withdraw the female residents. China also dispatched two cruisers to Incheon. In 1893, one year before the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, Korea had already emerged as the center of turmoil in East Asia, paving the way for that war.

Korea's Defeat in Ugeumchi Battle Followed by Japan's Conquest of East Asia and Massacre of Koreans

Having risen up in March 1894 under the command of Jeon Bong-jun, the Donghak Peasant Troops won a series of battles against the government forces in April, before they occupied Jeonju, Jeolla Province on April 27. In the process, the Korean government called in Chinese troops, and Japan sent troops to Korea on the pretext of observing the Jemulpo Treaty and the Tianjin Treaty. In June 1894, the Japanese army occupied Gyeongbokgung Palace, and started the Sino-Japanese War by launching an attack on Chinese battleships in Pungdo located in Namyang Bay.

Jeon Bong-jun, who led the Donghak Peasant Revolution under the banner of Anti-Japan, Anti-West, couldn't overlook the Japanese army's invasion of Korea. He raised and mobilized the Donghak Peasant Troops again in September, and fought a battle in November in Ugeumchi in Chungcheong Province with the Korean government army that had joined forces with the Japanese army. The Donghak Peasant Troops gathered under the command of Jeon Bong-jun at that time numbered 10,000 in Ugeumchi alone. And the Japanese army to stop them consisted of a company of 200 under the command of Captain Masaichi Morio (모리오 마사이치, 森尾雅一) under the 19th Backup Infantry Battalion. And the Korean government army consisted of a unit of 280 that was approaching Ugeumchi. The Donghak Peasant Troops, although greater in number, were no match for the Japanese and the Korean government forces armed with modern heavy weapons.

The defeat in Ugeumchi Battle had profound aftereffects. As the order "kill them all" was issued by Kawakami Soroku (가와카미 소로쿠, 川上操六), the Vice Chief of Staff of the Japanese army, the Donghak Peasant Troops were massacred. Even after Jeon Bong-jun dismissed the main-force units following the defeat in Ugeumchi Battle, the Donghak Peasant Troops continued to fight. But they all ended up being slaughtered by the Japanese army and the Korean government army in such places as Jangheung in Jeolla Province and Boeun in Chungcheong Province. The Japanese army's carnage didn't stop in Korea. It had already become clear, after the Battles of Pyeongyang and the Yellow Sea, that Japan would win in the Sino-Japanese War. Now that they had also defeated the Donghak Peasant Troops in the rear, the Japanese army was able to advance into China across the Abrok River and the border without worrying about their behind anymore. And then the Japanese army committed the Port Arthur massacre, which was as cruel as the massacre of the Donghak Peasant Troops. Even though Japan promoted the Sino-Japanese War as a confrontation between 'a civilized Japan' and 'a barbarian China,' it was Japan itself that turned out to be barbarian.

On April 17 (March 23 of the lunar calendar), 1895, the Sino-Japanese War came to an end with the conclusion of the Shimonoseki Treaty between Japan and China. With it, the Sino-centric world order collapsed completely, and the East Asian world was reorganized around Japan at its center. On March 30, immediately after the conclusion of the Shimonoseki Treaty, Jeon Bong-jun was executed at the trial where even the Japanese consul was involved in questioning. And his execution confirmed that the resistance against Japan's imperialism had been ultimately crushed.