Professional Documents
Culture Documents
1910 to 1945- Korea was under the control of Imperial Japan Japan wanted to industrialize and modernize Korea, but their rule was harsh and repressive Japan built factories, roads, hospitals, and schools, improved sanitation and medicine, and transformed the Korean economy Korean workers were exploited, peasants came under control of Japanese landlords Korean laws and customs were banned Korean newspapers were suppressed Japan turned Korea into a Japanese province called Chosen
World War II- Koreans hope for the defeat of Japan and their independence
Allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Chiang Kai-shek met in Cairo and declared that in due course Korea should become a free and independent state Stalin agreed later in Tehran
US attention on Japan did not allow them to make concrete plans about Korea
Post-WWII Korea
August 9, 1945- USSR invades Manchuria and Korea By Japans surrender on August 14, the Soviets occupied much of Manchuria and northern Korea US shocked at how quickly things were happening drafted Order No. 1 Surrender instructions to Japanese troops in which the US inserted a provision dividing Korea at the 38th parallel North of parallel- Japanese surrender to USSR South of parallel- Japanese surrender to US Stalin accepts this arrangement partly due to the fact that he still wanted other lands in the Far East Division was not to be permanent- both US and USSR wanted reunification, but were not sure how to go about it
Post-WWII Korea
North Korea Soviet-trained Korean Communists placed in charge
South Korea Japanese officials, who were then replaced by Americans until unification occurred
US established a representative body and held elections Dominated by conservative and jingoistic forces (industrialists and landlords from the North) Leader- Syngman Rhee Republic of Korea Capital- Seoul
South Korea
Syngman Rhee executed martial law and brutal, authoritarian methods to quell internal dissent Recognized by the US and admitted to the UN
Historians believe that Stalin knew of the attack and that they hoped it would be a short, quick, decisive blow and defeat before the US could even think about getting involved
Special session of the UN Security Council was quickly arranged on June 25, 1950
Resolution called for an immediate end to the fighting and withdrawal of North Korean forces from South Korean territory General Douglas MacArthur (already in Japan) was ordered to send supplies and aid to South Korea Called on UN member nations to assist the South Koreans in resisting the invasion from the north
North Korean army was overly extended End of August 1950- UN forces outnumbered North Korean army Early September 1950- North Korean offensive comes to an end
Quick and decisive victory proved elusive
September 16- 1950- UN troops at the Pusan Perimeter go on the offensive as well Within two weeks, Seoul was recaptured and the Communist forces were in full retreat throughout the peninsula US decided to expand the original objective
Now wanted to move into the North and oust Kim Il-song and unite the entire peninsula under Syngman Rhee
Truman did not run for reelection and the Democratic candidate (Adlai Stevenson) shied away from the Truman administration