Empress Myeongseong
This page has some issuesEmpress MyeongseongEmpress of Korea (posthumously)Regent of KoreaReign1 November 1873 – 1 July 1894 (20 years, 242 days)6 July 1895 – 10 October 1895 (96 days)SpouseKing Gojong of JoseonIssuea sona daughterEmperor Sunjong of the Korean Empirea sona sonPosthumous nameShort: Empress Myeongseong*명성황후*明成皇后*Myeongseong HwanghuFull: The Filial and Benevolent, the Origin of Holiness, the Proper in Changes, the Uniter of Heaven, the Immensely Meritorious, and the Sincerely Virtuous Grand Empress Consort Myeongseong*효자원성정화합천홍공성덕명성태황후*孝慈元聖正化合天洪功誠德明成太皇后*Hyoja Wonsŏng Jŏnghwa Hapchŏn Honggong Sŏngdŏk Myŏngsŏng TaehwanghuFatherMin Chi-rokMotherLady Hanchang of Yi clanBorn19 October 1851Yeoju County, Gyeonggi Province, JoseonDied8 October 1895 (aged 43)Okhoru Pavilion, Geoncheonggung, Gyeongbok Palace, Seoul, Joseon DynastyBurialHongneungKorean nameHangul명성황후Hanja明成皇后Revised RomanizationMyeongseong HwanghuMcCune–ReischauerMyŏngsŏng HwanghuEmpress Myeongseong (19 October 1851 – 8 October 1895), also known as Queen Min, was the first official wife of King Gojong, the twenty-sixth king of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. In 1902 she received the posthumous name Hyoja Wonsŏng Jŏnghwa Hapchŏn Honggong Sŏngdŏk Myŏngsŏng Taehwanghu (Korean Hangul: 효자원성정화합천홍공성덕명성태황후, Hanja: 孝慈元聖正化合天洪功誠德明成太皇后),[1] often abbreviated as Myŏngsŏng Hwanghu (Hangul: 명성황후,Hanja: 明成皇后), meaning Empress Myeongseong.The Japanese considered her an obstacle against its overseas expansion.[2] Efforts to remove her from the political arena, orchestrated through failed rebellions prompted by the father of King Gojong, Heungseon Daewongun (an influential regent working with the Japanese), compelled the Empress to take a harsher stand against Japanese influence.[3]After Japan's victory in the First Sino-Japanese War, Queen Min advocated stronger ties between Korea and Russia in an attempt to block Japanese influence in Korea, which was represented by Daewongun. Miura Gorō, the Japanese Minister to Korea at that time and a retired army lieutenant-general, backed the faction headed by the Daewongun, whom he considered to be more sympathetic to Japanese interests.In the early morning of 8 October 1895, sword-bearing assassins, allegedly under orders from Miura Gorō, entered Gyeongbok Palace. Upon entering the Queen's Quarters (Okhoru Pavilion), the assassins "killed three court [women] suspected of being the queen. When they confirmed that one of them was the Empress, they burned the corpse in a pine forest in front of the Okhoru Pavilion, and then dispersed the ashes."[4] She was 43 years old.[5]The assassination of the Korean Empress ignited outrage among other foreign powers.[6] To appease growing international criticism, the Japanese government "recalled Miura and placed him under a staged trial at the Hiroshima District Court, while the military personnel involved were tried at a military court. All were given the verdict of not-guilty on the grounds of insufficient evidence."[5]However, the assassination promoted anti-Japanese sentiments in Korea with "Short Hair Act Order" (단발령, 斷髮令), and some Koreans created the Eulmi righteous army and actively set up protests nationwide.[7] After assassination, King Gojong and the crown prince (later Emperor Sunjong) fled for refuge to the Russian legation in 1896, this led to the general repeal of the Gabo Reforms, which controlled by Japanese influence.[7] In October 1897, King Gojong returned to Gyeongungung (modern-day Deoksugung). There, he proclaimed the founding of the Korean Empire.[7]In South Korea, there is renewed interest in her life because of recent novels, TV drama andmusical.
BackgroundEdit
End of an era
In 1864 King Cheoljong was dying, and there were no male heirs, the result of suspected foul play by a rival branch of the royal family, the Andong Kim clan. The Andong Kim clan had risen to power through intermarriage with the royal Yi family. Queen Cheonin, the queen consort of Cheoljong and a member of the Andong Kim clan, claimed the right to choose the next king, although traditionally the eldest queen dowager is the one with the authority to select the new king. Cheoljong's cousin, Grand Royal Dowager Queen Sinjeong (the widow of Heonjong's father (posthumously entitled Ikjong) of the Pungyang Jo clan, who too had risen to prominence by intermarriage with the Yi family, currently held this title.Queen Sinjeong saw an opportunity to advance the cause of the Pungyang Jo clan, the only true rival of the Andong Kim clan in Korean politics. As Cheoljong fell deeper under his illness, the Grand Royal Dowager Queen was approached by Yi Ha-eung, an obscure descendant of King Yeongjo through his son Crown Prince Sado.The branch that Yi Ha-eung's family belonged to was an obscure line of descendants of the Yi clan, which survived the often deadly political intrigue that frequently embroiled the Joseon court by forming no affiliation with any factions. Yi Ha-eung himself was ineligible for the throne due to a law that dictated that any possible heir to the kingdom have to be part of the generation after the most recent incumbent of the throne, but Yi Myeong-bok, Yi Ha-eung's second son (later became King Gojong and Gwangmu Emperor), was a possible successor to the throne.[8]The Pungyang Jo clan saw that Yi Myeong-bok was only 12 and would not be able to rule in his own name until he came of age, and that they could easily influence Yi Ha-eung, who would be acting as regent for the to-be boy king. As soon as news of Cheoljong's death reached Yi Ha-eung through his intricate network of spies in the palace, he and the Pungyang Jo clan took the hereditary royal seal (an object that was considered necessary for a legitimate reign to take place and aristocratic recognition to be received) —- effectively giving her absolute power to select the successor to the throne. By the time Cheoljong's death had become a known fact, the Andong Kim clan was powerless according to law as the seal lay in the hands of the Grand Royal Dowager Queen Sinjeong.In the autumn of 1864, Yi Myeong-bok was crowned the new king of the Kingdom of Joseon, with his father entitled as the Heungseon Daewongun (大院君; 대원군; Daewongun; Grand Internal Prince).The strongly Confucian Heungseon Daewongun proved to be a wise and calculating leader in the early years of Gojong's reign. He abolished the old government institutions that had become corrupt under the rule of various clans, revised the law codes along with the household laws of the royal court and the rules of court ritual, and heavily reformed the military techniques of the royal armies. Within a few short years, he was able to secure complete control of the court and eventually receive the submission of the Pungyang Jos while successfully disposing the last of the Andong Kims, whose corruption, he believed, was responsible for ruining the country.
A new queen
The future empress was born into the aristocratic Min family of the Yeoheung branch on 19 October 1851[9][10][11][12] in Yeoju County, in the province of Gyeonggi Province (where the clan originated).[13]The Yeoheung Mins were a noble clan, boasting of many highly positioned bureaucrats in its illustrious past, even having 2 Queens Consort: Queen Wongyeong (wife of Taejong) & Queen Inhyeon (wife of Sukjong[13]).The daughter of Min Chi-rok (민치록, 閔致祿) is how Empress Myeongseong was known before her marriage. Some fictional accounts name her Min Ja-yeong (민자영) but this has not been confirmed by historical sources.[13] At the age of eight she had lost both of her parents.[13] Little is known of her mother, her childhood, or the causes of her parents' early deaths.When Gojong reached the age of 15, his father decided it was time for him to be married. He was diligent in finding a queen without close relatives, who would harbour political ambitions and yet have a noble lineage, in order to justify his choice to the court and the people. Candidates were rejected one by one, until both the Daewongun's wife (Yeoheung, the Princess Consort to the Prince of the Great Court; Yeoheung Budaebuin; 여흥부대부인, 驪興府大夫人)[14] and mother proposed a bride from their own clan (the Yeoheung Mins).[13][15] Both his mother & his wife's descriptions of the girl was quite persuasive: orphaned, beautiful features, healthy body, ordinary level of education (no less than that of the most noble in the country).[13]The bride had undergone a strict selection process, with the culminating process of meeting the Daewongun on 6 March, and on 20 March 1866,[16] the girl, barely 16, married the boy king and was invested in a ceremony (책비, chaekbi) as the Queen Consort of Joseon.[17] Two places assert claims on the marriage and ascencion:Injeong Hall (인정전) at Changdeok Palace.[13]Norak Hall (노락당) at Unhyeon Palace.It is known that the wig (which was usually worn by royal brides at weddings) was so heavy that a tall court lady was specially assigned to support it from the back. The wedding ceremony was barely finished when another three-day ceremony for the reverencing of the ancestors started.[18]Older officials then noticed that the new Queen Consort was an assertive and ambitious woman, unlike other Queens Consort that came before her. She did not participate in lavish parties, rarely commissioned extravagant fashions from the royal ateliers, and almost never hosted afternoon tea parties with the powerful aristocratic ladies and the various princesses of the royal family, unless politics beckoned her to. As Queen Consort, she was expected to act as an icon to the high society of Korea, but she rejected this belief. She, instead, read books reserved for men (examples of which were Spring and Autumn Annals and its accompanying Commentary of Zuo,[13]) and taught herself philosophy, history, science, politics, and religion.
The beginningsEdit
Court domination
Even without parents, the Queen Consort (as she was then now known) was able to secretly form a powerful faction against Heungseon Daewongun as soon as she reached adulthood. At 20, she began to wander outside her apartments at Changgyeong Palace and play an active part in politics. At the same time, she defended her views against high officials who viewed her as becoming too meddlesome. Heungseon Daewongun was also upset by the Queen Consort's aggressiveness.The political struggle between the Queen Consort and Heungseon Daewongun became public when the son she bore (in 1871) for Gojong died prematurely at 4 days. Heungseon Daewongun publicly stated that the Queen Consort was unable to bear a healthy male child (while she blamed her father-in-law for the many ginseng he had brought her[13]). He directed Gojong to have intercourse with a royal concubine, Lee gwi-in from the Yeongbo Hall (영보당귀인 이씨). In 16 April 1868, the concubine gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Prince Wanhwa (완화군), whom Heungseon Daewongun entitled as Crown Prince.The Queen Consort responded with a powerful faction of high officials, scholars, and members of her clan to bring down Heungseon Daewongun from power. Min Seung-ho, one of the Queen Consort's relatives, with court scholar Choe Ik-hyeon, wrote a formal impeachment of Heungseon Daewongun to be presented to the Royal Council of Administration, arguing that Gojong, now 22, should rule in his own right. With the approval of Gojong and the Royal Council, Heungseon Daewongun was forced to retire to his estate at Yangju in 1872. She then banished the royal concubine and her child to a village outside the capital, stripped of royal titles. The child soon died (1880) afterwards (some had accused the Queen Consort of involvement).With the retirement of Heungseon Daewongun and the expelled concubine and her son, the Queen Consort had gained complete control over her court, placing her family in high court positions. This action proved that she was a Queen Consort who ruled with her husband, but was distinctly more politically active than her husband was.
The "Hermit Kingdom" emerges
After the Korean refusal to receive Japanese envoys announcing the Meiji Restoration, some Japanese aristocrats favored an immediate invasion of Korea, but the idea was quickly dropped upon the return of the Iwakura Mission on the grounds that the new Japanese government was neither politically nor fiscally stable enough to start a war. When Heungseon Daewongun was ousted from politics, Japan renewed efforts to establish ties with Korea, but the Imperial envoy arriving at Dongnae in 1873 was turned away.The Japanese government, which sought to emulate the empires of Europe in their tradition of enforcing so-called Unequal Treaties, responded by sending the Japanese battleship Unyōtowards Busan and another battleship to the Bay of Yeongheung on the pretext of surveying sea routes, meaning to pressure Korea into opening its doors. The Unyō ventured into restricted waters of Ganghwa Island, provoking an attack from Korean shore batteries. The Unyō fled but the Japanese used the incident as a pretext to force a treaty on the Korean government. In 1876 six naval vessels and an imperial Japanese envoy were sent to Ganghwa Island to enforce this command.A majority of the royal court favored absolute isolationism, but Japan had demonstrated its willingness to use force. After numerous meetings, officials were sent to sign the Ganghwa Treaty, a treaty that had been modeled after treaties imposed on Japan by the United States. The treaty was signed on 15 February 1876, thus opening Korea to Japan.Various ports were forced to open to Japanese trade, and Japanese now had rights to buy land in designated areas. The treaty also permitted the opening of Incheon and Wonsan to Japanese merchants. For the first few years, Japan enjoyed a near total monopoly of trade, while Korean merchants suffered serious losses.
A social revolutionEdit
In 1877, a mission headed by Kim Gwang-jip was commissioned by Gojong and his Queen Consort to study Japanese westernization and its intentions for Korea.Kim and his team were shocked at how large the Japanese cities had become. Kim Gi-su noted that only 50 years before, Seoul and Busan of Korea were metropolitan centers of East Asia, dominant over underdeveloped Japanese cities; but now, in 1877, with Tokyo and Osakawesternized, Seoul and Busan looked like vestiges of the ancient past.When they were in Japan, Kim Gwang-jip met with the Chinese Ambassador to Tokyo, Ho Ju-chang and the councilor Huang Tsun-hsien. They discussed the international situation of QingChina and Joseon's place in the rapidly changing world. Huang Tsu-hsien presented to Kim a book he had written called Korean Strategy.China was no longer the hegemonic power of East Asia, and Korea no longer enjoyed military superiority over Japan. In addition, the Russian Empire began expansion into Asia. Huang advised that Korea should adopt a pro-Chinese policy, while retaining close ties with Japan for the time being. He also advised an alliance with the United States for protection against Russia. He advised opening trade relations with Western nations and adopting Western technology. He noted that China had tried but failed due to its size, but Korea was smaller than Japan. He viewed Korea as a barrier to Japanese expansion into mainland Asia. He suggested Korean youths be sent to China and Japan to study, and Western teachers of technical and scientific subjects be invited to Korea.When Kim Gwang-jip returned to Seoul, the Queen Consort took special interest in Huang's book and commissioned copies be sent out to all the ministers. She had hoped to win yangbanapproval to invite Western nations into Korea.She wanted to first allow Japan to help in the modernization process but towards completion of certain projects, be driven out by Western powers. She intended for Western powers to begin trade and investment in Korea to keep Japan in check.However, the yangban still opposed opening the country to the West. Choe Ik-hyeon, who had helped with the impeachment of Heungseon Daewongun, sided with the isolationists, saying that the Japanese were just like the "Western barbarians" who would spread subversive notions likeCatholicism (which had been a major issue during Heungseon Daewongun's reign that ended in massive persecution).To the scholars and the yangban, who were social conservatives, the Queen Consort's plan meant the destruction of social order. The response to the distribution of "Korean Strategy" was a joint memorandum to the throne from scholars in every province of the kingdom. They stated that the ideas in the book were mere abstract theories, unrealizable in practice, and that the adoption of Western technology was not the only way to enrich the country. They demanded that the number of envoys exchanged, ships engaged in trade and articles of trade be strictly limited, and that all foreign books in Korea should be destroyed.Despite these objections, in 1881, a large fact-finding mission was sent to Japan to stay for seventy days observing Japanese government offices, factories, military and police organizations, and business practices. They also obtained information about innovations in the Japanese government copied from the West, especially the proposed constitution.On the basis of these reports, the Queen Consort began the reorganization of the government. Twelve new bureaus were established that dealt with foreign relations with the West, China, and Japan. Other bureaus were established to effectively deal with commerce. A bureau of the military was created to modernize weapons and techniques. Civilian departments were also established to import Western technology.In the same year, the Queen Consort signed documents for top military students to be sent to Qing China. The Japanese quickly volunteered to supply military students with rifles and train a unit of the Korean army to use them. The Queen Consort agreed but reminded the Japanese that the students would still be sent to China for further education on Western military technologies.The modernization of the military was met with opposition. The special treatment of the new training unit caused resentment among the other troops. In September 1881, a plot was uncovered to overthrow the Queen Consort’s faction, depose Gojong, and place Heungseon Daewongun's illegitimate (third) son, Yi Jae-seon on the throne. The plot was frustrated by the Queen Consort but Heungseon Daewongun was kept safe from persecution because he was still the father of the King.
The insurrection of 1882
See also: Imo IncidentIn 1882, members of the old military became resentful of the special treatment of the new units and so attacked and destroyed the house of Min Gyeom-ho, a relative of the Queen Consort who was the administrative head of the training units. These soldiers then fled to Heungseon Daewongun, who publicly rebuked but privately encouraged them. Heungseon Daewongun then took control of the old units.He ordered an attack on the administrative district of Seoul that housed Gyeongbokgung, the diplomatic quarter, military centers, and science institutions. The soldiers attacked police stations to free comrades who had been arrested and then began ransacking private estates and mansions belonging to relatives of the Queen Consort. These units then stole rifles and began to kill Japanese training officers, narrowly missed killing the Japanese ambassador to Seoul, who quickly escaped to Incheon. The military rebellion then headed towards the palace but both Queen Consort and the King escaped in disguise and fled to her relative’s villa in Cheongju, where they remained in hiding.Numerous supporters of the Queen Consort were put to death as soon as the Daewongun arrived and took administrative control of Gyeongbokgung. He immediately dismantled the reform measures implemented by the Queen Consort and relieved the new units of their duty. Foreign policy quickly turned isolationist, and Chinese and Japanese envoys were forced out of the capital.Li Hung-chang, with the consent of Korean envoys in Beijing, sent 4,500 Chinese troops to restore order, as well as to secure Chinese interest in Korean politics. The troops arrested Heungseon Daewongun, who was then taken to China to be tried for treason. The royal couple returned and overturned all of the Daewongun's actions.The Japanese forced King Gojong privately, without the Queen Consort's knowledge, to sign theJapan-Korea Treaty of 1882 on 10 August 1882, to pay 550,000 yen for lives and property that the Japanese had lost during the insurrection, and permit Japanese troops to guard the Japanese embassy in Seoul. When the Queen Consort learned of the treaty, she proposed to China a new trade agreement, granting the Chinese special privileges and rights to ports inaccessible to the Japanese. She also requested that a Chinese commander take control of the new military units and a German adviser named Paul Georg von Möllendorff to head the Maritime Customs Service.
The Mission to America
In September 1883, the Queen Consort established English language schools with American instructors. She sent a special mission July 1883 to the United States headed by Min Yeong-ik, one of her relatives. The mission arrived at San Francisco carrying the newly created Korean national flag, visited many American historical sites, heard lectures on American history, and attended a gala event in their honor given by the mayor of San Francisco and other U.S. officials. The mission dined with President Chester A. Arthur and discussed the growing threat of Japan and American investment in Korea. At the end of September, Min Yeong-ik returned to Seoul and reported to the Queen Consort,“I was born in the dark. I went out into the light, and, your Majesty, it is my displeasure to inform you that I have returned to the dark. I envision a Seoul of towering buildings filled with Western establishments that will place herself back above the Japanese barbarians. Great things lie ahead for this Kingdom, great things. We must take action, your Majesty, without hesitation, to further modernize this still ancient kingdom.”
The reformist vs. the conservatives
The Progressives were founded during the late 1870s by a group of yangban who fully supported Westernization of Joseon. However, they wanted immediate Westernization, including a complete cut-off of ties with Qing China. Unaware of their anti-Chinese sentiments, the Queen Consort granted frequent audiences and meetings with them to discuss progressivism and nationalism. They advocated for educational and social reforms, including the equality of the sexes by granting women full rights, issues that were not even acknowledged in their already Westernized neighbor of Japan. The Queen Consort was completely enamored by the Progressives in the beginning, but when she learned that they were deeply anti-Chinese, she quickly turned her back on them. Cutting ties with China immediately was not in her gradual plan of Westernization. She saw the consequences Joseon would have to face if she did not play China and Japan off by the West gradually, especially since she was a strong advocate of the Sadae faction who were pro-China and pro-gradual Westernization.However, in 1884, the conflict between the Progressives and the Sadaes intensified. When American legation officials, particularly Naval Attaché George C. Foulk, heard about the growing problem, they were outraged and reported directly to the Queen Consort. The Americans attempted to bring the two groups to peace with each other in order to aid the Queen Consort in a peaceful transformation of Joseon into a modern nation. After all, she liked the ideas and plans of both parties. As a matter of fact, she was in support of many of the Progressive's ideas, except for severing relations with China.However, the Progressives, fed up with the Sadaes and the growing influence of the Chinese, sought the aid of the Japanese legation guards and staged a bloody palace coup on 4 December 1884. The Progressives killed numerous high Sadaes and secured key government positions vacated by the Sadaes who had fled the capital or had been killed.The refreshed administration began to issue various edicts in both the King and Queen Consort's names and they were eager to implement political, economic, social, and cultural reforms. She, however, was horrified by the bellicosity of the Progressives and refused to support their actions and declared any documents signed in her name to be null and void. After only two days of new influence over the administration, they were crushed by Chinese troops under Yuan Shih-kai's command. A handful of Progressive leaders were killed. Once again, the Japanese government saw the opportunity to extort money out of the Joseon government by forcing Gojong, again without the knowledge of his wife, to sign a treaty. The Treaty of Hanseong forced Joseon to pay a large sum of indemnity for damages inflicted on Japanese lives and property during the coup.On 18 April 1885 the Li-Ito Agreement was made in Tianjin, China between the Japanese and the Chinese. In it, they agreed to both pull troops out of Joseon and that either party would send troops only if their property was endangered and that each would inform the other before doing so. Both nations also agreed to pull out their military instructors to allow the newly arrived Americans to take full control of that duty. The Japanese withdrew troops from Korea, leaving a small number of legation guards, but the Queen Consort was ahead of the Japanese in their game. She summoned Chinese envoys and through persuasion, convinced them to keep 2,000 soldiers disguised as Joseon police or merchants to guard the borders from any suspicious Japanese actions and to continue to train Korean troops.
The InnovatorEdit
Education
Peace finally settled upon the once-renowned "Land of the Morning Calm." With the majority of Japanese troops out of Joseon and Chinese protection readily available, the plans for further, drastic modernization were continued. Plans to establish a palace school to educate children of the elite had been in the making since 1880 but were finally executed in May 1885 with the approval of the Queen Consort. A palace school named "Yugyoung Kung-won" (육영공원, 育英公院, Royal English School) was established, with an American missionary, Homer B. Hulbert, and three other missionaries to lead the development of the curriculum. The school had two departments, liberal education and military education. Courses were taught exclusively in Englishusing English textbooks. However, due to low attendance, the school was closed shortly after the last English teacher, Bunker, resigned in late 1893.[19]The Queen Consort also gave her patronage to the first all-girls' educational institution, Ewha Academy, established in Seoul, 1886 by American missionary, Mary F. Scranton (later became the Ewha University). In 1887, the Queen Consort personally gave the name "Ewha" (literally "pear blossom"; the symbol of the royal Jeonju Yi clan) and sent a tablet to encourage Ms. Scranton's effort and its future. Ms. Scranton accepted the bestowed name to correspond to the Queen Consort's grace. This was the first time in history that any Korean girl, commoner or aristocratic, had the right to an education. In reality, as Louisa Rothweiler, a founding teacher of Ewha Academy observed, the school was, at its early stage, more of a place for poor girls to be fed and clothed than a place of education.[19] This was a significant social change.[20]The Protestant missionaries contributed much to the development of Western education in Joseon Korea. The Queen Consort, unlike her father-in-law who had oppressed Christians, invited different missionaries to enter Joseon. She knew and valued their knowledge of Western history, science, and mathematics, and was aware of the advantage of having them within the nation. Unlike the Isolationists, she saw no threat to the Confucian morals of Korean society by the advent of Christianity.[citation needed] Religious tolerance was another one of her goals.
The press
The first newspaper to be published in Joseon was the "Hanseong Sunbo", an all-Hanjanewspaper. It was published as a thrice monthly official government gazette by the Bakmun-guk (Publishing house), an agency of the Foreign Ministry. It included contemporary news of the day, essays and articles about Westernization, and news of further modernization of Joseon.In January 1886, the Bakmun-guk published a new newspaper named the Hanseong Jubo (The Seoul Weekly). The publication of a Korean-language newspaper was a significant development, and the paper itself played an important role as a communication media to the masses until it was abolished in 1888 under pressure from the Chinese government.A newspaper in entirely Hangul, disregarding the Korean Hanja script, was not published until 1894. Ganjo Sinbo (The Seoul News) was published as a weekly newspaper under the patronage of both Gojong & the Queen Consort, it was written half in Korean and half in Japanese.
Medicine, religion, and music
The arrival of Horace Newton Allen under invitation of the Queen Consort in September 1884 marked the official beginning of Christianity rapidly spreading in Joseon. He was able, with the Queen Consort's permission and official sanction, to arrange for the appointment of other missionaries as government employees. He also introduced modern medicine in Korea by establishing the first western Royal Medical Clinic of Gwanghyewon in February 1885.[21]In April 1885, a horde of Christian missionaries began to flood into Joseon. The Isolationists were horrified and realized they had finally been defeated by the Queen Consort. The doors to Korea were not only open to ideas, technology, and culture but also to other religions. Having lost immense power with Heungseon Daewongun (still in China as captive), the Isolationists could do nothing but simply watch. Horace Grant Underwood and his wife, William B. Scranton, his wife, and his mother (Mary Scranton), made Korea their new home in May 1885. They established churches within Seoul and began to establish centers in the countrysides. Catholic missionaries arrived soon afterwards, reviving Catholicism which had witnessed massive persecution in 1866 under Heungseon Daewongun's rule.While winning many converts, Christian missionaries made significant contributions towards the modernization of the country. Concepts of equality, human rights and freedom, and the participation of both men and women in religious activities were all new to Joseon. The Queen Consort was ecstatic at the prospect of integrating these values within the government. The Protestant missions introduced also Christian hymns and other Western songs that created a strong impetus to modernize Korean ideas about music. She had wanted the literacy rate to rise, and with the aid of Christian educational programs, it did so significantly within a matter of a few years.Drastic changes were made to music as well. Western music theory partly displaced the traditional Eastern concepts. The organ and other Western musical instruments were introduced in 1890, and a Christian hymnal was published in Korean in 1893 under the commission of the Queen Consort. She herself, however, never became a Christian, but remained a devout Buddhist with influences from shamanism and Confucianism; her religious beliefs would become the model, indirectly, for those of many modern Koreans, who share her belief in pluralism andreligious tolerance.
Military
Modern weapons were imported from Japan and the United States in 1883. The first military factories were established and new military uniforms were created in 1884. Under joint patronage of Gojong & his Queen Consort, a request was made to the US for more American military instructors to speed up the military modernization of Korea. Out of all the projects that were going on simultaneously, the military project took the longest. To manage these simultaneous projects was in itself was a major accomplishment for any nation. Not even Japan had modernized at the rate of Joseon, and not with as many projects going on at once, a precursor to modern Korea as one of East Asia's Tigers in rapid development into a first class nation during the 1960s-1980s.In October 1883, American minister Lucius Foote arrived to take command of the modernization of Joseon's older army units that had not started Westernizing. In April 1888, General William McEntyre Dye and two other military instructors arrived from the US, followed in May by a fourth instructor. They brought about rapid military development.A new military school was created called "Yeonmu Gongwon", and an officers training program began. However, despite armies becoming more and more on par with the Chinese and theJapanese, the idea of a navy was neglected. As a result, it became one of the few failures of the modernization project. Due to the neglect of developing naval defence, Joseon's sea borders were open to invasion. It was an ironic mistake since nearly 300 years earlier, Joseon's navy was the strongest in all of East Asia[citation needed], having been the first nation in the world to develop massive iron-clad warships equipped with cannons. Now, the Korean navy was nothing but ancient ships that could barely defend themselves from the advanced ships of modern navies.However, for a short while, hope for the Korean military could be seen. With rapidly growing armies, Japan itself was becoming fearful of the impact of Korean troops if her government did not interfere soon to stall the process.
Economy
Following the opening of all Korean ports to the Japanese and Western merchants in 1888, contact and involvement with outsiders increased foreign trade rapidly. In 1883, the Maritime Customs Service was established under the patronage of the Queen Consort and the supervision of Sir Robert Hart, 1st Baronet of the United Kingdom. The Maritime Customs Service administered the business of foreign trade and collection of tariff.By 1883, the economy was now no longer in a state of monopoly conducted by the Japanese as it had been only a few years ago. The majority was in control by the Koreans while portions were distributed between Western nations, Japan and China. In 1884, the first Korean commercial firms such as the Daedong and the Changdong Company emerged. The Bureau of Mint also produced a new coin called "tangojeon" in 1884, securing a stable Korean currency at the time. Western investment began to take hold as well in 1886.The German A.H. Maeterns, with the aid of the Department of Agriculture of the US, created a new project called "American Farm" on a large plot of land donated by the Queen Consort to promote modern agriculture. Farm implements, seeds, and milk cows were imported from the United States. In June 1883, the Bureau of Machines was established and steam engines were imported. However, despite the fact that Gojong and his Queen Consort brought the Korean economy to an acceptable level to the West, modern manufacturing facilities did not emerge due to a political interruption: the assassination of the Queen Consort. Be that as it may, telegraph lines between Joseon, China, and Japan were laid between 1883 and 1885, facilitating communication.
Personal lifeEdit
Early years
Both The National Assembly Library of Korea and records kept by Lilias Underwood[22](1851–1921), an American missionary who came to Korea in 1888 and was appointed the Queen’s doctor (she enjoyed the Empress' full trust and intimate friendship), left very sincere and vivid descriptions of the Queen.Both described what the Empress looked like, what her voice sounded like, and her public manner. She was said to have had a soft face with strong features, a classic pretty but far from the sultry taste Gojong enjoyed. Her speaking voice was soft and warm, but when conducting affairs of the state, she would immediately assert her points with strength. Her public manner was also formal and heavily adhered to court etiquette and traditional law. Underwood described the Empress in the following:[23]“I wish I could give the public a true picture of the queen as she appeared at her best, but this would be impossible, even had she permitted a photograph to be taken, for her charming play of expression while in conversation, the character and intellect which were then revealed, were only half seen when the face was in repose. She wore her hair like all Korean ladies, parted in the center, drawn tightly and very smoothly away from the face and knotted rather low at the back of the head. A small ornament...was worn on the top of the head fastened by a narrow black band. Her majesty seemed to care little for ornaments, and wore very few. No Korean women wear earrings, and the queen was no exception, nor have I ever seen her wear a necklace, a brooch, or a bracelet. She must have had many rings, but I never saw her wear more than one or two of European manufacture...According to Korean custom, she carried a number of filigree gold ornaments decorated with long silk tassels fastened at her side. So simple, so perfectly refined were all her tastes in dress, it is difficult to think of her as belonging to a nation called half civilized...Slightly pale and quite thin, with somewhat sharp features and brilliant piercing eyes, she did not strike me at first sight as being beautiful, but no one could help reading force, intellect and strength of character in that face...”To put it simply, Gojong and the young Queen Consort did not get along at first. Both found each other's ways repulsive, she preferring to stay within her chambers studying, he enjoying his days and nights drinking and attending banquets and royal parties. The two, in the beginning, were incompatible. She was genuinely concerned with the affairs of the state, immersing herself within philosophy, history, and science books that were normally reserved for yangban men. She once remarked to a close friend, "He disgusts me."Court officials remarked that when the Queen Consort ascended the throne, she was extremely exclusive in choosing who she associated with and confided with. In this remark, her relationship with the royal court from the very beginning strongly resembles the relationship of Marie Antoinette with her court. Both women found court etiquette restricting but both women strictly adhered themselves to traditional laws to impress and to gain respect of the aristocracy. Both women also did not consummate their marriage on their wedding night, as court tradition dictated them to. Adding onto their frustrations, both women found immense difficulty in conceiving a healthy heir. The Queen Consort's first attempt ended in despair and humiliation; she conceived a male heir but he shortly died after his birth due to poor health. Her second attempt found success, but Sunjong was never a healthy child, often catching illnesses and lying in bed for weeks. Both Marie Antoinette and the Queen Consort also never were able to truly connect and fall in love with their husbands until their times of troubles brought them together. In the end, both women were destined for tragic endings; one being guillotined by her people, misunderstood and her name wrongly distorted; the other brutally assassinated by the Japanese.
Later years
The national funeral march for Empress Myeongseong two years after her assassination in 1895Both began to grow affections for each other during their later years. Gojong was pressured by his advisers to take control of the government and administer his nation. However, one has to remember that Gojong was not chosen to become King because of his acumen (which he lacked because he was never formally educated) or because of his bloodline (which was mixed with courtesan and common blood), but because the Pungyang Jo clan had falsely assumed they could control the boy through his father. When it was actually time for Gojong to assume his responsibilities of the state, he often needed the aid of his wife to conduct international and domestic affairs. In this, Gojong grew an admiration for his wife's wit, intelligence, and ability to learn quickly. As the problems of the kingdom grew bigger and bigger, Gojong relied even more on his wife, she becoming his rock during times of frustration.During the years of modernization of Joseon, it is safe to assume that Gojong was finally in love with his wife. They both began to spend an immense amount of time with each other, privately and officially. They shared each other's problems, celebrated each other's joys, and felt each other's pains. They finally became husband and wife.His affection for her was undying and it has been noted that after the death of his Queen Consort, Gojong locked himself up in his chambers for several weeks, refusing to assume his duties. When he finally did, he lost the will to even try and signed away treaty after treaty that was proposed by the Japanese, giving the Japanese immense power. When his father was able to take back some political power after the death of his daughter-in-law, he presented a proposal with the aid of certain Japanese officials to lower his daughter-in-law's status as Queen Consort all the way to commoner posthumously. Gojong, a man who had always been used by others and never used his own voice for his own causes, was noted by scholars as having said, "I would rather slit my wrists and let them bleed than disgrace the woman who saved this kingdom." In an act of defiance, he refused to sign his father's and the Japanese proposal, and turned them away.
The Eulmi IncidentEdit
Okhoru Pavilion in Geoncheongjeon,Gyeongbokgung where the Empress was killed.The Eulmi Incident (을미사변, 乙未事變) is the term used for the assassination of Empress Myeongseong, which occurred in the early hours of 8 October 1895 at Okho-ru (옥호루, 玉壺樓) in the Geoncheonggung (건청궁, 乾淸宮), which was the rear private royal residence insideGyeongbokgung Palace.[24]In the early hours of 8 October, Japanese agents under Miura Goro carried out the assassination. Miura had orchestrated this incident with Okamoto Ryūnosuke (岡本柳之助), Sugimura Fukashi(杉村 濬), Kunitomo Shigeaki (國友重章), Sase Kumadestu (佐瀨熊鐵), Nakamura Tateo (中村楯雄), Hirayama Iwahiko (平山岩彦), and over 50 other Japanese men. They were said to have also collaborated with the pro-Japanese general U Beom-seon (우범선, 禹範善) and Yi Du-hwang (이두황, 李斗璜).[24]In front of Gwanghwamun, the assassins battled the Korean Royal Guards led by Hong Gye-hun(홍계훈, 洪啓薰) and An Gyeong-su (안경수, 安駉壽).[24] Hong Gye-hun and Minister Yi Gyeong-jik(이경직, 李耕稙) were subsequently killed in battle and the assassins proceeded to the Okhoru (옥호루, 玉壺樓) in Geoncheonggung and killed Empress Myeongseong. The corpse of the Empress was then burned and buried.[24]
An eye-witness account
Alleged killers of the Empress posing in front of Hanseong sinbo building in Seoul, Korea. (1895)Sunjong, the first son of Gojong and Empress Myeongseong, reported he saw Korean troops and General Woo Beom-seon (禹範善 우범선; father of Woo Jang-choon (禹長春 우장춘), an agricultural scientist) at the assassination spot, and accused General Woo as the "Foe of Mother". In addition to his accusation, Sunjong sent two Korean men to kill General Woo, an effort that succeeded in Hiroshima, Japan, in 1903.In 2005, professor Kim Rekho (김려춘; 金麗春) of the Russian Academy of Sciences came across a written account of the incident by a Russian architect Afanasy Seredin-Sabatin (Афанасий Иванович Середин-Сабатин) in the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire (Архив внешней политики Российской империи; AVPRI).[25] Seredin-Sabatin was in the service of the Korean government, working along with the American general William McEntyre Dye who was also under contract to the Korean government. In April, Kim made a request to the Myongji University (명지대학교; 明知大學校) Library LG Collection to make the document public. On 11 May 2005 the document was made public.Almost five years prior to the document's release in South Korea, a translated copy was already in circulation in the United States, having been released by the Center for Korean Research ofColumbia University on 6 October 1995 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Eulmi Incident.[26]In the account, Seredin-Sabatin recorded:“The courtyard where the Queen (Consort)'s wing was located was filled with Japanese, perhaps as many as 20 or 25 men. They were dressed in peculiar gowns and were armed with sabres, some of which were openly visible. ... While some Japanese troops were rummaging around in every corner of the palace and in the various annexes, others burst into the queen's wing and threw themselves upon the women they found there. ... I ... continued to observe the Japanese turning things inside out in the queen's wing. Two Japanese grabbed one of the court ladies, pulled her out of the house, and ran down the stairs dragging her along behind them. ... Moreover one of the Japanese repeatedly asked me in English, "Where is the queen? Point the queen out to us!" ... While passing by the main Throne Hall, I noticed that it was surrounded shoulder to shoulder by a wall of Japanese soldiers and officers, and Korean mandarins, but what was happening there was unknown to me.”[27]
Involved parties
In Japan, fifty-six men were charged, but all were acquitted by the Hiroshima court due to a lack of evidence.[28]They included below;[29]Viscount Miura Gorō, Japanese legation minister.Okamoto Ryūnosuke (岡本柳之助), a legation official[30] and former Japanese Army officerHozumi Torakurō, Kokubun Shōtarō, Hagiwara Shujiro, Japanese legation officials[30]Sugimura Fukashi (杉村 濬),[31] a second Secretary of the Japanese Legation[32]Adachi Kenzo, editor of Japanese newspaper in Korea, Kanjō Shimpō[33] (漢城新報, also called Hanseong Shinbo in Korean)Kusunose Yukihiko, a general of Imperial Japanese ArmyKunitomo Shigeaki (國友重章),[34] one of the original Seikyōsha (Society for Political Education) members[35]Shiba Shirō[31](柴四朗), private secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Commerce of Japan, and writer who studied political economy at The Wharton School and Harvard University[36]Sase Kumadestu (佐瀨熊鐵), a physician[36]Terasaki Yasukichi (寺崎泰吉), a medicine peddler[37]Nakamura Tateo (中村楯雄)Horiguchi Kumaichi (堀口 九萬一)Ieiri Kakitsu (家入嘉吉)Kikuchi Kenjō (菊池 謙讓)Hirayama Iwahiko (平山岩彦)Ogihara Hidejiro (荻原秀次郎)Kobayakawa Hideo (小早川秀雄), editor in chief of Kanjō Shimpō[38]Sasaki MasayukiIsujuka Eijoh [39]and othersIn Korea, King Gojong declared that the following were the Eulmi Four Traitors in 11 February 1896:Jo Hui-yeon (趙羲淵 조희연)Yoo Gil-joon (兪吉濬 유길준)Kim Hong-jip (金弘集 김홍집)Jeong Byeong-ha (鄭秉夏 정병하)
Aftermath
The Gabo Reform and the assassination of Empress Myeongseong generated anti-Japanese sentiment in Korea; also, it caused some Confucian scholars, as well as farmers, to form over 60 successive righteous armies to fight for Korean freedom on the Korean peninsula.After the assassination of Empress Myeongseong, Gojong and Crown Prince (later Emperor Sunjong) fled for refuge to the Russian legation in 11 February 1896. Also, Gojong declared theEulmi Four Traitors. However, In 1897, Gojong, yielding to rising pressure from both overseas and the demands of the Independence Association-led public opinion, returned to Gyeongungung (modern-day Deoksugung). There, he proclaimed the founding of the Korean Empire. However, after Japan's victories in the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars, Korea succumbed to Japanese colonial rule between 1910 and 1945.
Empress Myeongseong Funeral Procession and Tomb
1895 Funeral of Empress MyeongseongIn 1897, King Gojong, with Russian support, regained his throne, and spent "a fortune" to have his beloved Queen Min (Empress Myeongseong) remains properly honored and entombed. Her mourning procession included 5,000 soldiers, 650 police, 4,000 lanterns, hundreds of scrolls honoring her, and giant wooden horses intended for her use in the afterlife. The honors King Gojong placed on Queen Min( Empress Myeongseong) for her funeral was meant as a statement to her diplomatic and heroic endeavors for Korea against the invading Japanese, as well as, a statement of his own undying love for her. Queen Min's (Empress Myeongseong) recovered remains are in her tomb located in Namyangju, Gyeonggi, South Korea.[40]
2005 to 2010Edit
May 2005, 84-year old Tatsumi Kawano (川野 龍巳), the grandson of Kunitomo Shigeaki, paid his respects to Empress Myeongseong at her tomb in Namyangju, Gyeonggi, South Korea.[36][41] He apologized to Empress Myeongseong's tomb on behalf of his grandfather.[36]Since 2009, Korean organizations have been trying to adjudicate the Japanese government for their documented complicity in the murder of Empress Myeongseong. "Japan has not made an official apology or repentance 100 years after it obliterated the Korean people for 35 years through the 1910 Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty," the statement said. The lawsuit will be filed if the Japanese government does not accept their demands that the Japanese government issue a special statement on 15 August offering the emperor's apology and mentioning whether it will release related documents on the murder case.[42]
FamilyEdit
Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-GrandfatherMin Gwang-hun (Hangul: 민광훈, Hanja: 閔光勳) (1595–1659), scholar during the reign ofKing Injong.Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-GrandmotherLady Yi (Hangul: 이씨, Hanja: 李氏), daughter of Yi Gwang-jeong (Hangul: 이광정, Hanja: 李光庭).Great-Great-Great-Great-GrandfatherMin Yu-jung (Hangul: (민유중), Hanja: 閔維重) (1630–1687).Great-Great-Great-Great-GrandmotherLady Song (Hangul: 송씨, Hanja: 宋氏); Min Yu-jung's second wife; daughter of Song Jun-gil (Hangul: 송준길, Hanja: 宋俊吉), Yeonguijeong during the reign of King Hyojong.Great-Great-Great-GrandfatherMin Jin-hu (Hangul: 민진후, Hanja: 閔鎭厚) (1659–1720), eldest brother of Queen Inhyeon(second consort of King Sukjong).Great-Great-GrandfatherMin Ik-su (Hangul: 민익수, Hanja: 閔浸沒) (1690–1742).Great-GrandfatherMin Baek-bun (Hangul: 민백분, Hanja: 閔百奮) (1723–?).GrandfatherMin Gi-hyeon (Hangul: 민기현, Hanja: 閔耆顯) (1751–1811).FatherMin Chi-rok (Hangul: 민치록, Hanja: 閔致祿) (1799–1858).MotherLady Hanchang of Yi clan, Min Chi-rok's second wife.HusbandKing Gojong (later Emperor Gojong).SonsUnnamed son (born 1871).Emperor Sunjong (25 March 1874 – 24 April 1926).Unnamed son (born 1875).Unnamed son (born 1878).DaughterUnnamed daughter (born 1873).
Titles from birth to deathEdit
Throughout her life, Empress Myeongseong held several different titles: as a member of theyangban aristocracy, as Queen Consort, and as regent of Korea. More titles were granted to her posthumously and after the creation of the Korean Empire.19 October 1851 – 20 March 1866 - Lady Min, the daughter of Min Chi-rok, of the Yeoheung Min clan"Lady Min""The daughter of Min Chi-rok"20 March 1866 – 1 November 1873: Her Majesty, the Queen Consort of Joseon1 November 1873 – 1 July 1894: Her Majesty, the Queen Regent of Joseon1 July 1894 – 6 July 1895: Her Majesty, the Queen Consort of Joseon6 July 1895 – 8 October 1895: Her Majesty, the Queen Regent of Joseon(the above four titles & styles were 王妃殿下 왕비전하 wangbi jeonha / 中殿媽媽 중전마마 jungjeon mama / 中宮殿媽媽 중궁전마마 junggungjeon mama applicable)Empress Myeongseong of Korea (posthumous name; see her full title above)
Photographs and illustrationsEdit
Alleged portrait of Queen MinJapanese illustration of King Gojong and Queen Min receiving Inoue KaoruDocuments note that she was in an official royal family photograph. A royal family photograph does exist, but it was taken after her death, consisting of Gojong, Sunjong, and Sunjong's wife the Princess Consort of the Crown Prince. It is believed that the Japanese[citation needed] destroyed all photographs of her after her death. There is a rumor that a photograph of the Empress exists in the Japanese archives but the Japanese government has denied its existence[citation needed].
Another photograph surfaces
There was a report by KBS News in 2003 that a photograph allegedly of the Empress had been disclosed to the public.[43] The photograph was supposedly purchased for a large sum by the grandfather of Min Soo-gyeong that was to be passed down as a family treasure. In the photo, the woman is accompanied by a retinue at her rear. Some experts have stated that the woman was clearly of high-rank and her clothing appears to be that that is worn only by the royal family. However, her outfit lacked the embroideries that decorates the apparel of the empress.
Japanese illustration
On 13 January 2005, history professor Lee Tae-jin (이태진, 李泰鎭) of Seoul National Universityunveiled an illustration from an old Japanese magazine he had found at an antique bookstore inTokyo. The 84th edition of the Japanese magazine Fūzokugahō (風俗畫報) published on 25 January 1895 has a Japanese illustration of Gojong and the then-Queen Consort receiving Inoue Kaoru, the Japanese charge d'affaires.[44] The illustration is marked 24 December 1894 and signed by the artist Ishizuka (石塚 ) with a legend "The [Korean] King and Queen, moved by our honest advice, realize the need for resolute reform for the first time." Lee said that the depiction of the clothes and background are very detailed and suggests that it was drawn at the scene as it happened. Both the King and Inoue were looking at the then-Queen Consort as though the conversation were taking place between the Queen and Inoue with the King listening.Timeline of the Gwangmu Reform
The following is a timeline of the Gwangmu reform, the effort by Queen Min (명성황후,明成皇后)and later Emperor Gojong (고종,高宗) to modernise Joseon (조선,朝鮮) and later the Korean Empire (대한제국,大韓帝國) from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. Although many people have the notion that this period was marked with the fight for power between Heungseon Daewongun (흥선대원군, 興宣大院君 - King Gojong's father) and Queen Min (King Gojong's wife), it was rather the era of great changes relevant to modernisation after the harsh oppressive years during the "Regency" of King Gojong's father. This reform also was one of the most successful for modernising in a short period of time during Korean History. Although the reform was mostly centred around the time period after the proclamation of the Korean Empire, it includes a number of other previous events that are closely related to the reform.
Queen Min and Modernisation in Korea (1883-1894)Edit
Phase one of the Gwangmu reform began with the first Korean delegation to America, and opening up for modernisation. Because of recurring Chinese interventions led by Li Hongzhang(이홍장,李鴻章), there was relatively less development of Chosun compared to Phase Three. The main innovator in this phase is Queen Min.1883: March. The Korea-Japanese Underground Cable Construction Treaty (조일해저전선부설조약,朝日海底電線敷設條約) was signed by Korea and Japan. This led to a telegraphic connection between Busan(부산,釜山) and Nagasaki(長崎).1883: May. American minister Lucius Foote arrived to take command of the modernization of Chosun's older army units that had not started Westernizing.Hanseong sunbo, the first modern newspaper to set foot on Korea.1883: July. The first delegate to America was sent by the Chosun government. The Ministry of Presswork and Publication (박문국,博文局)was opened for the modernisation of the printing industry.1883: August. The first edition of the Hanseong sunbo (한성순보,漢城旬報) was published on this year. This is the first newspaper to be published in Chosun.1884: The Daedong Corporation (대동상회,大同商會), the first modern domestic corporation in Korea, was established.1885: February. The first Royal Medical Clinic, the Gwanghyewon(광혜연,廣惠院) was opened with the introduction of modern medicine by Horace Newton Allen. The name changed to Jaejoongwon (제중원,濟衆院) a month later.1885: May. Presbyterianism is introduced to Chosun by Horace Grant Underwood. Many other Christian pastors came to Chosun, which became the fundamental background for religious freedom and equality between Koreans.1885: July. The Korea-Chinese Cable Treaty (조청전선조약,朝淸電線條約) is signed and enforced, leading to a telegraphic connection between Hanseong and Peking.1885: August. Establishment of the Baejae Hakdang(배재학당,培材學堂) by Henry Appenzeller. Although initially recognised as an 'Academy', it became a college in 1895.1886: February. Proclamation of abolishment of slavery inheritance within Chosun. This is the unofficial start of equalisation of people within the kingdom. It also paved the way for abolishment of slavery in the Gabo Reform.1886: May. Queen Min gave her patronage to the first all-girls' educational institution, Ewha Academy(이화학당,梨花學堂) , established in Seoul by American missionary, Mary F. Scranton. This institution later became the Ewha University(이화여자대학교,梨花女子大學校).A cartoon that shows a formerYangban and a commoner using the same speech level.1886: September. There also was the establishment of the Yukyeong-gongwon (육영공원,育英公院). This was the first public school to be opened in Chosun.1887: March. The Korean Imperial Telegraphic Office (조선전보총국,朝鮮電報總局) was opened for a more efficient management of the telegraphic lines operating in Korea. The office was in use until 1893, when it became into the Korean Imperial Telegraphic and Postal Office (전우총국,電郵總局).1887: October. American missionary Scranton establishes the first Women's Hospital, the The Lillian Harris Memorial Hospital (보구여관,保救女館). The hospital also operated the first medical class for women. One of the students went to the Woman’s Medical College of Baltimore, becoming the first female doctor at Korea in 1900.1888: February. 1888, General William McEntyre Dye and two other military instructors arrived from the US, followed in May by a fourth instructor. The Americans taught at the first modern military academy called the Yeonmu-gongwon (연무공원,鍊武公院) and trained many Koreans.1888: May. Korea independently constructs the Southern Cable Line (남로전선,南路電線), connecting Hanseong and Busan.1890: January. The Korean Merchant's Association for Fairness is opened by Kim Jae-jun(김재전,金在田), Lee Gun-seo(이군서,李君瑞) and Park Myung-gyu(박명규朴明珪). The Association promoted usage of foreign weight and measurement standards in the domestic market. It had offices in Incheon, Wonsan and Busan.1891: February. The Korean Northern Cable Treaty (조선북로전선조약,朝鮮北路電線條約) is signed by China and Korea. By this treaty, the telegraphic service from Seoul to Wonsan is in operation.1892: Issuance of the Baekdonghwa (백동화,白銅貨), with the enforcement of the New Currency Regulations (신식화폐조례,新式貨幣條例). Although it caused some chaos on which currency to use, it also stabilised the inflation within the peninsula.1893: March. The Korean Imperial Naval Academy (통제영학당,統制營學堂) is established. The academy produces approximately 160 officers before its close during and after the First Sino-Japanese War.1894: February. The outbreak of the Donghak Peasant Revolution(동학농민운동,東學農民運動). The communication between the Donghak faction and King Gojong were smooth until Japanese intervention- which led to the First Sino-Japanese War.
Foreign Interventions and Assassination of Queen Min (1894-1897)Edit
Kim Hong-jip (1842-1896), prime minister of the Gabo Government.This phase does not show much development within the Korean Peninsula. It is a brief period of intense power struggle between Japan and Russia, competing to expand their influence in the peninsula.1894: June. The Gabo Reform (갑오개혁,甲午改革) is initiated by Prime Minister Kim Hong-jip(김홍집,金弘集),Park Jung-yang (박정양,朴定陽),Kim Yun-sik (김윤식,金允植),Cho Hei-yeon (조희연,趙羲淵),Kim Ga-jin (김가진,金嘉鎭),An Gyung-su (안경수,安駉壽),Kim Hak-wu (김학우,金鶴羽) and Yu Gil-jun (유길준,兪吉濬). The heteronomous reform ends in February the next year. It was an attempt of Japan by using Japanophile Korean officials to change Korea into a system more like Japan, for an easier administration of Korea after its annexation.Seo Jae-pil, the founder of theIndependence Club.1895: 8 October. Empress Myeongseong(명성황후,明成皇后) is assassinated by Japanese agents under Miura Goro(三浦梧樓). Japan gets much criticism from other modern countries about such barbaric methods, and therefore arrests Miura as a matter of formality. After spending some time in Hiroshima prison, however, he is released due to the "lack of evidence".1896: 11 February. King Gojong fled to the Russian legation in Seoul (아관파천,俄館播遷).1896: 2 July. Establishment of the Independence Club by Seo Jae-pil(서재필,徐載弼). It is to be noted that Seo took part in the Gapsin Coup(갑신정변,甲申政變) in 1884. Some people related to the coup d’État were Kim Ok-gyun (김옥균,金玉均) and Park Yung-hyo (박영효,朴泳孝).
Emperor Gojong and Modernisation in Korea (1897-1905)Edit
Phase two of the Gwangmu reform began with the proclamation of the Korean Empire on 4 October 1897. Efforts for modernisation were spurred with the coronation of Gojong as Emperor but were restrained by Japan after the Russo-Japanese War in 1905. The main innovator in this phase is Emperor Gojong.1897: February. King Gojong established the Board of Marshals (원수부,元帥府). All military power was henceforth centralized to the Emperor.1897: 20 February. King Gojong (고종,高宗) returned to the palace after 1 year of refuge at the Russian legation.1897: September. The Donghwa Pharmacy opened in Seoul, Korea. The established corporation, now known as the Dong Wha Pharmacy Corporation., Limited (동화약품(주),同和藥品(株)). The company, now the oldest pharmacy-based corporation in Korea, has products that are nationally famous, with its 'folding fan' trademark.Funeral of Queen Min, after Joseon became the Korean Empire.1897: October. Gojong declares the Korean Empire(대한제국,大韓帝國) and became the Gwangmu Emperor, the first imperial head of state and hereditary sovereign of the Empire of Korea. Most historians view this as the official declaration of the Gwangmu Reform (광무개혁,光武改革). Soongsil Academy was founded in Pyongyang as a private school by Dr. William M. Baird, a missionary of the Northern Presbyterian Church of America. The Soongsil University is its descendant.1897: November. John McLeavy Brown constructed his lasting legacy upon the Korean Empire- the Pagoda Park. It is notable the March 1st Movement, an important part in the Korean independence movement was initiated in this park.1898: January. The Seoul Electric Corporation (한성전기회사,漢城電氣會社), or the Korea-American Electric Corporation (한미전기회사,韓美電氣會社) was opened as a joint-venturecompany between Americans Henry Collbran, H.R.Bostwick and Emperor Gojong. A public corporation it was responsible for the construction of the streetp lamps in Seoul, along with imports of numerous other electricity-related devices. The Korea Electric Power Corporation (한국전력공사,韓國電力公社) is its descendant.1898: May. The Jong-hyun Catholic Church (종현본당,鐘峴本堂) was finished of construction. It was the first Gothic architecture to be built in Korea. It was later called the Myeongdong Cathedral(명동성당,明洞聖堂), the centre of the Korean 20th century. It is registered as a national historical landmark.1898: August. Brown reported blueprint of the Pan-Korean railway to Gojong.1898: September. Japan attempted assassination of Gojong by putting excess amount ofopium in his coffee. It is to be noted that Gojong was a coffee lover. While Gojong spat out the coffee upon drinking it, his son Sunjong(순종,純宗) drank the opium-tainted coffee and suffered from mental and physical disabilities from the incident.1898: September 5. The Imperial Capital Gazette released its first print. The president of the company was Nam Gung-euk (남궁억,南宮檍).The West Gate of Seoul.1899: January. Several Korean entrepreneurs and high-ranking officials, such as Sim Sang-hun (심상훈,沈相薰), Minister of Agriculture Min Byung-suk (민병석,閔丙奭), Field Marshal Min Yung-gi (민영기,閔泳綺), Vice-minister of Justice Yi Geun-ho (이근호,李根澔), Head of the Treasury (전환국장,典圜局長) Yi yong-ik (이용익,李容翊), Minister of National Defense (원수부군무국장,元帥府軍務局長) Jo dong-yun (조동윤,趙東潤), Song Mun-sup (송문섭,宋文燮), Jung yung-du (정영두,鄭永斗) and Kim gi-young (김기영,金基永) established the Daehan Chunil Bank (대한천일은행,大韓天一銀行). The bank operated as both a local bank and central bank. The bank is the predecessor of the Woori Bank.1899: April. The Gwangjaewon (광제원,廣濟院), the first modern national hospital, opened. It is the present-day Seoul National University Hospital, which is one of the biggest hospital in South Korea and a forerunner in many fields of medical sciences.1899: May. American businessmen Henry Collbran and H.R.Bostwick opened the first tram lines within Seoul (the West gate-East gate line).1899: August. The promulgation of the Korean Imperial Legislation (대한제국국제,大韓帝國國制) by the Ministry of Justice (법규교정소,法規校正所). This is of certain significance, as it led to Gojong's success in modernisation of the empire. It also took international laws into consideration. Although the actual legislation is very short, numerous other edicts were proclaimed to be used like laws.1899: September. The establishment of the Northwest Railway Bureau (서북철도국,西北鐵道局), an agency within the Gungnaebu(궁내부,宮內府). Its mission was to construct a railway from Seoul to Sinuiju(신의주,新義州) without the help from foreign countries. This department later became the Korail, or the Korea Railroad Corporation (한국철도공사,韓國鐵道公社).1900: January. Korean Empire became a member of the Universal Postal Union.1900: April. Construction of streetlamps on Jong-ro, Seoul. The Korean Empire opens its own exhibition pavilion in the Exposition Universelle of Paris.The Dae-han National hospital, the first national hospital opened in Korea.1900: July. Seoul-Incheon railroad opened with completion of the Han River Bridge (한강철교,漢江鐵橋). The bridge later becomes part of the Hangang Railway Bridge. It is still in operation.1900: October. The Hanseung Secondary School (한성중학교,漢城中學校) was finished construction. It is the predecessor of Kyunggi High School (경기고등학교,京畿高等學校), one of the best high schools in Korea.1901: February. Proclamation of ordinances for the new currency (adoption of the Gold Standard). Franz Eckert arrived to Seoul for establishment of the Korean Imperial Marching Band. He composed the Korean Imperial National Anthem. It is to be noted he also composed theKimigayo, the Japanese counterpart.1901: March. The Belgium-Korea Treaty of 1901 (조백수호통상조약,朝白修好通商條約) is signed by Jae-sun Park (박제순,朴齊純), delegate of the Korean Empire and Leon Vincart, the Belgian counterpart. It is notable the treaty was not terminated, unlike many others after the Korea-Japanese 1905 Treaty.1901: October. Inauguration of the Jigye Ahmun (지계아문,地契衙門), a system to issue legal documents of property ownership (지계,地契). It marks the start of a modern cadastral survey project.The modernisation of Seoul and its effects.1902: March. Embarkment of construction upon the Seoul-Gaesung line, Dispatch of government officials with jurisdiction over Gando(간도,間島)1902: December. First immigration of 100 Koreans to Hawaii. After the 102 immigrants who arrived into Honolulu Harbor, the number of Koreans in Hawaii exploded to 7,000 within 2 years.1903: January. The Korean Empire became member of the International Committee of the Red Cross.1903: February. Establishment of the Hanseung Bank (한성은행,漢城銀行). It is the present-dayShinhan Bank (신한은행,新韓銀行), one of the most prominent banks in Korea.1903: April. The Mitsui Corporation(三井グループ) sold a battleship to the Korean Empire for 250,000 Won. The ship, which was a reconstructed cargo ship for military usage, was a slapdash product by the Japanese and was extremely inefficient. The battleship was christened "KIS Yangmu" (양무호,楊武號), which means 'Growing the strength of a Nation'.1903: December. Collbran and Bostwick started construction of the Ttuk Island fresh water reservoir. The reservoir is still being used as the Ttuk Island Drainage basin 1 reservoir (뚝도수원지제1정수장,--水源地第一淨水場).1904: March. The first meteorological observatories were constructed in Mokpo and various other places.1904: July. The establishment of the Korean Daily News (대한매일신보,大韓每日申報). It is now the Seoul Sinmun, the oldest newspaper still operating in Korea.1904: September. Jejungwon hospital in Seoul, was renamed Severance Hospital, added Severance Hospital Medical School and the attached School of Nursing.The Korean Imperial Battleship,KIS Guangjae1904: November. The Pre-dreadnought battleship KIS Guangjae (광제호,光濟號) started operation in Incheon, Korea. It had a displacement of 1,056 tonnes. Its full speed was 14.77 knots with 2483 horsepower. The engine was a triple-expansion steam engine.The battleship and was made by Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation (川崎造船) and was given the mission for patrolling the Western Korean maritime territory. It is also the first Korean battleship to be equipped with the wireless telegraph.1905: June. the Taft-Katsura Agreement- America recognized Korea as Japanese territory and Japanese recognized Philippines as American territory.Japanese soldiers near Incheon, Korea during theRusso-Japanese War.1905: May. Yi Yong-ik (이용익,李容翊), Secretary of the Imperial Treasury, established Bosung College (보성학교,普成學校), later to be known as the Korea University(고려대학교,高麗大學校).1905: June. 30 merchants establish the Hanseung Chamber of Commerce (한성상무회의소,漢城商務會議所), the first of its kind in Korea. The first president of the association was Kim gi-yeung (김기영,金基永). They also operated the Commerce Monthly (상공월보,商工月報), which was the first business journal.1905: November. Japan declared Korea a protectorate after success at the Russo-Japanese War. Japan forced Korea to sign the Eulsa Treaty(을사조약,乙巳條約), for formalisation of its sphere of influence around the Korean Peninsula.
Japanese Intervention and Annexation of Korea (1905-1910)Edit
This was the darkest period of the Gwangmu Reform, ending with the annexation of Korea by Japan on the 29th of August, 1910.The Hague Secret Emissary.1906: January. Yi Yong-ik, former Secretary of the Imperial Treasury, is assassinated inVladivostok, Russia.1907: June. The Hague Secret Emissary Affair (헤이그 특사 사건,海牙特使事件) was initiated by Emperor Gojong and carried by Sang-sul Yi (이상설,李相卨), Jun Yi(이준,李儁), Wi-jong Yi(이위종,李瑋鍾) and Homer Hulbert. Gojong initiated this by a confidential invitation from the former Russian Tsar, Nicholas II. While Hulbert lured the Japanese spies into the wrong path, the three Koreans went to the Hague conference. However, they were blocked by the Japanese for the reasons that they were not nation-states even though they were on the list of invitation. Undaunted, they sought for interest of the press and found hope. Two notable figures they gained attention of are Bertha von Suttner and William Thomas Stead.An Jung-geun,Lieutenant-general of the Korean Imperial Army.1907: July 18. Gojong was forced to abdicate in favour of his son, Sunjong.1907: July 24. The Japan-Korea Treaty of 1907 (한일신협약,韓日新協約) is enforced by Japan. It states that the Korean Empire would act under guidance of the Japanese Resident-General, and have also lost its diplomatic rights as a protectorate.1908: March. Durham Stevens, a former employee of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is assassinated by Jang In-hwan(장인환,張仁煥) and Jeon Myeong-un(전명운,田明雲) in San Francisco for his active participation and support upon the Japanese presence coming into the Korean government.1909: September. Gando is reclaimed by China after the Sino-Japanese convention over Gando(간도협약,間島協約).1909: October. Ito Hirobumi (the first Resident-General) is assassinated by Korean Lieutenant-General An Jung-geun (안중근,安重根). This incident was dramatized in the recent Korean musical, Hero (영웅,英雄). The musical premiered in Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on August 23, 2011.1910: August. The Japan-Korea Treaty of 1910 started the annexation of the Korean Empire by Japan.The founding of Princeton University is nearly as complex as the courses that have been and continue to be taught within its hallowed lecture halls. The College of New Jersey (as Princeton University was known until 1896) was a child of the Great Awakening, an institution born in opposition to the religious tenets that had ruled the colonial era.The principles on which Princeton University was founded may be traced to the Log College in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, founded by William Tennent in 1726. Tennent was a Presbyterian minister who, along with fellow evangelists Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen, Jonathan Edwards, Samuel Davies, and George Whitefield of England, preached and taught an approach to religion and life that was the very essence of the Great Awakening period. The seven founders of the College of New Jersey were all Presbyterians, with Ebenezer Pemberton, a minister and a graduate of Harvard, the only one of the seven who did not graduate from Yale. The remaining six included Jonathan Dickinson, Aaron Burr Sr., and John Pierson, who were ministers; William Smith, a lawyer; Peter Van Brugh Livingston, a merchant; and William Peartree Smith.The aforementioned seven approached Governor Lewis Morris in late 1745 or early 1746 seeking a charter for a college that would, in time, become Princeton University. Governor Morris, an Anglican and a Loyalist, refused the charter because of the applicants' anti-Anglican views and beliefs. Soon afterwards, Governor Morris died and John Hamilton became Acting Governor of New Jersey. Hamilton was also an Anglican but more liberal-minded than his predecessor. Furthermore, the proposed college had won the support of several members of the Governor's Council. Accordingly, the petitioners resubmitted their request for a charter, and Governor Hamilton granted their wish on October 22, 1746, the date that Princeton University celebrates as its founding.Once the charter was secured, the seven petitioners became trustees of the College of New Jersey and named five others, including Samuel Blair, Samuel Finley, Gilbert Tennent, William Tennent, Jr., all graduates of the Log College, and Richard Treat, a supporter of the Log College, to the new board. The trustees elected Jonathan Dickinson the first president of the College on April 27, 1747, and classes began in May at Dickinson's parsonage in Elizabethtown. Upon Dickinson's death in October 1747, the College moved to Newark, where its second president, Aaron Burr, Sr. resided.The College was only in its infancy when the charter and its validity began to be questioned by many influential Anglicans who contended that Governor Hamilton, an "acting governor," did not have the authority to grant such a charter. Governor Jonathan Belcher, a graduate of Harvard and a supporter of the ideals of the Great Awakening, issued a second charter on September 14, 1748. Governor Belcher's charter upheld the fundamental characteristics of the first. His, however, enlarged the Board of Trustees from 12 to 23 and included the governor of New Jersey as an ex-officio trustee.It was Aaron Burr, Sr. who turned the founding ideals of the College into a reality during his tenure as its president (1748-1757). President Burr presided over initial decisions on such matters as entrance requirements and the course of study, as well as overseeing the move of the College from Newark to Princeton in 1756. Four wealthy landowners in Princeton helped to secure the move. Together, John Stockton, Thomas Leonard, John Hornor, and Nathaniel FitzRandolph gave 211.5 acres of land as well as monetary contributions. Nassau Hall was built on 4.5 acres of land donated by FitzRandolph. Nassau Hall, when completed in 1756, was the largest stone building in the colonies and was admired by all who entered its doors, including the seventy students and two tutors who, with President Burr, comprised the small beginnings of a great institution.History of Princeton University
The history of Princeton University spans 266 years since it was founded in 1746. Princeton University has produced many notable scholars and scientists, including several Nobel laureates, most recently economist Paul Krugman.[1]
College of New JerseyEdit
CalvinismJohn CalvinBackgroundChristianitySt. AugustineThe ReformationFive SolasSynod of DortTheologyTheology of John CalvinFive Points (TULIP)Covenant theologyRegulative principleDocumentsCalvin's InstitutesGeneva BibleThree Forms of UnityWestminster StandardsInfluencesMartin BucerPeter Martyr VermigliHeinrich BullingerJohn CalvinJohn KnoxTheodore BezaFrancis TurretinJonathan EdwardsCharles HodgeChurchesContinental ReformedPresbyterianCongregationalistReformedReformed BaptistLow church AnglicanPeoplesAfrikanersHuguenotsPilgrimsPuritansScots Calvinism portalv t ePrinceton University was founded at Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1746 as the College of New Jersey.New Light Presbyterians founded the College of New Jersey, later Princeton University, in 1746 in order to train ministers dedicated to their views. The college was the educational and religious capital of Scotch-Irish America. By 1808, loss of confidence in the college within the Presbyterian Church led to the establishment in 1812 of the separate Princeton Theological Seminary, but deep Presbyterian influence at the college continued through the 1910s. The Province of New Jersey granted a charter on October 22, 1746 for “the Education of Youth in the Learned Languages and in the Liberal Arts and Sciences”. The charter was unique in the colonies, for it specified that “any Person of any religious Denomination whatsoever” might attend. The College’s enrollment totaled 10 young men, who met for classes in the Reverend Jonathan Dickinson's parlor in Elizabeth. Dickinson soon died and was replaced by Aaron Burr, Sr., pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Newark, New Jersey. The College moved to Newark in the fall of 1747, where in 1748 a class of six men became the first to graduate.[2]
New locationEdit
In 1756, the College moved to its new quarters to Nassau Hall, in Princeton, New Jersey. Nassau Hall, named to honor King William III, Prince of Orange, of the House of Nassau, was one of the largest buildings in the colonies. For nearly half a century it housed the entire College—classrooms, dormitories, library, chapel, dining room, and kitchen. During the American Revolution it survived occupation by soldiers from both sides and today bears a cannonball scar from the Battle of Princeton (January 3, 1777). The federal government recognized the historical significance of “Old Nassau” by awarding it national landmark status and by issuing an orange and black commemorative three-cent stamp in celebration of its 1956 bicentennial.Following the untimely deaths of its first five presidents, the college enjoyed a long period of stability during 1768-94 under Reverend John Witherspoon. Military occupation and the Battle of Princeton severely damaged the college during the war. In another disaster, fire destroyed Nassau Hall in March 1802. Student unrest led to an explosion at the Nassau Hall front door and several other incidents in 1814. Witherspoon was a prominent religious and political leader; and an original signer of the Declaration of independence and the Articles of Confederation.John Witherspoon was a prominent evangelical Presbyterian minister in Scotland before becoming the sixth president of Princeton in 1768. Upon his arrival, he transformed a college designed predominantly to train clergymen into a school that would equip the leaders of a revolutionary generation. Witherspoon made fundamental changes to the moral philosophy curriculum, strengthened the college's commitment to natural philosophy (science), and positioned Princeton in the larger transatlantic world of the republic of letters. Witherspoon's common sense approach to morality was more influenced by the Enlightenment ethics of Scottish philosophers Francis Hutcheson and Thomas Reid than the Christian virtue of Jonathan Edwards. Witherspoon thus believed morality was a science. It could be cultivated in his students or deduced through the development of the moral sense—an ethical compass instilled by God in all human beings and developed through education (Reid) or sociability (Hutcheson). Such an approach to morality owed more to the natural moral laws of the Enlightenment than traditional sources of Christian ethics. Thus, while "public religion" was an important source of social virtue, it was not the only source. Witherspoon, in accordance with the Scottish moral sense philosophy, taught that all human beings—religious or otherwise—could be virtuous. His students, who included James Madison, Aaron Burr, Philip Freneau, and John Breckenridge, all played prominent roles in the development of the new nation.[3] Locally, Witherspoon was influential in leading the royal colony of New Jersey—a colony initially ambivalent about revolution—toward rebellion. In 1780 an amended charter declared that the trustees should no longer swear allegiance to the king of England, and in 1783 the Continental Congress met in Nassau Hall, thus making it the capitol of the United States for a short time. Nine Princeton alumni attended the Constitutional Convention of 1787, more than from any other American or British institution. But even as Witherspoon championed American liberty, he also championed more conservative ideals such as order and national unity. As a result, he was a strong defender of a national constitution. Not surprisingly, the College’s revised charter of 1799 called on the trustees to support the new Constitution of the United States of America.[3]
19th century
The situation during the winter semester of 1806-07 under the presidency of Samuel Stanhope Smith was characterized by little or no faculty-student rapport or communication, crowded conditions, and strict school rules - a combination that led to a student riot on 31 March-1 April 1807. College authorities denounced it as a sign of moral decay.[4]In 1812 Princeton Theological Seminary was established as a separate institution. College authorities approved, for they were coming to see that specialized training in theology required more attention than they could give. Archibald Alexander, a professor at the college, was its first professor and principal. The two institutions have always enjoyed a close relationship based on common history and shared resources.Nassau Hall, the university's oldest building. Note the tiger sculptures beside the steps.Princeton University's position on pre-Civil War disputes over slavery and abolitionism to fall mainly on the conservative side, not so much favoring slavery as opposing radical antislavery. This resulted from Princeton's adhering to the conservative Old School wing of the Presbyterian denomination. Ironically, the surrounding town had a lively free black community during this period, which formed its own congregations, including the Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church. By the late 1850s, the conservative middle gave way and increasingly supported Lincoln and Republican Party positions on slavery issues.[5]A Panoramic View Princeton's Campus c1895The debate between James McCosh (1811–94), president of the college (1868–88), and Charles Hodge, head of Princeton Seminary, during the late 1860s and 1870s exemplified the classic conflict between science and religion over the question of Darwin's evolution theory. McCosh offered the first public endorsement of evolution by an American religious leader. However, the two men showed greater similarities regarding matters of science and religion than popularly appreciated. Both supported the increasing role of scientific inquiry in natural history and resisted its intrusion into philosophy and religion. The debate vitalized the college and helped propel the school to future recognition for excellence in scholarship.[6]Although genuinely loved by many Princetonians, as president of Princeton during 1888-1902Francis Landey Patton (1843–1932) was viewed by many as a hindrance to Princeton's progress. His model of higher education frustrated the plans of the 'New Princetonians,' who desired a graduate school, not a graduate department. Further, his insistence on a somewhat rigid Christian education program - which limited academic freedom - coupled with outdated administrative methods, alienated those who hoped he would make Princeton into a major American university. Finally, in 1902, Patton was ousted from the presidency.[7]
Princeton UniversityEdit
Princeton University Class Day c1904As part of the sesquicentennial celebrations in 1896, the College of New Jersey changed its name to Princeton University, the present name of the university.[8] Princeton University adopted as an informal motto “Princeton in the nation’s service,” the title of the keynote speech by professor Woodrow Wilson.
Woodrow Wilson
In 1902 Woodrow Wilson became Princeton’s 13th president. During his term of office (1902–10) plans for building the Graduate College were finalized, and what had been the College of New Jersey began to grow into a full-scale university.As Princeton looked toward expansion, Wilson focused on the quality of the individual teaching and learning experience. He is credited with developing small discussion classes called preceptorials, which to this day supplement lecture courses in the humanities and social sciences.Wilson doubled the size of the faculty, created an administrative structure, and revised the curriculum to include general studies for freshmen and sophomores and concentrated study for juniors and seniors. He proposed that the undergraduate dormitories be divided into quadrangles or “colleges” in which students would live with resident faculty masters and have their own recreational facilities. A variation on this plan became a reality in 1982 when five residential colleges were organized for freshmen and sophomores.Wilson established academic departments but otherwise downplayed the Germanic model of the PhD-oriented research university in favor of the "Oxbridge" (Oxford and Cambridge) model of intense small group discussions and one-on-one tutorials. He hired 50 young professors, called preceptors, to meet with students in small conferences, grilling them about their reading. Complaining that Princeton was dominated by "eating clubs" in which students ate with each other and ignored the professors, he sought to build Oxford-style colleges where students and faculty would eat and talk together. He failed—the eating clubs are still there.[9]Wilson promote the leadership model, whereby the college focused on training a small cadre of undergraduates for national leadership, "the minority who plan, who conceive, who superintend," as he called them in his 1902 inaugural address as the university's president. "The college is no less democratic because it is for those who play a special part." He confronted Andrew West, the dean of the graduate school, and lost. West had the German research model in mind and outmaneuvered Wilson by obtaining outside funding for a graduate complex for serious scholarship that was well separated from the fun-loving undergraduates.As supervising architect of the Princeton campus during 1906-29, Ralph Adams Cramcontributed several important buildings in the medieval collegiate Gothic style as well as a plan for stylistic unity and for development.[10]
Undergraduate life
The college was a popular setting for novels about student life, the faculty and the town. The "Undergraduate novel" (e.g., F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise and Harvey Smith's The Gang's All Here) detailed campus life in the 1920s and 1950s. The "Faculty novel" characterized the 1960s (e.g., Kingley Amis's One Fat Englishman and John W. Aldridge's The Party at Cranton). The '"Town novel" (e.g., Julian Moynihan's Garden State and Thomas Baird's Losing People) typified the 1970s. Other important novels include Saul Bellow's Humboldt's Gift (1975) and Carlos Baker's A Friend's Power (1958).[11]As a trendsetter in young men's fashion, Princeton University in the early 20th century casualized the look of clothing across the country for decades to come. With its elite prep-school student population and highly ritualized eating club subculture, the school was an ideal setting in which to create a nation's taste in menswear.[12]In 1909-10, football faced a crisis resulting from the failure of the previous reforms of 1905-06 to solve the problem of serious injuries. There was a mood of alarm and mistrust, and, while the crisis was developing, the presidents of Harvard, Yale, and Princeton developed a project to reform the sport and forestall possible radical changes forced by government upon the sport. President Arthur Hadley of Yale, A. Lawrence Lowell of Harvard, and Wilson of Princeton worked to develop moderate changes to reduce injuries. Their attempts, however, were reduced by rebellion against the rules committee and formation of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association. The big three had tried to operate independently of the majority, but changes did reduce injuries.[13] In 1926 Harvard entered into an agreement to play football against the University of Michigan instead of Princeton, and that agreement threatened to destroy the 'Big Three' relationship of the time. Harvard's actions were based on the fact that games with Princeton had been marred by fights and roughness. During the 1930s, the 'Big Three' was restored, and in 1939 it was enlarged to the Ivy League.[14]During World War II the student body of Princeton University became almost entirely military as the result of Reserve Officer Training Corps mobilization, the Navy V-7 and V-12 programs, and the Army Specialized Training Program. Wartime changes opened Princeton to the larger world and brought it into the mainstream of American society.[15] From their beginnings Harvard, Yale and Princeton restricted the admittance of Jews and other minorities. After World War II, however, ethnic prejudice was condemned in higher education because of the US commitment to democracy. College-bound veterans, benefiting from the GI Bill, flooded admissions offices with applications. By the 1950s and 1960s the Big Three began to expand their admission policies, admitting more minorities.[16]
Religion
In the early 20th century liberal Christians came to dominate Princeton University, a former evangelical stronghold. In 1915 Princeton University president John Grier Hibben refused the request of evangelist Billy Sunday to preach on campus, but later allowed liberal theologian Albert Parker Fitch to do so. Liberals sought to make Princeton a modern university that promoted a liberal philosophy of education and liberal theology. Conservative Christians considered the teachings of the liberals to be heresy and sought to get Lucius H. Miller, the liberal professor of Bible studies, removed from the faculty and to have Bible classes eliminated from the curriculum. Liberals favored retaining the religious aspects of the curriculum and, since they came to control Princeton, they were able to maintain those courses along with various institutions that promoted liberal piety. They did this through an uneasy alliance with cultural modernists on the faculty. Gradually the hegemony of the liberal Christian leaders of higher education was eroded by the secularization of the university that occurred during the first half of the 20th century. Princeton thus ceased being a Presbyterian institution in the 1920s, as symbolized by the building of a great interdenominational chapel.[17]
Mathematics
American mathematicians of the 1920s worked to maintain the generous funding they had received during World War I. Unwilling to enter a permanent relationship with the federal government, they turned to industry and to private foundations, but with only limited success. The most reliable support for mathematics emerged from universities, where the funding could be justified as part of a larger program of institutional improvement. Oswald Veblen, a leading mathematician and chair of the department, took this approach as Princeton was in the process of transforming itself into a recognized research institution. Veblen's skill in securing university funding helped to make the Princeton mathematics department a center of mathematics research. His strategy helped to split the field, however, between 'pure' mathematicians in academic settings and 'applied' mathematicians whose interest in the practical applications of their work allowed them to find support in industry.[18]
Princeton University in the modern eraEdit
Blair Hall c1907Princeton University has produced 29 Nobel laureates. Some of the greatest minds of 20th century were associated with Princeton University. Princeton has also produced several Fields Medallists. Before World War II, most elite university faculties were gentlemen's clubs, with few, if any, Jews, blacks, women, or other minorities. By 1980, this condition had been altered dramatically, as numerous members of those groups held faculty positions.[19]Princeton's students and faculty share the tradition of educational excellence begun more than 250 years ago. The few books in the Dickinson parlor were the seeds for 55 miles (89 km) of shelving and more than five million volumes in Firestone Library. The original quadrangle—Nassau Hall, the president’s house, and two flanking halls—has grown into a 600-acre (2.4 km2) main campus with more than 160 buildings. The “learned languages”—Latin and Greek—have been joined by many ancient and modern languages and an array of computer dialects.Today, more than 1,200 full and part-time faculty members teach at Princeton; collectively they publish more than 2,000 scholarly documents a year. Princeton’s professors form a single faculty that teaches both undergraduate and graduate students. Originally an institution devoted to the education of young men, Princeton became coeducational in 1969. Today, approximately 5,000 undergraduates and 2,500 graduate students are enrolled here. Virtually all undergraduates and about two-thirds of graduate students live on campus.Princeton is one of the smallest of the nation’s leading research universities. Its size permits close interaction among students and faculty members in settings ranging from introductory courses to senior theses.
1960s and 1970sEdit
Princeton was hardly untouched by the Vietnam War. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) had an active Princeton chapter, which organized protests against the Institute for Defense Analysis and staged a protest that came to be known as the "Hickel Heckle," in which several SDS members demanded that Interior Secretary Walter J. Hickel "Talk About the War!" Three students were suspended over the incident.[20]In 1971, the Third World Center, now the Carl A. Fields Center, was founded to address the concerns of minority students to have a facility of their own making for academic, political and social functions.[21]
In service to the nationEdit
Three future U.S. presidents studied at Princeton as undergraduates. Two were alumni: James Madison, the fourth president and an influential founding father, graduated in 1771; andWoodrow Wilson, the 28th president, graduated in 1879. Wilson also served as president of Princeton from 1902 to 1910. Future President John F. Kennedy began his studies at Princeton in the fall of 1935 until a period of illness precipitated his withdrawal from the university and eventual transfer to Harvard University during his freshman year
.Rabaul Island during Meiji.
