How Korean War Shaped Korea
The Korean War was the historical event that most shaped Korea’s identity. It affected many areas of Korea, such as the economy, government, and the involvement of the United States. There was an economic crisis causing many people to suffer, a government was established, and because of the involvement of the US, Korea got lots of western influence. The essay below will explain how the Korean War affected Korea’s economy, the government, and the involvement of the US.
1. Historical Background
Korea was once a colony of Japan but the many years of Koreans suffering through the colonial rule ended after the defeat of Japan by Russia and the US. They each took a part of Korea, the Soviet Union occupied the North and the US occupied the South (Armstrong). They also decided to divide Korea by using a 155 mile truce line called the 38th parallel to ease fighting about land disagreements between Russia and the US. (Facts). In 1947, the UN wanted to have elections so governments can form for both regions, but Russia disagreed causing problems. (Armstrong; “Korean”). The UN wanted elections to form governments thinking that it could benefit the whole country by influencing North Korea and South Korea to democracy, other then communism (Facts). Eventually South Korea elected lawmakers who wrote the constitution on May 10, 1948 forming a government. Rhee Syngman was the first elected president in Korea and had many opposing Koreans and supporters. Rhee wanted to use martial law in Pusan, which was the temporary capital back then, but President Truman and General Clark reminded Rhee to control a democratic government (“Korea 1952”). On the other hand, North Korea established a Democratic People’s Republic of K...
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...ple around the world think of someone or something. Not only is the identity of a country important, but what actually shaped the identity of a country. Everyone will probably always think of Korea as a divided country, one North and one South. Lots of people know North Korea causes lots of conflicts, while South Korea becoming a more known, independent, advanced country.
Korea wasn’t always a developed country but after the Korean War, the country changed in many ways, mainly because of influence from especially the US and Russia, in North Korea’s case. Although North Korea and South Korea is different by their thoughts on how to lead a country, both countries live comfortably, even if North Korea has problems at times. US leaded South Korea to democracy, which helps Korea even now to be called a developed country in many different areas.
The Korean War , although successful in preventing the spread of communism, was one of the first tests of communism in Asia. North Korea was strictly communist while South Korea was democratic. As usual, the United States supported democratic South Korea and the Truman Doctrine was applied to the Korean situation. The North Korean forces crossed the dividing line (38th parallel) and invaded South Korea. Thus, they provoked a war over communism. With the possibility of democratic South Korea falling to the communistic North, the U.S. stepped in and supplied aid mostly through troops. The U.S. then urged the United Nations to support South Korea and fight against the communist North. Once the North Korean forces were defeated at Inchon, they eventually got pushed back to the 38th parallel. However, against President Truman’s word, American General MacArthur decided to keep pushing back the North Korean forces by crossing the dividing line. This caused more trouble because the People’s Republic of China (Communist China) now sent troops to aid the communists against the pro...
Officially and originally referred to as, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, North Korea has had a dictatorship since 1948. (DPRK) On September 9, 1948 the United Nations elected South of Korea to be the Republic of Korea. They then elected North of Korea to be the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea electing Kim Il- Sung as the Prime Minster. This started the dictatorship in North Korea that still reigns on today.
...nt that democracy and communism could not cooperate with one another as shown in the United Nations Security Council after the Soviet Union boycott. UN initiatives often faced a stalemate, as the Soviet Union would many times prove difficult to the other members of the Security Council because its representative would constantly veto acts that favored democracy at the expense of communism, while other powers such as the United States would veto and shut down any proposals that benefited communism. The Korean War proved that democracy and communism could and would not get along, adding fuel to the imminent Cold War. What started as a civil war in a small Asian country quickly erupted into an international division between opposing powers backed by incompatible political systems. The Korean War has left its mark on surviving Koreans as well as others around the world.
Koreans were under Japanese rule for a long time. It was officially signed as a colony on August 22, 1910, but Japanese had been planning this annexation from 1876 the Japanese-Korea treaty of amity. Japanese plan of annexation started with this treaty. This treaty allowed Japanese to come to Korean harbors freely and this marked the end of Korea’s status as a protectorate of China. Also later on October 8th, 1895, Japanese minister Miura Goro plotted the assassination of Empress Myeongseong. With the assassination, Japanese were able to control the economy and military power and made the Koreans sig...
Japan was imperializing late nineteenth century to early twentieth century. Korea was a Japanese colony. After World War II, the Japanese had to get rid of the colony. North Korea became a Communist. South Korea wants to be democratic.
..., South Korea’s economy ranked 15 in the world which is impressive for such a small country. Also, every couple of years, North and South Korea will both agree on a family reunion day in which they allow families who were broken up to meet each other for a day. It is very sad because they are only able to see each other for a day and are not able to know whether they will be able to see their family again. Korea still remains divided and does not show great signs of reunitement being possible.
Korea had been united as one country for many years. Japan took control of Korea and made it part of its empire. After World War II, Japan was defeated and its empire fell. Korea was left without a leader or a system of government. This provoked the United States troops to occupy the southern half and Soviet troops to occupy the northern half. The United States and its allies favored democratic government, while the Soviet Union and China favored a communist system of government.
When we think of the many countries devastated by a brutal war, we need to focus on the Korean conflict. When Japan lost all its colonies in World War II, it lost an important one; that being Korea. The spread of communism was imminent in being influent in to the many countries in Asia, such as China, Korea, and Vietnam. During the time of the Cold War between the United states and the Soviet Union, the clash to fight against communism and spread capitalism was why Korea is split today. China being communist to the North, and the United States capitalist in the South. When the war concluded, the Republic of Korea was the poorest country in the world. The GDP per capita was a meager $1,420. (US AID) The US assistance played a huge role in the
...y say that I was able to get a good overview of Korean history with a strong sense of knowledge gained. What I specifically gained was a better sense of Korea as a unique cultural entity with its own sense of excellence and its individuality. I have also learned that regardless of the hardships Koreans have suffered in this century, they have successfully endured every worst situation a nation can ever experience. From Japan's colonial rule to the heavy influence Korea felt from Russia's communist state and America's democracy, Korea was able to withstand all these instabilities and overcome to what may be a healthy and modernized nation. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like a broad yet thorough overview of Korean history because; this book is precisely written and sectioned accordingly to not make learning history difficult or confusing.
South Korea is a country that has rapidly developed. But the country also experienced military dictatorship in the 1980s
Communist North Korea continues to be an underdeveloped country while South Korea continues to prosper in all areas such as technology, and agriculture. These two countries have vast differences with their political and government views. North Korea at one point was influenced by the Soviet Union but no longer. However, North Korea continues to be influenced by and receive aid from China. South Korea continues to be influenced by the United States of America. North Korea is governed and controlled by a dictatorship, which has complete control over media and social
When there was still Japanese imperialism and Korea was a Japanese colony, Japan forced many terrible things upon Korea. The annexation of Korea, which finished in 1910, was met with little response or resistance from the international world and Korea respectively. Their rule was suppressive. Korea became completely dependent on Japan for its economy. Things like ports were made for military use and while Japan built bridges, dams, and hallways in Korea, their original purpose was for the military and to make Japan look powerful. Throughout the period, 1910 to 1945, there were rebellions but they were quickly demolished by the Japanese. In 1919, there was a revolt with almost 2 million supporters and in the end, thousands to get killed ...
Korea gained independence from Japanese colonial rule in August of 1945 and also the division of Korea into the republic south and communist north in the 38th parallel. South Korea then was under the United States occupation from l945-48. Before the United States occupation South Korea had already organized a central People’s committees and established the Korean People of Republic (Memorial Foundation). Nevertheless, United States did not recognize any of the provisional or republic government. The United States refused to do so until there had been an agreement among the western allies. In 1954, there was a Mutual Security Agreement signed between the United States and South Korea, which states that they agreed to defend each other in the event of outside aggression (Memorial Foundation). South Korea has been under military authoritarian regime from 1961-1979 under President Park Chung Hee and from 1980-1992 under President Chun Doo Hwan. The Kwangju uprising occurred in May of 1980 after the collapse of the first milit...
Events that took before the war were what had initially sparked the rancor between both nations of Korea. Despite the fact that World War 2 just ended, tension between North and South Korea remained heated. Causes of the Korean War can mainly be broken down into two different categories; ideological and political reasoning. The Soviet Union, China and North Korea, the communist side, ideologically wanted to secure the Korean peninsula and incorporate it in a communist bloc. This “domino effect” feared individuals such as Harriet Truman due to the fact that the potential danger of other countries such as Japan and Korea becoming a communist bloc was definitely not something Truman had hoped for. Politically, the Soviet Union considered the Korean peninsula as a springboard to attack Russia and asserted that the Korean government should be “loyal” to the Soviet Union, this was where the United States stepped in, realizing that they were in a competition for world...
South Korea, once a broken country filled with broken families, has transformed itself into a fine example of perseverance in a tough situation. South Korea and its neighbor to the north have developed past where they were before the Korean War, but in different ways. The two countries, while certainly dependent on each other, are vastly different. Their conflicting styles of government and their differing cultures speak for themselves in this case. South Korea has, over the years, changed dramatically from the crippled country of the Korean War into a blossoming beacon of Asian cultural and economic changes. The combination of its recent economic importance, its heavy cultural influence, and its constant danger of participating in a war makes South Korea one of the most influential countries in the world.