| Myeonje baegab | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 면제배갑 |
| Hanja | 綿製背甲 |
| Revised Romanization | Myeonje Baegap |
| McCune–Reischauer | Myŏnje Paegap |
Myeonje Baegab (면제배갑, 綿製背甲) is the world's first soft bullet-proof vest[1][2], invented in the late 1860s in the Joseon Dynasty, modern day Republic of Korea.
It was invented following the French Campaign against Korea, 1866 and used in battle during the United States expedition to Korea in 1871. It was made of between 13 and 30 folds of cotton fabric and covered the upper torso.
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During the French Campaign against Korea, 1866, the military of the Joseon Kingdom, at the time using matchlock rifles, experienced the superiority of western rifles. As a result, Heungseon Daewongun, then acting leader of the Joseon Kingdom, ordered the development of bullet-proof armor. Through multiple live fire tests using matchlock rifles Kim Gi-Du (김기두, 金箕斗) and Gang Yun (강윤, 姜潤), who were national weapon developers, found that 30 layers of cotton fabric were effective in preventing penetration by rounds fired from a matchlock rifle at around 100 meters [3].
The vests were distributed to soldiers after its creation, and were used in battles fought on Ganghwa Island against United States Navy and Marine forces during the United States expedition to Korea in 1871.[4]
Although the vests were effective against bullets, they were susceptible to fire because they were made of cotton. The vests were easily burnt by fragments from cannon fire; US records indicate that some Korean soldiers caught fire after a cannon attack. Also, the vests were too hot to wear in summer.
The US army captured one of the vests and took it to the US. The vest was stored in the Smithsonian Museum.
The Korean army flag taken by the US during the United States expedition to Korea was found by a professor, and a movement to return the flag to Korea started [4]. Because the US had no legal provision for returning the flag, it was lent to Korea in 2007 for a 10 year period.
It seems that the related weapons taken by the US went to Korea with the flag, and they were displayed in the exhibition of "The Return Of The Flag In 136 Years" in GoGoong Museum, on April 1, 2008. MyunJeBaeGab was included in the exhibition. It was reported that they were stored in the Korean National Museum. It is not clear whether MyunJeBaeJab was permanently given to Korea, or just lent for 10 years with the flag.