Kim Kyu-sik

Kim Kyu-sik
김규식
金奎植
Vice President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea
In office
October 1940  March 3, 1947
Preceded by -
Succeeded by Kim Gu
Personal details
Born (1881-01-29)January 29, 1881
Dongrae District, Busan, Joseon Dynasty
Died December 10, 1950(1950-12-10) (aged 69)
Manpo, North Korea
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization Gim Gyusik
McCune–Reischauer Kim Kyushik
Pen name
Hangul ,
Hanja ,
Revised Romanization Usa, Jukjeok
McCune–Reischauer Usa, Chukjŏk
Courtesy name
Hangul
Revised Romanization Byeon'gap
McCune–Reischauer Pyŏn'gap

Kim Kyu-Sik, also spelled Kimm Giusic and Kimm Kiusic (Korean:김규식, Hanja:金奎植, January 29, 1881 December 10, 1950), was a Korean politician and academic during the Korean independence movement and a leader of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Kim served in various roles in the provisional government, including as foreign minister, ambassador, education minister and finally as the vice president from 1940 until the provisional government's dissolution on March 3, 1947. Kim's nicknames included Yoosa(우사), Kummun(금문), KimSung(김성), and JukJeok(죽적).

Life and career

Early life

Kim Kyu-sik (1890's)

Kim was born in Dongnae, now part of modern-day Busan. Orphaned at an early age, Kim studied with American missionary H.G. Underwood starting from the age of 6, taking the Christian name "Johann." He later traveled to the United States, receiving a bachelor's degree from Roanoke College in 1903 and a master's degree in English literature from Princeton University the following year.

In 1905 Kim returned to Korea, teaching widely. Following the 1910 Japanese annexation of Korea Kim fled to China in 1913.

Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea

Kim Kyu-sik (1919)

In 1919, unlike his contemporary Syngman Rhee, Kim successfully traveled to Paris for the Paris Peace Conference to lobby for Korean independence from Japan. He was sent by Lyuh Woon-Hyung and Chang Duk-soo, who had organized Sinhan Cheongnyeondang in Shanghai in the summer of 1919.[1] His efforts in Paris proved to be futile.

The Korean National Revolutionary Party was formed in Shanghai in 1935 through a grouping of left-wing nationalist Korean parties. Organizers were Kim Kyu-sik, Kim Won-bong and Cho Soang.[2]

Kim Kyu-sik was a leading member of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea based in Shanghai, becoming the Vice-President. He was fluent in English and taught English to the Provisional Government's members.

After Korean Liberation

After the liberation of Korea in 1945, he returned to his homeland to participate in the formation of a newly independent state, which was now under the rule of the United States Army Military Government in Korea in the south and the Soviet Civil Authority in the North. Kimm was favored by the American occupation leader John R. Hodge, who saw him and Lyuh Woon-Hyung as moderate leaders on the right and left, respectively. In September 1947, the United States, Lee Seung Man (이승만; 李承晩 - also known as Syngman Rhee) et al. pushed to move the Korean question to the newly created United Nations, which quickly the voted to allow for elections in the south despite the objections of southern nationalists such as Kim and Kim Gu as well as from the north's Interim People's Committee, who were opposed because of the non-participation of the North.[1]

Death

After failed efforts to broker reunification in that year, he retired from politics. After the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, he was kidnapped and taken to the North; he reportedly died near Manpo in the far north on December 10.

In May 1988 he was posthumously awarded the Republic of Korea Medal of Order of Merit for National Foundation (건국훈장 대한민국장; 建國勳章 大韓民國章), the most prestigious civil decoration in South Korea. He was posthumously awarded North Korea's National Reunification Prize in 1998.[3]

Books

Degrees

Awards, Recognition

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Eckert, Carter J., Lee, Ki-baik, Lew, Young Ick, Robinson, Michael & Wagner, Edward W. (1990). Korea old and new. Seoul: Ilchokak.
  2. Pratt, Keith L.; Rutt, Richard (1999), "Korean National Revolutionary Party", Korea: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary, Psychology Press, p. 236, ISBN 978-0-7007-0464-4, retrieved 2016-03-20
  3. "National Reunification Prize Winners", Korean Central News Agency, 1998-05-07, archived from the original on 2013-06-02, retrieved 2012-09-13

Career Education

Further reading

Political offices
Preceded by
Vice Presidents of Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea
1940-1948
Succeeded by
Provisional Government dissolved
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.