Korea Under Japanese Rule - YouTube

Korea Under Japanese Rule - YouTube

Korea Under Japanese Rule

The Armchair Historian

476,424 views  Oct 28, 2026

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Sources:

Alcalá Rodríguez Guido, y Pablo Rocca. Cuentos De La Guerra Del Paraguay. Ediciones de la Banda Oriental, 1996.

The "Comfort Women" Issue and the Asian Women's Fund (Japan: Asian Women's Fund, 2004).

Haboush, JaHyun Kim. The Great East Asian War and the Birth of the Korean Nation (United States: Columbia University Press, 2016).

Kang, Hildi. Under the Black Umbrella: Voices from Colonial Korea, 1910–1945 (United Kingdom: Cornell University Press, 2005).

Seth, Michael J. A Concise History of Korea: From Antiquity to the Present (United Kingdom: Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

Uchida, Jun. Brokers of Empire: Japanese Settler Colonialism in Korea, 1876-1945 (Netherlands: Harvard University Asia Center, 2011).

Armchair Team Credits:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1s...

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Transcript

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Nestled between the great powers of East

Asia, Korea has always been influenced

by its neighbors ambitions and

conflicts. Its survival was maintained

through careful diplomacy while striving

for internal modernization during the

rise of imperialism.

For Korea, this was a balancing act that

set the stage for Japan's intervention

and the profound reshaping of Korea's

future.

The late 19th century saw Japan

transform from a feudal society into an

industrialized imperial power with the

Maji restoration. This era of rapid

modernization and militarization was

fueled by a desire to avoid the fate of

other Asian nations subjugated by

Western powers. Japan's imperial

ambitions were clear to extend its

influence over East Asia and position

itself as a dominant regional power.

A pivotal step in extending Japanese

influence was the Japan Korea treaty of

1876

drafted by Japan to be similar to

earlier western imposed treaties. This

treaty signed under the duress of

gunboat diplomacy marked the end of

Korea's status as a Chinese protectorate

and opened Korea's ports to Japanese

trade significantly increasing Japan's

influence in the peninsula.

This rising influence sparked internal

conflict culminating in the IMO incident

of 1882.

Resentment against Japanese favored

modernization efforts led to violence in

Seoul and an assault on the Japanese

legation. In the aftermath of this

incident, the Japan Korea treaty of 1882

was signed, permitting Japanese guards

at their sole legation. This period also

saw the Gapsson coup of 1884, a

pro-Japanese faction's failed attempt to

topple the conservative Korean

government. ultimately quashed by

Chinese military intervention under Yuan

Shikai. In 1894, a major peasant revolt

escalated tensions, giving Japan the

pretext to launch the first SinoJapanese

war. Japan's victory and subsequent

peace treaty in 1895 recognized Korea's

independence from China, paving the way

for imperial dominance over East Asia.

In the same year, the Japanese minister

to Korea, Mura Guro, orchestrated the

assassination of Queen Min, a critical

figure in the Korean monarchy. Soon

after, the Korean king Kojong and his

crown prince sought refuge in Soul's

Russian legation in 1896, which they

used to govern in relative safety until

1897.

Despite these challenges, Kojong's

strive for sovereignty led to the

establishment of the Korean Empire in

1897.

This bold step led by the exiled king

turned emperor marked a departure from

Korea's historical status as a tributary

state and aimed to reinforce Korea's

independence along with countering

foreign influence.

However, this period of autonomy was

brief. Japan's victory in the

Russo-Japanese War in 1905 diminished

Russia's influence in Korea, allowing

Japan to fill the power vacuum. This

unchecked expansion of Japanese power

ultimately led to the Japan Korea Treaty

of 1910, resulting in Korea's full

annexation and the beginning of Japanese

colonial rule. Japanese colonial rule in

Korea was marked by severe political

repression aimed at dismantling

traditional governance and suppressing

resistance. The governor generals of

Korea directly appointed by the Japanese

emperor wielded absolute power, often

enforcing policies through military

force. Korean political organizations

were banned and anti-colonial activists

faced brutal crackdowns with thousands

imprisoned or executed. The infamous

Peace Preservation Law of 1925

gave authorities sweeping powers to

arrest anyone suspected of anti-Japanese

sentiment. The colonial government also

conducted surveillance and propaganda

campaigns to quell Korean nationalism.

Japan's economic exploitation of Korea

was profound, reshaping the peninsula's

economy for Japan's benefit. The

colonial regime implemented policies

favoring Japan's businesses, leading to

significant Japanese ownership in key

industries, especially mining and

manufacturing. [music]

Attempts at agrarian land reforms were

not so successful. Colonial authorities

hoped to displace Korean farmers with

their land being reallocated to the

soaring population of Japanese settlers.

This effort was led by the Quasi Public

Corporation known as the Oriental

Development Company or ODC. However, the

venture failed as the Japanese farming

population in Korea never rose above

10%. By the 1930s, half a million

settlers owned less than 10% of Korean

land, which was far below the

expectations of the ODC.

Even with native Koreans owning most of

the nation's arable land, their rice

production was heavily exploited to feed

the Japanese home islands, resulting in

food shortages all across Korea. The

colonial government also mobilized

Korean labor for wartime industries and

military efforts, including forced labor

in Japan. This exploitation led to

economic hardships for the Korean

populace, with many suffering from

poverty, malnutrition, and a lack of

resources due to Japan's prioritization

of its imperial and military needs over

the welfare of the Korean people.

Beyond economics and politics, Japanese

rule in Korea faced systematic cultural

eraser aimed at suppressing its national

identity. Since annexation, the Japanese

administration had steadily imposed its

will to absorb Korean identity through

the spirit of domain, a term used to

promote the Japanese Korean unity,

treating both as citizens of the same

nation. However, the reality of Japanese

rule saw restrictions imposed that

became more severe by the decade. Under

Governor General Minami Jiro, a more

aggressive policy of cultural

assimilation was adopted in the 1930s

known as Naisen Itai. Between 1937 to

1943, a series of policies compelled

Koreans to recite the pledge of imperial

subjects, speak only Japanese, worship

at Shinto shrines, and change their

names to Japanese ones. Eventually,

these policies escalated [music] to the

complete prohibition of teaching and

speaking Korean. Historical Korean

landmarks were also destroyed or

repurposed to erase national history. As

Japan's war expanded into the Second

World War, Koreans were made to serve in

the Japanese military. Initially

volunteering under duress or false

promises and later through conscription

from 1944, Korean soldiers found

themselves fighting for the Japanese

cause across various warfronts. Among

these figures were future South Korean

leaders like Pac Chongi and Chong Iwan.

For many Koreans, [music] their service

was marked by discrimination and

hardship as they were often treated as

secondclass soldiers within the Japanese

ranks. Nevertheless, service under the

Japanese remained a contentious subject

for many Koreans who were often seen as

collaborators. The war's effect on

Japan's dwindling resources also

intensified its exploitation of the

Korean people, mainly through forced

labor deportation. Hundreds of thousands

of Koreans were forcibly taken to Japan

and other parts of the Japanese Empire

to work in mines, factories, and

construction projects under brutal

conditions. This mass mobilization of

forced labor was a critical component of

Japan's war effort, sustaining its

industrial and military machine.

One of the most harrowing aspects of

Japanese rule during the Second World

War, was the systematic exploitation of

Korean women, known as comfort women.

These women, many of whom were just

teenagers, were forced into sexual

slavery to serve the Japanese military.

They were abducted or deceived into

working in military comfort stations

where they endured unimaginable physical

and psychological trauma. Estimates

suggest that between 50,000 to 200,000

Korean women were subjugated to this

form of sexual servitude. The plight of

comfort women remained a hidden atrocity

for decades postwar, only coming to

light in later years as survivors began

to share their harrowing stories.

Despite such repression, many groups

within Korea had resisted even before

annexation. This resistance was composed

of a mix of guerilla factions and

intellectual opposition such as An

Chong-ho's enlightenment movement who

advocated for education, modern reforms,

and national consciousness.

These early movements laid the

groundwork for organized resistance

against Japanese colonial rule. A

pivotal moment in Korea's resistance was

the March 1st movement in 1919.

Sparked by the death of Emperor Kojong

and inspired by global events such as

the end of the First World War, this

peaceful protest movement saw millions

of Koreans advocating for independence.

The Japanese response was brutally

repressive, leading to thousands of

deaths and further igniting Korean

nationalism. Concurrently, the Korean

provisional government was established

in Shanghai. Although it struggled to

gain widespread international

recognition, it played a crucial role in

organizing and supporting resistance

efforts both within Korea and among the

Korean diaspora.

The provisional government became a

symbol of the Korean struggle for

sovereignty. drawing support from

various segments of Korean society and

the international community. Resistance

against Japanese rule in Korea was

marked by diverse and regionally varied

efforts. Beyond the early movements

under Anongho, religious groups,

especially Christians and Buddhists,

were pivotal in preserving Korean

culture and organizing anti-colonial

activities. Intellectuals and students

actively participated in demonstrations

and efforts to keep Korean culture and

language alive amid intense Japanese

repression. Armed resistance played a

significant role with figures like Kim

Wongpong leading espionage and sabotage

while communist figures like Kim IlSung

orchestrated guerilla campaigns in the

north. Perhaps the most crucial of

Korea's armed resistance came with the

remobilizing of the Righteous Armies, a

collection of volunteer militias that

have appeared several times across

Korean history in its hour of need.

Channeling memories of the Imjin War and

more recent events such as the Dong-Hawk

Peasant Revolution, the righteous armies

fought in small bands, managing in

skirmishes against Japanese forces and

collaborators, often clashing with

police, military units, and mercenary

groups that enforced the interests of

Japanese corporations and settlers

encroaching on Korean lands.

Additionally, labor and peasant

uprisings aided guerilla efforts in

destabilizing the regime's control over

the peninsula, contributing to

widespread discontent and resistance

within Korean society.

The era of Japanese colonial rule

profoundly impacted the Korean

peninsula, leaving a legacy that

continues to shape both North and South

Korean societies. In South Korea, this

period has spurred efforts towards

seeking justice and reconciliation with

Japan, addressing historical grievances

like wartime reparations and comfort

women. In North Korea, the colonial past

fuels a strong anti-Japanese sentiment

integral to its nationalist ideology and

used to legitimize the regime's

policies. However, [music]

one thing both nations agree on is the

lasting legacy that this period has left

on the peninsula and will continue to do

so for decades to come.

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