PersonPolitics

Kim Seung-hak

Kim Seung-hak (金承學, July 12, 1881 – December 17, 1965) was a Korean educator, soldier, and independence activist. His art name was Huisan (希山), and he also used the name Kim Tak (金鐸). After Liberation on August 15, 1945, he compiled a list of pro-Japanese collaborators and, immediately after the est

Born~Died Jul 12, 1881 ~ Dec 17, 19650 views in 30 daysLast edited Oct 15, 2026, 2:51 PM

日本語 · 金承学 한국어 · 김승학

Details

Born ~ Died: Jul 12, 1881 ~ Dec 17, 1965
Birth name: Kim Tak
Romanization: Kim Seung-hak
Born: July 12, 1881
Died: December 17, 1965
Gender: Male
Nationality: Korea
Occupation: Educator, soldier, independence activist

Contents

1.Life
1.1.Anti-Japanese independence struggle
1.2.After Liberation
2.Desire to compile a history of the independence movement and Hanguk Dongnipsa
3.References
4.Footnotes

Kim Seung-hak (金承學, July 12, 1881 – December 17, 1965) was a Korean educator, soldier, and independence activist. His art name was Huisan (希山), and he also used the name Kim Tak (金鐸). After Liberation on August 15, 1945, he compiled a list of pro-Japanese collaborators and, immediately after the establishment of the government, oversaw the screening of people who had contributed to the founding of the nation. He belonged to the Baecheon Kim clan.¹

Life

He was born in Uiju, North Pyongan Province. In 1905 he graduated from the Hanseong Higher Normal School and worked as a teacher in Uiju. In 1907, when the Japan–Korea New Agreement was concluded, he gave public speeches opposing it, was arrested for doing so, and thereafter devoted himself to the independence movement.

Anti-Japanese independence struggle

In 1910, when the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty was concluded and many patriots sought exile abroad, he also moved to Manchuria and joined the armed struggle. In 1919, when the March 1st Movement prompted moves to unify the righteous army groups, he took part in organizing the Korea Independence Corps (Chief Commissioner Park Jang-ho) and established ties with the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai.

He joined the Uibu and Minguk Independence Corps, which were centered on Confucian scholars who had come from former righteous armies. He also served as an executive of the Gwangbokgun Command (Commander Jo Maeng-seon) and was active in the Manchurian region. In 1921 he went to Shanghai and took charge of publishing the Independence News, the official organ of the Provisional Government.

In March 1927 he became Speaker of the Chamuibu of the Provisional Government and also participated in the Korean Independence Party (Chairman Hong Jin). Because of this, he was arrested by Japanese police in Manchuria and spent about five years in prison, including at Pyongyang Prison. Even after his release, he did not give up and moved again to China, where he worked with the Provisional Government and the Gwangbokgun.

After Liberation

At the end of 1945, when Kim Ku opposed the Moscow Conference of Foreign Ministers and vigorously promoted the anti-trusteeship movement, he became a member of the National Mobilization Committee for Opposition to Trusteeship, which was formed on December 30.²

On November 23, 1945, he revived the Independence News and took part as its publisher.³

On September 5, 1947, Syngman Rhee was elected Chairman and Kim Ku Vice Chairman of the Provisional Government, and when the State Council of the Provisional Government was supplemented by by-election, he was appointed, together with Kim Sung-soo, as a member of the State Council of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea.⁴

The independence movement materials he prepared while in charge of screening people who had contributed to the founding of the nation have long been treated as important historical sources in this field. In 1948, a list of pro-Japanese figures titled Chinil-pa Gunsang (〈친일파 군상〉), written in his own hand, along with a list of expected judges and prosecutors for the Special Committee for the Investigation of Pro-Japanese Collaborators, was discovered and made public in 2001.

In 1962 he received the Independence Order of the Order of National Foundation. In 1963 he also took part in the screening of the merits of independence activists together with Oh Kwang-seon. Through his influence, many independence activists were awarded decorations. He died on December 17, 1964.

Desire to compile a history of the independence movement and Hanguk Dongnipsa

According to testimony from his descendants (Kim Byeong-gi), even before Liberation he collected a large number of materials for compiling a history of the independence movement. Because of this, he was arrested by the Japanese several times, and materials were lost in the process. After Liberation, in his hometown of Sinuiju, he set up an office to compile a history of the independence movement and began collecting independence movement materials again. This work continued after he moved down to Seoul, and when the Korean War broke out, he is said to have carried his collected materials with him when he evacuated to Busan.
In January 1953, in Busan, he re-established the Korean Independence Movement History Compilation Committee based on the Patriotic Comrades Support Association, served as its chairman, and by November 1954, one year later, completed the corrected draft manuscript. This manuscript was later published on February 5, 1956, as Hanguk Dongnip Undongsa (A History of the Korean Independence Movement) by the Patriotic Comrades Support Association (President Mun Il-min). However, Kim Seung-hak, who had led the compilation, did not take part, and it is said that the published version and the draft were substantially revised. In Hanguk Dongnipsa, which he wrote up until just before his death, Kim criticized this situation, noting that A History of the Korean Independence Movement contradicted his intentions in many respects and had been published without his consent.
Even after this, he did not give up his determination to compile a history of the independence movement. In particular, he is said to have received many handwritten resumes together with photographs from independence activists who were still alive at the time. Based on these, he was able to take part in the 1963 screening of independence activists' merits, and many independence activists were able to receive decorations thanks to his materials.
Based on materials related to his writing of a history of the independence movement and his many handwritten resumes, he published Hanguk Dongnipsa in 1964, which became both his book and posthumous collection. However, Kim died without seeing the publication of this book.

References

Footnotes

Naver Encyclopedia – Kim Seung-hak [1] ↩
Ah! The Site of a Tragic History: Kyungkyo-jang (1993, Baekbeom Sasang Silcheon Undong Yeonhap), p. 255 ↩
Yonhap News (August 10, 2012). "The Provisional Government's Official Organ Independence News Published After Liberation Is Revealed". Confirmed June 18, 2020. ↩
Syngman Rhee's Political Ideology (Seo Joong-seok, Yeoksa Bipyeongsa, 2006), pp. 360–361 ↩

Life

Anti-Japanese independence struggle

In March 1927 he became Speaker of the Chamuibu of the Provisional Government and also participated in the Korean Independence Party (Chairman ). Because of this, he was arrested by Japanese police in Manchuria and spent about five years in prison, including at . Even after his release, he did not give up and moved again to , where he worked with the Provisional Government and the .

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Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 2:51 PM · r74464 · Text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Naver Encyclopedia – Kim Seung-hak [1] ↩
Ah! The Site of a Tragic History: Kyungkyo-jang (1993, Baekbeom Sasang Silcheon Undong Yeonhap), p. 255 ↩
Yonhap News (August 10, 2012). "The Provisional Government's Official Organ Independence News Published After Liberation Is Revealed". Confirmed June 18, 2020. ↩
Syngman Rhee's Political Ideology (Seo Joong-seok, Yeoksa Bipyeongsa, 2006), pp. 360–361 ↩

Naver Encyclopedia – Kim Seung-hak [1] ↩
Ah! The Site of a Tragic History: Kyungkyo-jang (1993, Baekbeom Sasang Silcheon Undong Yeonhap), p. 255 ↩
Yonhap News (August 10, 2012). "The Provisional Government's Official Organ Independence News Published After Liberation Is Revealed". Confirmed June 18, 2020. ↩
Syngman Rhee's Political Ideology (Seo Joong-seok, Yeoksa Bipyeongsa, 2006), pp. 360–361 ↩

Kim Seung-hak

Life

Anti-Japanese independence struggle

After Liberation

Desire to compile a history of the independence movement and Hanguk Dongnipsa

References

Footnotes

Life

Anti-Japanese independence struggle

Opinions 0

After Liberation

Desire to compile a history of the independence movement and Hanguk Dongnipsa

References

Footnotes

Other languages

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Life

Anti-Japanese independence struggle

After Liberation

Desire to compile a history of the independence movement and Hanguk Dongnipsa

References

Footnotes

Opinions 0