Korea's 75th Independence Day sheds light on historical ties with Czechoslovak Legions
Arirang News
2020-08-14
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광복절 75주년, 한국 독립운동에 기여한 체코 독립군과 역사적 기록들
Tomorrow, August 15th marks 75 years since Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule.
There have been many stories surrounding the Korean liberation, but one aspect that many of us weren't too aware of were the role of Czechoslovakian soldiers in supporting the Korean independence movement.
Arirang News' Lee Kyung-eun sheds light on the Czechslovak Legions' contribution to Korea's independence.
In 1910, Japan formally annexed Korea.
Koreans fought for independence for decades, with the March 1st Movement in 1919 being the catalyst event.
The story couldn't get out to the world as much of the media was controlled by Japan.
But one Czechoslovakian newspaper reported about the movement.
The Czechoslovak Dennik newspaper wrote "Reuters reported from Seoul that Koreans gathered in masses and demanded Korea's independence. The police and military took various measures to prevent the movement from spreading…"
The Czechoslovak Dennik was published by the Czechoslovak Legion, soldiers living in Russia who fought for their country's independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War 1.
They printed the newspaper to record history,...and Korean's independence struggle especially caught their attention.
"Because legions were fighting for liberation of Czech Republic and Czechoslovakia so obviously they were closely watching whether they are any parallels in the region of their activities they found parallel in Korea."
Another article reveals an important role the Czechoslovak Legion played in Korean independence - selling weapons.
It says "the Japanese general complained to the Russian authorities for allowing the weapons to be handed over to Koreans, who were under Japanese rule at that time."
The arms trade was described in detail in the book "Bonfire" written by a Korean independence fighter.
It says, "the arms deal took place in the middle of the night, deep in the forest. The weapons were transported to our camp and piled up in the forest…."
The book explains the legion was able to deliver the weapons as they were heading back to Europe.
And those weapons are known to have been a great help in key battles for the Korean independence army.
Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.
Tomorrow, August 15th marks 75 years since Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule.
There have been many stories surrounding the Korean liberation, but one aspect that many of us weren't too aware of were the role of Czechoslovakian soldiers in supporting the Korean independence movement.
Arirang News' Lee Kyung-eun sheds light on the Czechslovak Legions' contribution to Korea's independence.
In 1910, Japan formally annexed Korea.
Koreans fought for independence for decades, with the March 1st Movement in 1919 being the catalyst event.
The story couldn't get out to the world as much of the media was controlled by Japan.
But one Czechoslovakian newspaper reported about the movement.
The Czechoslovak Dennik newspaper wrote "Reuters reported from Seoul that Koreans gathered in masses and demanded Korea's independence. The police and military took various measures to prevent the movement from spreading…"
The Czechoslovak Dennik was published by the Czechoslovak Legion, soldiers living in Russia who fought for their country's independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War 1.
They printed the newspaper to record history,...and Korean's independence struggle especially caught their attention.
"Because legions were fighting for liberation of Czech Republic and Czechoslovakia so obviously they were closely watching whether they are any parallels in the region of their activities they found parallel in Korea."
Another article reveals an important role the Czechoslovak Legion played in Korean independence - selling weapons.
It says "the Japanese general complained to the Russian authorities for allowing the weapons to be handed over to Koreans, who were under Japanese rule at that time."
The arms trade was described in detail in the book "Bonfire" written by a Korean independence fighter.
It says, "the arms deal took place in the middle of the night, deep in the forest. The weapons were transported to our camp and piled up in the forest…."
The book explains the legion was able to deliver the weapons as they were heading back to Europe.
And those weapons are known to have been a great help in key battles for the Korean independence army.
Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.
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