Korea, peninsula in Asia, divided since

1948 into two political entities:

Democratic People's Republic of
Korea (North Korea)

Republic of Korea
(South Korea)
The earliest known Korean state was

Thereafter the Chinese set up military

outposts in Korea that helped spread
information

Old Choson is presently located in the

northwestern Korea and southern Northeast
China. During those times, Old Choson was
conquered by the Han Chinese in 108 BC.
information
To a degree these kingdoms accepted
Buddhism, Confucianism, and most
importantly, Chinese characters as a means of
communication and education.
Paekche and Silla also had contact with
Japan, along with a fourth, smaller
kingdom called Kaya.
 This time the
northern state,
Koryo (the name,
• stable central government which is derived
• influenced by Chinese political from Koguryo, is
institutions and methods reflected in the
• vigorous Buddhist faith that ins-pired modern Western
achievements(scholarship&art) name, Korea),
•a particularly distinctive ceramics accomplished
industry that produced exquisite
celadons—stoneware with a gray-green,
unification.
unification
iron-pigmented glaze—which are still
appreciated today.
14th century - Korea came under the
influence of Neo-Confucianism, a
system of Confucian thought influenced
by Buddhism and Daoism (Taoism).
The principles of Neo-Confucianism,
included emphasis on good conduct,
wisdom, and appropriate social
interaction.
Japanese domination of Korea formally began with
the Protectorate Treaty (1905), forced on Korea after
the Russo-Japanese War.
Under this treaty, Japan assumed control of Korea's
foreign relations and ultimately its police &
military,currency & banking, communications, and all
other vital functions
 the US made the decision that
it would occupy the southern
half of Korea

Despite its long history as an in-

dependent kingdom, Korea had
been forcibly annexed by Japan in
1910, up to the end of WWII.
information
US (United States) and USSR (Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics) - both had joined
Korea with the fight against Japan.
American planners chose to divide
Korea at the 38th parallel to keep
the capital city, Seoul, in the
American-occupied southern zone
 Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea (DPRK)
Under Kim II Sung (leftist
movement)

Republic of Korea (ROK)

Under Syngman Rhee
(right movement)
information
DPRK emerged in the North under Kim II
Sung, who received significant support from
North Koreans and from China. Kim was a
Korean guerilla who had fought with Chinese
Communist forces against the Japanese.
ROK, backed up by the US and the UN, emerged
in the south under Syngman Rhee, a 70 - year old
expatriate who had lived for decades in the US.
Rhee had a solid anti-Communist credentials &
was popular with the right.
Korean War, civil and military
struggle that was fought on the
Korea Peninsula reached its height
between 1950 and 1953.
information
The Korean War caused great devastation to the people
of the Korea Peninsula. Although 20 other nations
eventually became involved in the war, the Koreans saw it
primarily as a civil war between the North and the South.
information
In June 1953, during the Korean War, these South
Koreans demanded reunification with North
Korea and protested a proposed armistice to end
the fighting. The armistice was signed in July by
the United Nations, China, and North Korea, but
South Korea refused to sign.
information
The demilitarized zone (DMZ) was created
as a buffer zone between North Korea and
South Korea as part of a 1953 armistice
agreement that brought an end to fighting in
the Korean War.
Pyongyang, North Korea was almost
destroyed during the Korean War. With
Chinese and Soviet assistance, the city
was rebuilt. The Opera House is one of
many new landmarks built after 1955.