A brief account of Korean History

Korean History:
Korea's history can be traced back to the Prehistoric Age with Archaeological findings dating back 700,000 years ago. The first Korean Kingdom (Go-Joseon B.C. 2333 - B.C 108) was founded by the famous Dan-gun. Next that followed was that of "the Three Kingdoms" (B.B. 57 - A.D. 676). It was during this period that a political system, religion and culture developed. Buddhism first arrived in Korea during this period around the in the year A.D. 372 during the reign of King Sosurim of the Goguryeo Kingdom.

From 676-935, the Unified Silla Kingdom reigned and promoted the development of culture and arts. It is in this era that Buddhism reached it's peak. As Unified Silla Kingdom declined a new dynasty known as The Goryeo Dynasty came to power until 1392. Buddhism was now the state religion and has had a lasting influence on Korean politics and culture.

By 1392, The Joseon Dynasty was formed and Confucianism became the state ideology and exerted a massive influence over the whole of society. It was in this era that Hanguel (Korean Alphabet) was invented in 1443. However, the dynasty's power started to diminish because of foreign invasions, beginning with the Japanese invasion in 1592.

The Japanese Colonial Period (1910-1945) started with the conclusion of the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910. The Korean people would have to accept Japanese colonial rule until the surrender of Japan which ended World War II.

In 1945, Japan withdrew from the Korean Peninsula after surrendering to the Allies. The Korean Peninsula was then divided into two zones, South and North Korea. The Korean War broke out on June 25 1950 as the North Korean Red Army rolled over the South Korean defences all the way to the capital city, Seoul where they were halted by student militias. The armistice was finally signed on 27 July 1953 after over two million Koreans had lost their lives.

In 2000 a historic summit took place between North and South Korea in Pyeongyang (capital of North Korea) in a bid to once again unify the Korean peninsula.

We recommend that teachers should try and visit the Korean War memorial and do a trip to the DMZ area. There are also the 4 Tunnels, a number of tombs, Korean War battle sites and much more to investigate.