Английская Википедия:Assassination of Empress Myeongseong
Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Use dmy datesШаблон:Infobox military conflict Around 6 a.m. on 8 October 1895, Queen Min, the consort of the Korean monarch Gojong, was assassinated by a group of Japanese agents under Miura Gorō. After her death, she was posthumously given the title of "Empress Myeongseong". The attack happened at the royal palace Gyeongbokgung in Seoul, Joseon. This incident is known in Korea as the Eulmi Incident.Шаблон:Efn
By the time of her death, the queen had acquired arguably more political power than even her husband.Шаблон:Sfn Through this process, she made many enemies and escaped a number of assassination attempts. Among her prominent foes were the king's father, the Heungseon Daewongun, and the pro-Japanese ministers of the court. Weeks before her death, Japan replaced their emissary to Korea with a new one: Miura Gorō. Miura was a former military man who was inexperienced in diplomacy and found dealing with the powerful queen frustrating.Шаблон:Sfn After the queen began to align Korea with the Russian Empire to offset Japanese influence, Miura struck a deal with a class of Japanese settlers called Шаблон:Ill and the Daewongun to carry out her killing.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
The agents were let into the palace by pro-Japanese Korean guards. Once inside, they beat and threatened the Royal Family and the occupants of the palace during their search for the queen. When the queen was eventually located, her killer jumped on her chest three times, then cleaved her head with a sword.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Some assassins looted the palace, while others covered her corpse in oil and burned it.Шаблон:Sfn
The Japanese government arrested the assassins on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder. The trial has been consistently criticized since.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Non-Japanese witnesses were not calledШаблон:Sfn and the court ignored evidence from Japanese investigators, who had recommended that the assassins be found guilty.Шаблон:Sfn The defendants were acquitted all charges, despite the court acknowledging that the defendants had conspired to commit murder.Шаблон:Sfn Miura went on to have a career in the Japanese government, where he eventually became Minister of Communications.
The killing sparked domestic and international shock and outrage, and has since been characterized by modern historians of Japan as "brutal" and "barbaric".Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Sentiment shifted against Japan in Korea; Gojong fled for protection in the Russian legation and anti-Japanese militias rose throughout the peninsula. While the attack harmed Japan's position in Korea in the short run, it did not prevent Korea's eventual colonization in 1910.
Historiography
The assassination is highly contentious in Korea, where it is remembered as a symbol of Japan's historical atrocities on the peninsula.[1] Information about the assassination comes from a variety of sources, including the memoirs of some of the assassins,Шаблон:Sfn the testimonies of foreigners who witnessed varying parts of the attack,[1][2] the testimonies of Korean eyewitnesses,Шаблон:Sfn investigations conducted by Japanese emissaries Uchida Sadatsuchi and Komura Jūtarō,Шаблон:Sfn and the verdicts of the trials of the assassins in Hiroshima.Шаблон:Sfn Evidence for the assassination is written in at least four languages: English, Korean, Japanese, and Russian.[1][2]
For over a century now, scholars from various countries have analyzed varying portions of the body of evidence, and have reached differing conclusions on significant issues.[1] Evidence has continued to emerge even into the 21st century, which contributes to ongoing debate.[2][3]
Background
Шаблон:See alsoSince its forced opening by Japan in 1876, Korea had been subjected to a number of competing foreign interests, including those of the Empire of Japan, Qing China, the Russian Empire, and the United States. The strength of each of these powers in Korea changed frequently.Шаблон:Sfn Even within the Korean government, various politicians, departments, and military units acted according to independent interests and alignments.Шаблон:Sfn
One prominent faction was led by the father of King Gojong: the Heungseon Daewongun.Шаблон:Sfn Wanting a submissive and obedient wife for Gojong, the Daewongun selected an orphan girl of the prestigious Yeoheung Min clan, who became Queen Min.Шаблон:Sfn However, she was widely agreed to be extremely sharp, and she quickly consolidated power.Шаблон:Sfn According to observers, she wielded even more political power than her husband.Шаблон:Sfn The queen forced the Daewongun into retirement, and replaced his allies with her own.Шаблон:Sfn The Daewongun and queen came to despise each other.Шаблон:Sfn
Her gender also played a role in how she was perceived; in both Japan and Korea at that time, women were expected to be relatively secluded and it was uncommon for them to hold significant political power.Шаблон:Sfn
The combination of these factors made her the target of retaliation. Both the Daewongun and the Japanese became involved in efforts to suppress her power.Шаблон:Sfn Assassination attempts were made against her in the 1882 Imo Incident and 1884 Gapsin Coup.Шаблон:Sfn In 1894, the Daewongun struck a deal with Japanese military leader Ōtori Keisuke to purge the queen and her allies, but the plot failed, and the queen regained her influence.Шаблон:Sfn
Sōshi and the Kanjō Shinpō
Beginning around the 1860s, groups of young men called Шаблон:Ill (Шаблон:Lang-ja) emerged in Japan, and engaged in political violence. They were seen in Japan as violent thugs, and looked down upon. They were the product of groups such as the shishi and rebel Satsuma Army. Beginning in the 1880s, a number of them moved to Korea.Шаблон:Sfn In Korea, they had the right of extraterritoriality and were thus unbound by Korean law.Шаблон:Sfn They, in nationalist groups such as Шаблон:IllШаблон:Sfn and KokuryūkaiШаблон:Sfn, roamed the countryside and committed atrocities with impunity.Шаблон:Sfn
A number of the sōshi became journalists, and became associated with various Japanese newspapers in Korea, namely the Kanjō Shinpō.Шаблон:Sfn This newspaper and its employees later became central to the assassination plot.Шаблон:Sfn
Instability and the Hullyeondae
Around 1894, Korea suffered from significant internal instability. The Donghak Peasant Revolution and First Sino-Japanese War for control over Korea concurrently took place on the peninsula.Шаблон:Sfn Around this time, the Japanese trained their own battallions of Koreans on the peninsula: the Hullyeondae. Much of the Hullyeondae were loyal to Japan, and developed a strained relationship with the other Korean security forces. This led to a number of violent clashes between them.Шаблон:Sfn
Developing the plot
Sōshi advocacy for the assassination
The sōshi became fixated on the politically-active Korean queen.Шаблон:Sfn According to historian Danny Orbach, a mix of sexism,Шаблон:Sfn racism, and political agendas led to members of the Kanjō Shinpō taking the lead in plotting her assassination.Шаблон:Sfn They began to romanticize her killing; in his memoirs, founder of the Kanjō Shinpō Adachi Kenzō described the queen as "that bewitching beauty, who cunningly, ubiquitously, and treacherously manipulated virtuous men for over a generation".Шаблон:Sfn They romanticized the male Daewongun as "the old hero", and juxtaposed him to the image of an evil feminine queen.Шаблон:Sfn Adachi and others at the Kanjō Shinpō referred to her in writings as a "fox" or "vixen", and began frequently commenting to each other that she should be killed,Шаблон:Sfn which they described as hōru (Шаблон:Lang-ja; Шаблон:Lit).Шаблон:Sfn Fervor for her killing amongst the sōshi became increasingly frantic, and they grew impatient.Шаблон:Sfn
Miura Gorō
In Summer of 1895, the Japanese government replaced Japanese emissary in Korea Inoue Kaoru with Miura Gorō.Шаблон:Sfn Miura had previously been a soldier and military commander,Шаблон:Sfn and privately professed to loathing politics and politicians.Шаблон:Sfn
Why Miura, a man with little interest or experience in diplomacy, was placed in charge of the volatile Korea is uncertain.Шаблон:Sfn[1] He refused the post three times, and by his own admission thought it complicated and confusing.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn He felt as though he was being pushed to Korea, and reluctantly accepted the position.Шаблон:Sfn[1] When he arrived there, he wrote that he found the queen to be intelligent and condescending to him.Шаблон:Sfn Orbach wrote that Miura "felt clueless and helpless" in dealing with her, and that Japan was in fact in a position of weakness in Korea due to Miura's incompetence.Шаблон:Sfn Scholars have reasoned that, as a soldier, Miura was aggressive by nature, and therefore chose to act violently.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
According to Orbach's analysis, Miura privately despised his superiors,Шаблон:Sfn and acted despite their wishes.Шаблон:Sfn Miura later wrote of his role in the plot:
Japanese government involvement in the assassination
There is disagreement as to whether the mainstream Japanese government had any role in planning the assassination.[1]
The South Korean Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, which has been described as one of the most frequently-used encyclopedias for Korean studies,[4] has an article on this incident that claims that denial of the Japanese government's involvement mainly comes from historians of Japan.[1] It further argues that the Japanese government had the incentive to kill the queen, as she was significantly damaging Japan's position in Korea. It points out the odd choice of the inexperienced and militant Miura as the new emissary, and notes that Miura visited Japan for some reason on 21 September, several weeks before the assassination. Miura's visit reportedly led to rumors in Seoul that the queen would be assassinated. Also, the article argues that the broad involvement of the Japanese consular police and military in the plot makes the isolation of the plot implausible.[1]
According to Orbach, a historian of Japan and other places,[5] Inoue and his superiors in Japan were hesitant about assassinating the queen.Шаблон:Sfn Orbach provided the reasoning that Inoue had previously offered the queen Japan's protection if she ever felt that she was in danger.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn However, British explorer Isabella Bird, who was in Korea around this time, wrote of this assurance:Шаблон:Quote
Creating the plan
Around 19 September 1895,Шаблон:Sfn Miura met with Adachi. According to Adachi's testimony, Miura euphemistically asked Adachi if he knew of any young men available for a "fox hunt" (Шаблон:Lang-ja), and Adachi enthusiastically agreed.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn He wrote that "his heart leaped with joy" when Miura shared his plan.Шаблон:Sfn Adachi cautioned that the Kanjō Shinpō staff were gentle by nature, and that he wanted to recruit others for the plot. Miura rejected this, and asked that Adachi use all of his employees in the interest of secrecy. Adachi recruited all of the Kanjō Shinpō staff for the task, and a group of other sōshi.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
The men were reportedly greatly excited about the coming attack. Journalist Kobayakawa Hideo reportedly almost burst into tears when he was initially told to stay behind, and later claimed that he felt like he was among "heroes of a novel" during the assassination.Шаблон:Sfn Hirayama Iwahiko reportedly told Adachi’s wife that "you must be sorry you were born a woman", because she could not join the assassins.Шаблон:Sfn
According to the verdict of the preliminary court in Hiroshima, the plan was formally approved in a meeting at the Japanese Legation on 3 October in a meeting between Miura, Шаблон:Ill, and Шаблон:Ill.Шаблон:Sfn[1]
The Daewongun's role in the plot
There is disagreement as to what kind of role the Daewongun had in the plot.[1]
According to historians of Japan Orbach and Donald Keene, on 5 October, Okamoto met with the Daewongun and implied that an uprising was imminent.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Okamoto offered the Daewongun a series of conditions in exchange for power. How the Daewongun responded is not known; one man later testified during his trial that the Daewongun happily accepted the conditions. Okamoto testified that the Daewongun initially rejected them, but eventually relented.Шаблон:Sfn
The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture does not mention whether this meeting took place, and claims that, overall, the Daewongun did not participate in this plot willingly.[1]
Accelerating the timeline
They originally planned to execute the murder in mid-October, but officers of the Hullyeondae, especially the Korean commander of the Second Battalion Шаблон:Ill, warned the plotters that the queen was about to take action against them.Шаблон:Sfn On the 7th, the Korean war minister advised Miura that the court had ordered the disbandment of the Hullyeondae. As the war minister had no authority to disband it, he asked Miura to do it. In reply to this request, Miura reportedly angrily yelled, "You fool, never!" and forced him out of the room.Шаблон:Sfn
Miura felt that they needed to act quickly, as the Hullyeondae was critical to their plot.Шаблон:Sfn He felt that the queen was going to assassinate pro-Japanese Korean politicians in order to align Korea with Russia. They decided to kill her on the next day, 8 October.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
According to Orbach, Inoue Kaoru reportedly made a final attempt to stop the assassination. Inoue telegraphed Miura and asked him to visit the palace and negotiate a peaceful solution. Sugimura and Miura reportedly gave an evasive reply, writing, "[W]arnings will not be effective. The situation is very dangerous, and it is difficult to know when an incident will occur".Шаблон:Sfn
Assassination
Convincing the Daewongun
According to Orbach and Keene, in the early hours of 8 October, Okamoto, Deputy Consul Шаблон:Ill, Police Inspector Ogiwara Hidejiro (Шаблон:Lang-ja), and an armed group of men in civilian clothing went to the Daewongun's residence at Gongdeok-ri.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Efn They arrived around 2 a.m.,Шаблон:Sfn and the leaders went inside to speak with the Daewongun.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The negotiations took several hours, and the Japanese negotiators grew impatient. They potentially employed force in getting the Daewongun to agree or move quicker.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn They boarded him onto a litter, and began carrying him to the palace. On the way, the Daewongun stopped the men and asked to receive their word that the king and crown prince would not be harmed.Шаблон:Sfn They were joined by around sixty men on the way.Шаблон:Sfn Among those men were around thirty sōshi, Korean civilians, Hullyeondae, Japanese army officers, and consular policemen.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Efn
The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture writes that the Daewongun and his son were kidnapped (Шаблон:Korean) at this meeting and taken to the palace.[1]
Securing the palace
According to Orbach, Korean collaborators neutralized the palace guards (siwidae).Шаблон:Sfn Soldiers were quietly reassigned from their posts or convinced to allow the plot. No guards were stationed on the path to the queen.Шаблон:Sfn
Around 5 a.m.,[1] as the sun was beginning to break,Шаблон:Sfn some of the Japanese policemen climbed the walls of the palace using folding ladders and opened the gates from the inside.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The northwest gate (Шаблон:Korean) and northeast gate (Шаблон:Korean) were opened first, then the main south Gwanghwamun and north (Шаблон:Korean) gates followed.[1]
According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, around 300 to 400 guards were stationed at the palace.[1] Limited gun fights occurred, and the palace guard abandoned their posts for their own safety.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn A Korean Hullyeondae commander loyal to the queen, Hong Gye-hun, confronted the attackers. He was shot to death by a Japanese officer.Шаблон:Sfn According to sōshi Kobayakawa, the road became littered with abandoned caps, weapons, and uniforms.Шаблон:Sfn The American military advisor to Korea William McDye attempted to rally several dozen troops to fight, but they disobeyed.Шаблон:Sfn
Around 5 a.m., the collaborating Korean Vice Minister of Agriculture advised the queen to stay put for her own safety, and that the Japanese would not harm her.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Gojong awoke and became alarmed by the noise outside. He dispatched a confidant to alert the American and Russian envoys.Шаблон:Sfn The assassins surrounded the inner chamber of the palace and blocked all exits.Шаблон:Sfn[1]
Searching for the queen
According to historian of Korea Sheila Miyoshi Jager, Miura nor any of the agents knew what the queen looked like, as they had never seen her before.Шаблон:Sfn Jager wrote that Miura testified that a screen had always been erected between the queen and outside visitors.Шаблон:Sfn They had heard the queen had a bald spot above her temple.Шаблон:Sfn However, British diplomat Walter Hillier reportedly testified that the assassins had a photo of the queen.[1]
The assassins needed to search for and deduce who the queen was.Шаблон:Sfn According to sōshi Takahashi Genji, the two main sōshi factions there, the Freedom Party and Kumamoto Party, had a bet running on who could find the queen first.Шаблон:Sfn Orbach reasoned that this probably contributed to the eventual brutality of her killing.Шаблон:Sfn
The assassins began frantically searching for the queen, beating the people in the palace for information, and dragging everyone outside of the inner hall.Шаблон:Sfn Women were beaten and dragged by the hairШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn and thrown out of windows and off verandas, with some falling seven feet onto the ground.Шаблон:Sfn Russian advisor Afanasy Seredin-Sabatin feared for his life, and asked to be spared by the Japanese. He witnessed Korean women being dragged by the hair and into the mud.Шаблон:Sfn According to the official Korean investigation report:
Two court ladies were suspected of being the queen; they were both slashed to death.Шаблон:Sfn The Minister of the Royal Household Yi Kyŏng-chik (Шаблон:Korean) moved to block the ladies' quarters, where the queen was. His hands were sliced off, and he bled to death.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The crown princess was thrown down the stairs,Шаблон:Sfn and the crown prince was similarly threatened.Шаблон:Sfn
Killing of the queen
It is not known who killed the queen.Шаблон:Sfn Several people boasted of the achievement, with Keene evaluating some testimonies as unconvincing.Шаблон:Sfn It was possibly sōshi Takahashi Genji (alias Terasaki Yasukichi) or a Japanese army lieutenant.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
Takahashi later testified:
According to the testimony of the Korean crown prince,Шаблон:Sfn the killer threw her to the floor, jumped on her chest three times, and slashed her with his sword.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
It wasn't yet clear to them that they had killed the queen, so they brought a number of women over to examine the body. They mourned and collapsed in anguish at the sight of her, which the assassins took as confirmation.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn They then took the body of the queen into a nearby forest, poured gasoline over her, and set her on fire.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
Immediate aftermath
The agents looted the palaceШаблон:Sfn[1] and left through the palace's main gate Gwanghwamun. They left the palace gradually, and were witnessed by foreign envoys leaving even by 7 a.m.[1]
People came to investigate the commotion. Editors of the journal The Korean Repository wrote that they saw that Gyeongbokgung's front gate was being guarded by Japanese troops, and that a surging crowd of Koreans was inside, with palace women notably among them.Шаблон:Sfn An American envoy and Russian colleague wrote of "Japanese with disordered clothes, long swords and sword canes" hurrying around.Шаблон:Sfn
Around 6 a.m.,[1] Miura and the Daewongun then went to the palace.Шаблон:Sfn According to Miura, the Daewongun was "beaming with delight".Шаблон:Sfn The two went to a separate building to have an audience with Gojong, who was deeply shaken by the attack.Шаблон:Sfn The Daewongun gave Gojong a number of documents to sign. In one, he vowed to aid Gojong in expelling "low fellows", saving the country, and establishing peace.Шаблон:Sfn A proclamation read:
Gojong reportedly responded to the Daewongun with "you can cut my fingers off, but I will not sign your proclamation".Шаблон:Sfn The Daewongun was forced to issue the edict without the royal seal,Шаблон:Sfn and published it in the Official Gazette.Шаблон:Sfn He received only one endorsement from a minister of his new pro-Japanese cabinet.Шаблон:Sfn It was widely rejected by foreign diplomats in Seoul.Шаблон:Sfn Later, with assistance from Russia, Gojong ousted the pro-Japanese cabinet and declared them traitors.Шаблон:Sfn
Distrust in the palace
The Daewongun and new cabinet pushed for influence in the palace. Gojong asked foreigners to stay with him, in order to serve as witnesses to deter further Japanese attacks. The foreigners prevented both Korean and Japanese people from seeing the king or crown prince out of caution.Шаблон:Sfn
A loyalist group made an attempt to extract Gojong from the palace. However, one of the plotters who was to open the gate informed the Daewongun of the plot.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Efn
Gojong initially suspected the attack to not be of Miura's doing, but to be the initiative of Okamoto and his pro-Japanese advisors:Шаблон:Sfn Kim Hong-jip, Yu Kil-chun, Cho Ŭi-yŏn, and Chŏng Pyŏng-ha (Шаблон:Korean).Шаблон:Sfn
Confronting Miura
Numerous witnesses had seen the movement and identity of the attackers, which ultimately made a trail back to Miura.Шаблон:Sfn Korean royal emissaries rushed over to the Japanese legation to summon Miura. They found Miura and Sugimura already dressed and prepared to go, with a litter prepared for the walk.Шаблон:Sfn
Deflection and suppression of information
In the afternoon on the 8th, Miura was confronted with accusations from other envoys, especially those of Russia and America.Шаблон:Sfn Miura claimed that it was not known what had happened to the queen and that she had possibly escaped,[1] and placed the blame of the incident on the Daewongun and the Hullyeondae.[1] The Russian envoy, Karl Ivanovich Weber, insisted that Japanese swords had been seen at the crime scene, which Miura deflected by claiming they were probably the swords of Koreans pretending to be Japanese.Шаблон:Sfn On the morning of the 9th, Miura arranged for the new pro-Japanese war minister to claim that Korean rebels had dressed up in Japanese clothes. For this, three Korean scapegoats were executed.Шаблон:Sfn
News of the assassination spread slowly. Witnesses McDye and Sabatin shared what they had seen with the foreigner community in Seoul.Шаблон:Sfn American journalist John Albert Cockerill, who wrote for the New York Herald and happened in be in Seoul at the time, attempted to telegraph news of the killing. However, Miura pressured the telegraph office into not sending the message.Шаблон:Sfn On the 14th, the United States finally learned of what had happened. When it asked the Japanese legation to confirm, the legation responded that the attack was purely led by the Daewongun and Hullyeondae, and that it was known if the queen had been killed.Шаблон:Sfn
Miura was widely disbelieved.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn A few days afterwards, the Russian and American legations sent marines to protect the king.Шаблон:Sfn
Japanese investigation
At 8 a.m. on the 9th, Miura telegraphed Japanese Acting Foreign Minister Saionji Kinmochi with the assurance that the commotion was merely infighting between Korean troops. He told Saionji that it was unknown if the queen was still alive.Шаблон:Sfn Saionji asked Miura if any Japanese people had been involved. Miura replied that the queen "might have been" killed, but that Japanese involvement was still uncertain.Шаблон:Sfn That evening, he told Saionji that "some Japanese" may have been involved in the incident, but "did not do violence".Шаблон:Sfn Miura placed the blame of the incident on the queen, and implied hinted that she needed to have been prevented from disbanding the Hullyeondae and decreasing Japanese influence in Korea.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
The historian Danny Orbach wrote:
Fearing a confrontation between the foreign marines and the Japanese forces, Saionji ordered Miura to restrain the sōshi and to keep the Japanese soldiers in their barracks.Шаблон:Sfn The home minister also requested that Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi issue an edict banning additional sōshi from traveling to Korea.Шаблон:Sfn
Japanese Consul Uchida Sadatsuchi, supreme Japanese judicial authority in Seoul, was reportedly enraged by Miura's conduct. He wrote that Miura had treated everyone but the plotters, including others in the Japanese government, as outsiders.Шаблон:Sfn Uchida initially considered whitewashing the whole affair, especially as he was still unsure as to whether Japanese people had been involved, but ultimately began his own investigation.Шаблон:Sfn Diplomat Komura Jūtarō was dispatched from Tokyo to investigate the murder.Шаблон:Sfn The two concluded that Miura and the others had actually orchestrated the murder, and submitted a candid report to Tokyo on 15 November, with a recommendation that the plotters be punished.Шаблон:Sfn Uchida also expelled some of the sōshi from Korea, which caused him to receive violent threats from parts of the Japanese settler community.Шаблон:Sfn
Japanese trial and acquittal
On 17Шаблон:Sfn or 18 October,[1] the Japanese recalled Miura, Sugimura, Okamoto, and the sōshi to Japan for trial.Шаблон:Sfn After partaking in farewell banquets where they were hailed as national heroes by the Japanese settlers,Шаблон:Sfn they boarded a ship to Hiroshima, with some of them reportedly hopeful that they would again be welcomed as heroes.Шаблон:Sfn Upon their arrival, they were arrested on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.Шаблон:Sfn
Civilian trial
According to Orbach, the trial report is "surprisingly honest" up until the Japanese entry to the palace. It portrayed Miura as having a clear intention to kill the queen.Шаблон:Sfn However, the record abruptly ends there.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
On 20 January 1896,[1] the defendents were acquitted of all charges on the grounds of insufficient evidence. This included the charge of conspiracy to commit murder.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The verdict cited Article 165 of the Meiji Code of Criminal Procedure (Шаблон:Lang-ja), which gave judges the authority to acquit if they believed evidence was insufficient.Шаблон:Sfn Evidence gathered for the trial was also returned to all original owners.Шаблон:Sfn
According to Danny Orbach:
The general consensus among recent historians is that the Japanese government likely intervened in the trial.Шаблон:Sfn In 2005, a professor at Seoul National University discovered a document that reportedly confirmed that Emperor Meiji had received Uchida's report on the assassination around nine days before the trial.[6] However, Orbach notes that there is no direct written proof of the intervention of the emperor or the government, and that if the government intervened it was likely in great secrecy. Orbach also notes that the acquittal was possibly the sole decision of Judge Yoshioka Yoshihide (Шаблон:Lang-ja).Шаблон:Sfn
Military trial
Shortly before the civilians were acquitted, the military tribunal of the Hiroshima Fifth Division acquitted all the military personnel involved in the assassination. According to Orbach, the tribunal initially seemed to believe in their innocence, but gradually began to notice significant contradictions in the testimonies.Шаблон:Sfn The tribunal asked for the army ministry to send investigators to interrogate military personnel stationed in Korea. However, ultimately the investigators expressed sympathy for what would happen to the defendants and their families if the defendants were to be found guilty. The tribunal reasoned that they were just following orders, and that Japanese martial law was unclear as to whether subordinates had the right to disobey unjust orders.Шаблон:Sfn
After a final consultation with the Japanese government's Army Ministry, the tribunal decided to acquit the defendants. The tribunal ruled that the defendants did not know there was a plot to kill the queen, and that they were only guarding the gates and helping the Daewongun enter the palace.Шаблон:Sfn
Fates of the assassins
Most of the assassins returned to Korea and resumed their careers, where they became key voices of the Japanese community there. Adachi remained as president of the Kanjō Shinpō and stayed in Japan to enter parliamentary politics. He eventually became Minister of Communications.Шаблон:Sfn
Impact
Increased Russian influence in Korea
On 11 February 1896, Gojong and the crown prince fled to the Russian legation for safety. Gojong ordered the executions of four of his pro-Japanese cabinet, whom he dubbed the Four Eulmi Traitors. This ended the Gabo Reform.[7][8][9] Gojong disbanded the Hullyeondae for participating in the assassination and Capital Guards for failing to stop the Japanese.[10] Until Japan's victory in the Russo-Japanese War, Japan's position in Korea was significantly weakened by the assassination.Шаблон:Sfn
International response
Japan initially received some international backlash for the murder.[1]Шаблон:Sfn However, the backlash was shortlived, with foreign governments determining that forwarding their foreign policy interests in Asia was more important than escalating the issue with the Japanese.[1]
Anti-Japanese sentiment in Korea
Шаблон:See alsoThe Korean public was outraged when they learned of the assassination. The pro-Japanese Prime Minister Kim Hong-jip was confronted by a mob and lynched.Шаблон:Sfn Several months later, Kim Ku, who later served as the president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, assassinated a Japanese man as revenge for the queen's murder.[1][11] In 1909, An Jung-geun infamously assassinated Itō Hirobumi, and gave this incident as one of his reasons for doing so.[1][12] This incident, as well as the Шаблон:Ill, ultimately lead to the rise of various civilian anti-Japanese and anti-government militias called righteous armies.[1]
Analysis
Historian of Japan Peter Duus has called this assassination a "hideous event, crudely conceived and brutally executed".[13]
Advisor to Gojong Homer B. Hulbert wrote of the assassination in 1905. He believed that the mainstream Japanese government was not involved in plotting the assassination. He theorised that the government of Japan were possibly only to blame for having appointed a man of Count Miura's temperament as their representative in Joseon. The arrest of Miura and his Japanese conspirators was sufficient in itself to destabilise their Korean followers' positions.[14]
Seredin-Sabatin's account
In 2005, professor Kim Rekho (Шаблон:Korean) of the Russian Academy of Sciences came across a written account of the incident by a Russian architect Afanasy Seredin-Sabatin in the Шаблон:Ill. The document was released to the public on 11 May 2005.[2]
Almost five years before the document's release in South Korea, a translated copy was in circulation in the United States, having been released by the Center for Korean Research of Columbia University on 6 October 1995 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Eulmi Incident.[15]
In the account, Seredin-Sabatin recorded:Шаблон:Blockquote
Apology
In May 2005, 84-year-old Шаблон:Nihongo, the grandson of Kunitomo Shigeaki, paid his respects to Empress Myeongseong at her tomb in Namyangju, Gyeonggi, South Korea.[16][17] He apologized to Empress Myeongseong's tomb on behalf of his grandfather, however, the apology was not well received as the descendants of Empress Myeongseong pointed out that the apology had to be made on a governmental level.[16]
Since 2009, several South Korean non-governmental organizations have been trying to sue the Japanese government for their documented complicity in the murder of Queen Min. "Japan has not made an official apology or repentance 100 years after it obliterated the Korean people for 35 years through the 1910 Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty," the statement said. The lawsuit was to be filed if the Japanese government did not accept their demand to issue a special statement on 15 August offering the emperor's apology and mentioning whether it would release related documents on the murder case.[18]
Perpetrators
Groups
- Шаблон:Nihongo, a joint military unit (Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy) who provided security for the Japanese legation. It was commanded by legation minister Miura Gorō.[19]
- Japanese Legation Security Police Officers, commanded by legation minister Miura Gorō and led by MOFA Шаблон:Nihongo Шаблон:Nihongo at the scene. The Japanese Legation Security Police Officers wore plain clothes during the Eulmi Incident.
- Three battalions of the Hullyeondae, commanded by Major Woo Beom-seon (1st battalion), Major Yi Doo-hwang (2nd battalion), and Major Yi Jin-ho (3rd battalion). Hullyeondae commander Lieutenant Colonel Hong Kye-hun did not notice the betrayal by his officers and was killed in action by his own men.
- At least four Шаблон:Nihongo officers who served as military advisors and instructors of the Hullyeondae, including Шаблон:Nihongo. The IJA Keijō Garrison was commanded by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office, but Second Lieutenant Miyamoto's crew joined in the Eulmi Incident without permission from the IJA General Staff Office.
- More than four dozen ronin disguised as Japanese officials, including Adachi Kenzō. They took the role of a vanguard. According to a secret report by Ishizuka Eizo, most of them originally came from Kumamoto Prefecture and were armed with katanas and handguns.[20] (On 3 December 1965, Japanese politician Шаблон:Nihongo mentioned part of Ishizuka Eizo's secret report in the Шаблон:Nihongo, House of Councillors).[21]
Individuals
In Japan, 56 men were charged. All were acquitted by the Hiroshima court due to a lack of evidence.[22] The factual findings of the Hiroshima investigating court were early translated into English and printed. They are to be found in circulation in scholarly works by 1905.[23]
They included (among others):[24]
- Viscount Miura Gorō, Japanese legation minister.
- Шаблон:Ill, a legation official[25] and former Japanese Army officer
- Шаблон:Ill, businessman
- Kokubun Shōtarō, Japanese legation officials
- Chief Inspector Hagiwara Hidejiro, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Officer Шаблон:Nihongo, Japanese legation officials (Japanese Legation Security Police)[25]
- Шаблон:Ill,Шаблон:Sfn a second Secretary of the Japanese legation,Шаблон:Sfn Legation minister Miura's inner circle. In his autobiography "Meiji 17~18 Year, The Record of the torment in Korea (明治廿七八年在韓苦心録)", he unilaterally claims that the Eulmi Incident was his own scheme, not Miura's.
- Adachi Kenzo, former Samurai, editor of Japanese newspaper in Korea, Kanjō Shimpō (漢城新報, also called Шаблон:Transliteration in Korean)Шаблон:Sfn
- Lieutenant Colonel Kusunose Yukihiko, an artillery officer in the Imperial Japanese Army and Military Attaché at the Japanese legation in Korea, Legation minister Miura's inner circle.
- Шаблон:Ill,[26] one of the original Шаблон:Ill ("Society for Political Education") members[27]
- Shiba ShirōШаблон:Sfn (柴四朗), former samurai, private secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Commerce of Japan, and writer who studied political economy at the Wharton School and Harvard University.[16] He had a close connection with Japanese legation minister Miura Gorō because Shiba contributed Miura becoming a resident legation minister in Korea.
- Шаблон:Ill, a physician[16]
- Terasaki Yasukichi (寺崎泰吉), a medicine peddlerШаблон:Sfn
- Nakamura Tateo (中村楯雄)
- Шаблон:Ill; in 2021, a letter was found which was sent by him to his friend which writes about how the assassination happened and how easy it was.[28]
- Ieiri Kakitsu (家入嘉吉)
- Kikuchi Kenjō (菊池 謙讓)
- Шаблон:Ill
- Ogihara Hidejiro (荻原秀次郎)
- Kobayakawa Hideo (小早川秀雄), editor in chief of Kanjō Shinpō[29]
- Sasaki Masayuki
- Isujuka Eijoh[30]Шаблон:Full citation needed
In Korea, King Gojong declared that the following were the 'Eulmi Four Traitors (Шаблон:Korean)' on 11 February 1896:
New pieces of information appeared in 2021 in the form of private letters written by a Japanese consular officer to his best friend in Japan. Eight letters (apparently traded for the stamps on the envelopes) were sent by Kumaichi Horiguchi to Teisho Takeishi detailing Horiguchi's part in the slaying.[3]
See also
- Japanese occupation of Gyeongbokgung Palace
- Шаблон:Ill: After the death of Gojong, rumors emerged that he had been poisoned by Japanese agents.[31]
Notes
References
Sources
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Cite journal
- Шаблон:Cite book
- Шаблон:Citation
- Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ 1,00 1,01 1,02 1,03 1,04 1,05 1,06 1,07 1,08 1,09 1,10 1,11 1,12 1,13 1,14 1,15 1,16 1,17 1,18 1,19 1,20 1,21 1,22 1,23 1,24 1,25 1,26 1,27 1,28 1,29 1,30 Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ 2,0 2,1 2,2 2,3 Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ 3,0 3,1 Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite news
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ Шаблон:Citation
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite journal
- ↑ Peter Duus, The Abacus and the Sword: The Japanese Penetration of Korea, 1895–1910 (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1995), p. 111.
- ↑ The History of Korea Homer B. Hulbert Vol 2 The Methodist Publishing House, Seoul (1905) Chapter XXI at page 298 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/52749 Retrieved 9 September 2023
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ 16,0 16,1 16,2 16,3 Шаблон:Cite news
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite journal
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ The History of Korea Homer B. Hulbert Vol 2 The Methodist Publishing House, Seoul (1905), extract from the Decision of the Japanese Court of Preliminary Inquiry, sitting in Hiroshima in January 1896 at page 289 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/52749 Retrieved 9 September 2023
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ 25,0 25,1 Peter Duus, The Abacus and the Sword, p.76
- ↑ Peter Duus, The Abacus and the Sword, p.111
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite book
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
- ↑ Han Young-woo, Empress Myeongseon and Korean Empire, p 47~50
- ↑ Joseph Cummins. History's Great Untold Stories.
- ↑ Шаблон:Cite web
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