Korea (before 1945)

Korea (before 1945)
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Name	Korea (before 1945)
Native name	조선, 韓國, 高麗
Period	Prehistoric–1945
Major states	Gojoseon; Goguryeo; Baekje; Silla; Balhae; Goryeo; Joseon dynasty
Major events	Wiman Joseon; Three Kingdoms of Korea; Unification of the Three Kingdoms; Goryeo–Khitan Wars; Mongol invasions of Korea; Imjin War; Treaty of Ganghwa (1876); Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905; Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty (1910)

Korea (before 1945) Korea before 1945 comprises the premodern polities, cultural developments, and international interactions on the Korean Peninsula and adjacent regions from prehistoric times through the end of Japanese colonial rule. The narrative encompasses formation myths like Dangun, state formation in Gojoseon, the rise and rivalry of Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla, the medieval consolidation under Goryeo, the long Joseon dynasty, and the upheavals leading to Korean independence movements and Korean Liberation Day's antecedents.

Prehistory and Three Kingdoms (Gojoseon, Goguryeo, Baekje, Silla)

Archaeological sequences link Mumun pottery period sites, Bronze Age dolmens, and Iron Age cultural complexes to legendary polities like Gojoseon and the historic expansion of Wiman Joseon, while contact with Yan (state) and Han dynasty influenced state formation. The Three Kingdoms of Korea—Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla—contested control of the peninsula and engaged with continental powers such as Northern Wei, Sui dynasty, and the Tang dynasty; famous conflicts include the Battle of Salsu and alliances like the Silla–Tang alliance. Elite material culture appears in tombs such as Geumgwanchong and King Muryeong's Tomb, while maritime exchange connected Baekje artisans to Yamato period Japan and Kofun period elites. Figures like King Gwanggaeto the Great and Queen Seondeok shaped expansion, diplomacy, and statecraft; Buddhist transmission involved monks such as Hyecho and schools that later influenced Seon (Korean Zen).

Later Silla, Balhae and Goryeo (Unified Silla to Goryeo era)

After the Unification of the Three Kingdoms, Unified Silla ruled much of the peninsula while Balhae emerged in former Goguryeo territories, interacting with Tang dynasty China and Heian Japan. The decline of Unified Silla and later upheavals led to the rise of Goryeo, founded by Wang Geon (Taejo of Goryeo), which adopted civil examinations inspired by Imperial examination systems and patronized Buddhist institutions like Buddha's Relics repositories and the Tripitaka Koreana. Goryeo confronted nomadic powers in the Goryeo–Khitan Wars against the Liao dynasty and endured the Mongol invasions of Korea resulting in the Goryeo–Yuan dynasty relationship, royal marriages with the Yuan dynasty, and military reforms such as the Byeolmuban. Cultural achievements included celadon wares, the paper printing of the Jikji precursor technologies, and the compilation of histories like the Goryeosa.

Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910)

The Joseon dynasty established Neo-Confucian orthodoxy under figures such as Yi Seong-gye (Taejo of Joseon), Yi Hwang, and Yi I (Yulgok), reshaping administration through institutions like the Seonggyungwan and legal codes including the Gyeongguk Daejeon. Technological and cultural milestones included Hangul promulgated by Sejong the Great, military developments featuring the Hwacha and naval commanders like Yi Sun-sin during the Imjin War (Japanese invasions of Korea), and cartographic works such as the Daedongyeojido. Factional politics involved Sarim and Hungu cell structures; royal crises included events like the Eulmi Incident antecedents and succession disputes recorded in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty. Joseon showed tributary and tributary-like relations with the Ming dynasty and later the Qing dynasty, while internal reforms and agrarian structures generated literati culture exemplified by the sijo and painters like Shin Saimdang.

Colonial Period and Japanese Annexation (1905–1945)

Late Joseon-era encounters with imperial powers included the Ganghwa Treaty (1876) (Treaty of Ganghwa) and unequal treaties with United States and Great Britain; reform efforts such as the Gabo Reform occurred amid pressures from Russia and Japan. The Russo-Japanese War shifted influence, leading to the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905 (Protectorate Treaty) and the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty (1910), after which the Korean Empire was abolished and the Governor-General of Korea administered colonial modernisation, resource extraction, and infrastructure projects like railways constructed by the Chosen Government Railway. Colonial rule provoked resistance including the March 1st Movement (1919), exile politics centered in Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai, armed independence units like the Korean Liberation Army, and cultural campaigns such as the Korean Language Society's defense of Hangul against assimilation policies and the Cultural Rule (Japan) era's shifts. Key colonial-era figures include Syngman Rhee (early activist), Kim Koo, Yun Bong-gil, and intellectuals like Ahn Changho.

Society, Culture, Economy and Religion before 1945

Korean society featured class structures from yangban elites to tenant farmers and craftsmen, with local governance by institutions such as the hyangyak and village customs documented in gazetteers like the Tongguk Yeoji Seungnam. Agricultural staples like rice underpinned market towns linked by trade routes to ports such as Busan and Incheon; artisanal production produced Goryeo celadon, Joseon white porcelain, and metal type printing that influenced Movable type. Religious life encompassed Korean Buddhism, Neo-Confucianism, popular Shamanism (Korean folk religion), and Christianity as seen in Catholic Church in Korea and Protestantism in Korea missions, shaping social reformers and martyrs recorded in the Catholic Persecution of 1866. Literary culture included Hangul literature, classical Chinese works, and poetry forms like sijo; visual arts featured painters such as Kim Hong-do and Jeong Seon, while music preserved genres like pansori and gagok.

Diplomacy, Warfare and Foreign Contacts (including tributary relations)

Korean polities maintained tributary or diplomatic exchanges with neighboring states: Silla and Balhae with Tang dynasty, Goryeo with Song dynasty and Yuan dynasty, and Joseon with Ming dynasty and Qing dynasty, mediated via envoys such as sadae missions and trade missions to ports like Tsushima Island's Sō clan intermediaries. Maritime conflicts included the Battle of Myeongnyang and Battle of Hansando during the Imjin War, while frontier warfare involved clashes such as the Goryeo–Khitan Wars and skirmishes with the Jurchen and later Manchu forces leading to the Second Manchu invasion of Korea (1636). Diplomatic crises in the 19th century involved incidents like the General Sherman incident, negotiations resulting in the Treaty of Ganghwa (1876), and pressures from European powers and the United States culminating in unequal treaties and colonization by Empire of Japan. Cross-cultural transmission included Buddhism to Japan and technological exchange such as printing techniques influencing the East Asian printing revolution.

Category:Korea history