Installation of the First Domestic Memorial Plaque Commemorating the 110th Anniversary of Independence Activist 'Lee Beom-jin' Martyrdom

Installation of Memorial Stone at the Former Site of Martyr Lee Beom-jin's House, Now Seoul Central Post Office
Unveiling Ceremony and 110th Anniversary Memorial Service at Seoul Central Post Office Plaza on the 26th

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 26th, Seoul City announced that it has installed a commemorative plaque at the site of the former home of Independence Activist Lee Beom-jin, now the Seoul Central Post Office, to honor the achievements of the father and son independence activists ‘Lee Beom-jin and Lee Wi-jong,’ who have no monuments left in Korea.

Activist Lee Beom-jin served as the first envoy to Russia and devoted himself to Korea’s independence, ultimately committing suicide in protest against the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty. His son, Lee Wi-jong, was dispatched as a special envoy to the Hague ‘International Peace Conference’ to announce the Korean Empire’s will for independence to the world and participated in armed independence movements in Russia.

Although the father and son independence activists Lee Beom-jin and Lee Wi-jong were recognized for their achievements?receiving the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Patriotic Medal, and the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Presidential Medal respectively?there were no monuments in Korea commemorating them because they died while conducting independence activities in Russia.

Lee Beom-jin’s grave, who left a will to Emperor Gojong and committed suicide in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was lost due to cemetery reorganization by Soviet authorities, and Lee Wi-jong disappeared during armed struggles in Siberia. Their remains have not yet been repatriated to Korea.

Lee Beom-jin, as a diplomat of the Korean Empire, supported armed independence movements by anti-Japanese militia groups and worked to restore national sovereignty through unofficial diplomatic activities. His son, Lee Wi-jong, was dispatched as a special envoy of the Korean Empire to the ‘International Peace Conference’ held in The Hague, appealing for independence abroad and actively participating in armed independence struggles in the Maritime Province.

Lee Beom-jin left Joseon in 1896 as an envoy to the United States. After the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1905, which deprived the Korean Empire of its diplomatic rights, he continued to stay in Saint Petersburg despite orders to close Korean diplomatic missions abroad and withdraw all diplomats, striving to protect the sovereignty of the Korean Empire. Until 1910, he focused on restoring national sovereignty through consular duties such as issuing passports and unofficial diplomatic activities. On January 26, 1911, he left a will to Emperor Gojong and committed suicide.

Lee Wi-jong was dispatched as a special envoy of the Korean Empire to the ‘2nd International Peace Conference’ held in The Hague in 1907, appealing for Korea’s independence abroad. In 1908, carrying 10,000 rubles delivered by his father Lee Beom-jin, he went to the Maritime Province to actively support armed independence movements by anti-Japanese militia groups. He disappeared during armed struggles against the Japanese army in Siberia.

Seoul City, to remember and honor these independence activists whose contributions are significant but not widely known domestically, installed a commemorative plaque at the site of Lee Beom-jin’s former home, now the Seoul Central Post Office, after review by the ‘Seoul City Cultural Heritage Committee’ and cooperation with the ‘Korea Post Service Headquarters.’

On the 110th anniversary of Lee Beom-jin’s death, at noon on the 26th, a plaque unveiling ceremony and memorial service will be held at the Seoul Central Post Office plaza with family members and related officials in attendance.

Kwon Soon-ki, Director of the Seoul City Historical Cultural Heritage Division, said, “Through the plaque installed for Lee Beom-jin, who is not widely known domestically but led anti-Japanese independence movements far from home and died for the cause, we hope this will serve as an opportunity to honor independence activists.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.