Documents Clearly Tracing the Footsteps of the Gwangbokgun Designated as Cultural Heritage

Korean Liberation Army General Headquarters Establishment Ceremony Signed Documents and Congratulatory Messages
Kim Jwa-jin State Funeral Biography and Seocheon Pangyo Modern Historical and Cultural Space Map

Four artifacts related to the Korean Liberation Army have simultaneously been designated as Registered Cultural Heritage of Korea. On the 13th, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced the registration of the 'Korean Liberation Army General Headquarters Establishment Ceremony Signed Document,' 'Korean Liberation Army General Headquarters Establishment Ceremony Congratulatory Message,' 'Korean Liberation Army Official Journal Gwangbok (光復),' and 'Korean Liberation Army Training Manual Jeonghun Daegang,' all held by the Independence Hall of Korea. Additionally, the 'General Kim Jwa-jin’s Funeral Biography' and the 'Seocheon Pangyo Modern Historical and Cultural Space' were registered as cultural heritage, and the 'Suncheon Dongnamsa Camera and Enlarger' was announced for preliminary registration as cultural heritage.

The signed document and congratulatory message from the General Headquarters Establishment Ceremony provide insight into the origins of the Liberation Army. The Korean Liberation Army was launched on September 17, 1940, at the Gealingbinguan in Chongqing, China, under the leadership of Baekbeom Kim Gu, the Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea and the founding chairman of the Liberation Army. The signed document is a guestbook left by Western diplomatic envoys and Chinese officials who attended the ceremony. The congratulatory message expressed the determination of Korea and China to unite and defeat Japan. The official journal 'Gwangbok' was published by the Korean Liberation Army General Headquarters’ Political Training Department to promote anti-Japanese independence ideology. It covered the activities and situations of the Provisional Government and the Liberation Army from various perspectives including military, diplomacy, international politics, and economy. The title calligraphy was based on the handwriting of Lee Cheong-cheon (Ji Cheong-cheon), the General Commander of the Korean Liberation Army. The training manual Jeonghun Daegang was also published by the Political Training Department of the Liberation Army in May 1945, around the time when the military commission in China was transitioning to the Provisional Government’s jurisdiction. It listed general principles, basic policies, and political training plans, emphasizing the 'arming of a steel-like spirit.'

The funeral biography of General Kim Jwa-jin was read at his funeral in 1930 when he passed away after his activities in Manchuria. It records in detail his birth, growth, major activities, ideology, and family relations year by year. The Seocheon Pangyo Modern Historical and Cultural Space covers 22,768 square meters in the Hyeonam-ri area of Pangyo-myeon and became active after the opening of Pangyo Station on the Janghang Line in 1930. It established itself as a regional hub for goods transportation, developing industries such as rice processing and alcohol brewing, and forming marketplaces. Although it prospered after liberation, it declined after the railway station was relocated in 2008. It is evaluated as a good representation of the historical flow of Korea’s modern and contemporary rural areas. The Cultural Heritage Administration stated, "Seven buildings including the 'Old Dongil Rice Mill,' 'Old Dongil Brewery,' 'Old Central Headquarters,' and 'Old Pangyo Theater' retain elements of modern daily life and are managed separately as cultural heritage."

The Suncheon Dongnamsa camera and enlarger, pending cultural heritage registration, were products manufactured and sold by Dongnamsa from 1952 to 1976. Dongnamsa produced cameras using domestic technology at a time when the government banned imports in 1948. The Cultural Heritage Administration explained, "These are important materials in the history of the development of modern and contemporary camera manufacturing." After collecting opinions from various sectors for a month and undergoing review by the Cultural Heritage Committee, the final decision on registration will be made.

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