History Experience Program for Elementary Students at Deoksugung Palace

"Curious Investigation Squad" to Be Held Four Times at Jungmyeongjeon Hall
Exploring Korean Empire Diplomacy... Experience in Code Decryption

Last year's training session of the "Curious Inquiry Squad."

The Deoksugung Palace Management Office of the Royal Palaces and Tombs Center, together with the Seoul Jungbu District Office of Education, will operate the "Curious Investigation Squad" at Jungmyeongjeon Hall in Deoksugung Palace on four occasions from April 27 to July 6.

This is a hands-on program designed for elementary school class groups. The activities are centered around King Gojong's diplomatic efforts to defend national sovereignty and his pursuit of independence, featuring exhibition hall tours, mission-based activities, and science experiments.

Jungmyeongjeon Hall, the educational venue, was built in 1899 as the royal library. After a fire broke out in Deoksugung Palace in 1904, it served as King Gojong’s residence. It is also well known as the place where the Eulsa Treaty was signed the following year.

Participating students will become agents of the "Empire Information Bureau." They will draft secret diplomatic documents and encrypt and decrypt the royal seal in King Gojong's personal letters using "chemical cipher techniques." The Empire Information Bureau was a secret intelligence agency established by the Emperor of the Korean Empire in 1902, and the chemical cipher technique is a code system that reveals hidden characters using heat or chemical solutions.

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