Kim Ku (Korean: 김구; Hanja: 金九; August 29, 1876 – June 26, 1949), also known by his art name Paekpŏm, was a Korean independence activist and statesman. He was a leader of the Korean independence movement against the Empire of Japan, head of the Korean Provisional Government from 1926 to 1927 and from 1940 to 1945, and a Korean reunification activist after 1945. Kim is revered in South Korea, where he is considered one of the greatest figures in Korean history; his legacy is also somewhat less enthusiastically celebrated in North Korea, due to his anti-communist views.
Born in Haeju, Hwanghae Province, Joseon, to a poor farming family, Kim was involved in the Donghak Peasant Revolution in 1894. In 1896, he murdered a Japanese man whom he believed was connected to the assassination of Empress Myeongseong (though he is now generally agreed to be a civilian merchant), for which he was imprisoned until escaping in 1898. Kim was briefly a Buddhist monk before becoming a Christian and teacher in 1903. In 1911, he was arrested in connection with the 105-Man Incident and was again imprisoned until 1914. In 1919, he participated in the March First Movement against the Japanese. While in exile in the Republic of China, he helped found the Korean Provisional Government, and served as its president from 1926 to 1927 and from 1940. Kim also founded and led several other organizations, including the Korean Independence Party, Korean Patriotic Organization, and Korean Liberation Army.
After the surrender of Japan in World War II, Kim returned to Korea in 1945 as head of the provisional government. Kim became a critic of Syngman Rhee, the U.S.'s preferred candidate for leader of South Korea, and made efforts to prevent a permanent division of Korea. Defying the wishes of Rhee and the U.S., he went to Pyongyang to hold unification talks with Kim Il Sung, but was unable to reach an agreement. He fiercely opposed the establishment of separate states in North and South Korea, which took place in 1948. In 1949, before the outbreak of the Korean War, Kim was assassinated by army officer Ahn Doo-hee.
Kim was born Kim Ch'angam, on August 29, 1876, in T'otkol village, Paegunbang, Haeju, Hwanghae Province, Joseon. He was the only child of two farmers: mother Kwak Nagwŏn and father Kim Sunyŏng.
Kim's family was impoverished, poorly educated, and looked down upon by the community. His father belonged to the formerly yangban (upper-class) Andong Kim clan. However, the clan had lost its noble status in 1651, when its member Kim Chajŏm fell from grace. Chajŏm's direct descendants became slaves, and the rest of the Andong clan became commoners.
At age two, Kim suffered from smallpox, leaving him with scars on his face.
His family placed great emphasis on his education in order to have him escape poverty. When he was around nine years old, his parents moved to place him in a local seodang (school) in preparation for the gwageo, the demanding civil service examinations that determined placement in government intellectual jobs. However, schools rejected him on the basis of his lower class, so he eventually began his education at age twelve with a tutor that was willing to teach him.
In 1888, the father of 12-year-old Kim suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed. Desperate to cure him, Kim's mother sold off all of the family's belongings, including silverware, and left Kim Ku at a relative's house while she took her husband around the province in search of a doctor. Kim paid for his accommodations by cutting and carrying wood during this time. Kim's father eventually somewhat recovered, and was able to walk on his own, albeit with difficulty. The family then struggled to pay for Kim's school supplies, so his mother worked to afford them by weaving and working as a hired farm hand.
In 1892, at the age of 16, Kim took the gwageo but failed. He reportedly witnessed and was frustrated by the elite candidates engaging in cheating and bribes. He quit studying at the seodang and spent three months studying philosophical and military texts on his own and reflecting on his life.
Activities before Japanese occupation (1893–1905)
Donghak Revolution (1893–1894)
In January 1893, Kim joined the Donghak movement after traveling to meet its leader, O Ŭngsŏn in Podong. The movement was created in 1860 in reaction to the instability of Joseon in the 19th century and the spread of foreign influence and religion in Korea. It sought to rejuvenate the country by revising Confucian practices, introducing democracy, establishing human rights, and eliminating foreign interference. Within a year, Kim became a well-known figure amongst hundreds of people in the movement. During this time, he changed his name to Kim Ch'angsu (김창수; 金昌洙), following the East Asian practice of changing names after significant life events.
In early 1894, the peasant revolution began. 17-year-old Kim was appointed a district leader of P'albong (팔봉) and given a Donghak army regiment of around 700. Around September or November, by order of Donghak leader Ch'oi Sihyŏng (최시형; 崔時亨), Kim's troops stormed the Haeju fort in Hwanghae province, but the unit was eventually defeated by government and Japanese forces.
A power struggle then occurred, in which Yi Tongyŏp (이동엽), a fellow rebel, wished to take control of Kim's unit. In December of that year, Yi's unit attacked Kim's and won. Kim managed to escape to the mountainous Monggeumpo. In the meantime, Yi captured and executed Kim's close subordinate Yi Chongsŏn (이종선). Eventually, Kim buried his comrade and decided to defect.
Defection and journey to Qing (1895–1896)
In 1895, Kim defected and joined Royal Army General An T'aehun (안태훈; 安泰勳; 1862–1905). He spent three months in hiding, while recovering from measles and a high fever. An took such a liking to Kim, that he took Kim into his own home and procured a separate house for Kim's parents. He scolded any officials that treated Kim poorly. During this time, Kim also became acquainted with An's eldest son An Jung-geun. The younger An would later infamously assassinate the Japanese resident-general of Korea, Itō Hirobumi, and become a national hero in both modern Koreas.
An also introduced Kim to Ko Nŭngsŏn (고능선; 高能善), a well-known scholar in the region who followed an isolationist Neo-Confucian ideology called Wijŏngch'ŏksa. They spoke every day for months. Robert S. Kim argues that this made a lasting impact on Kim's thinking, even after Kim's later conversion to Christianity. Ko convinced Kim that Joseon was in great danger from Japanese imperialism, and that he should go visit Qing China to convince them to help protect Joseon.
Thus, at age 20, Kim and a companion around eight to nine years his elder named Kim Hyŏngjin (김형진; 金亨鎭) decided to first make a pilgrimage to the legendary ancestral home of Koreans, Paektu Mountain, then through Manchuria, and finally to the Qing capital Beijing. However, near the foot of the mountain, they decided the journey would be too perilous, and instead decided to go directly to Tonghua in Manchuria.