| KO-DANG Movements - 39 Ready Posture - CLOSED READY STANCE C Pattern Meaning Pseudonym of the patriot Cho Man Shik, who dedicated his life to the Korean Independence Movement and to the education of his people. |
| KO-DANG |
| II |
Blue Cottage Taekwon-Do
Cho was born in Kangsŏ-gun, South P'yŏngan Province, now in North Korea. In his youth he was an
activist within Korea's Christian community,[1] but from 1910 with Japan's annexation of Korea he
became increasingly involved with his country's independence movement. His participation in the 1919
Sam-Il protest marches led to his arrest and detention, along with tens of thousands of other Koreans.
After his release, he dedicated himself to non-violent resistance to the occupation, a stance which
earned him the epithet "The Gandhi of Korea".[2] He advocated a principal of self-sufficiency for the
nation, and formed a number of commercial enterprises intended to encourage Koreans to buy home-
produced goods and so instil a sense of nationalism.
Activism post World War II
In August 1945, with Japanese surrender imminent, Cho was approached by the Japanese governor of
Pyongyang and asked to organise a committee to maintain stability in the power vacuum that would
inevitably follow.[1] He agreed to co-operate, and formed governing councils throughout the north;
they generally being composed of right-wing nationalists opposed to communism.[3] The Soviet Union
arrived in Pyongyang in the days following the Japanese surrender, bringing with them the Korean
communist Kim Il-sung, who had trained in the Soviet army for ten years, rising to the rank of captain.
Under Soviet pressure, Cho was obliged to reorganise his party, and accept more communists onto the
councils.[4] Unsurprisingly, the opposing ideologies of Kim and Cho led to a clash between the two
men, and the forced power-sharing failed to sit well with either of them.
The 1945 Moscow Conference between the victorious Allied powers discussed the statehood of Korea,
proposing a four-power trusteeship for a period of five years, after which Korea would become an
independent state. For Cho, this would result in excessive foreign, and particularly communist,
influence over his country, and he refused to co-operate.[5] In early 1946 he was forced to resign from
his position, and was placed under house arrest by the Soviets. For some time he was kept under
comfortable conditions at the Koryo Hotel, from which position he continued to vocally oppose the
communists. Later transferred to a prison in Pyongyang, he was executed on 15 October 1950, shortly
before the city was captured by UN forces during the Korean War. Cho's removal opened the way for
Kim Il-sung to consolidate his power in the north, a position he was able to hold for 48 years until his
death in 1994.
In 1970, Cho's deeds gained posthumous recognition when he was awarded the Order of Merit for
National Foundation and the Republic of Korea medal by the South Korean government.
activist within Korea's Christian community,[1] but from 1910 with Japan's annexation of Korea he
became increasingly involved with his country's independence movement. His participation in the 1919
Sam-Il protest marches led to his arrest and detention, along with tens of thousands of other Koreans.
After his release, he dedicated himself to non-violent resistance to the occupation, a stance which
earned him the epithet "The Gandhi of Korea".[2] He advocated a principal of self-sufficiency for the
nation, and formed a number of commercial enterprises intended to encourage Koreans to buy home-
produced goods and so instil a sense of nationalism.
Activism post World War II
In August 1945, with Japanese surrender imminent, Cho was approached by the Japanese governor of
Pyongyang and asked to organise a committee to maintain stability in the power vacuum that would
inevitably follow.[1] He agreed to co-operate, and formed governing councils throughout the north;
they generally being composed of right-wing nationalists opposed to communism.[3] The Soviet Union
arrived in Pyongyang in the days following the Japanese surrender, bringing with them the Korean
communist Kim Il-sung, who had trained in the Soviet army for ten years, rising to the rank of captain.
Under Soviet pressure, Cho was obliged to reorganise his party, and accept more communists onto the
councils.[4] Unsurprisingly, the opposing ideologies of Kim and Cho led to a clash between the two
men, and the forced power-sharing failed to sit well with either of them.
The 1945 Moscow Conference between the victorious Allied powers discussed the statehood of Korea,
proposing a four-power trusteeship for a period of five years, after which Korea would become an
independent state. For Cho, this would result in excessive foreign, and particularly communist,
influence over his country, and he refused to co-operate.[5] In early 1946 he was forced to resign from
his position, and was placed under house arrest by the Soviets. For some time he was kept under
comfortable conditions at the Koryo Hotel, from which position he continued to vocally oppose the
communists. Later transferred to a prison in Pyongyang, he was executed on 15 October 1950, shortly
before the city was captured by UN forces during the Korean War. Cho's removal opened the way for
Kim Il-sung to consolidate his power in the north, a position he was able to hold for 48 years until his
death in 1994.
In 1970, Cho's deeds gained posthumous recognition when he was awarded the Order of Merit for
National Foundation and the Republic of Korea medal by the South Korean government.
