British officers raise sail on Korean navy (Part 1)

Ganghwa Island, circa 1900

• Published Sep 7, 2019 11:53 AM KST
• Updated May 28, 2024 4:19 PM KST

On May 8, 1894, the Genkai Maru sailed into Jemulpo harbor with not only cargo and goods but also the start of the Joseon naval academy.

On board were Lt. William Henry Callwell and his wife (traveling in first class) and Petty Officer James Curtis and his wife (traveling in second class). Both men were former British naval officers who had been hired by the Korean government to establish a naval academy on Ganghwa Island.

As they disembarked, they noticed a large contingent of Korean soldiers (800-1,000 men) and their gear were being loaded aboard two government steamships ― the Changyong and Hanyang.

In a letter home, Curtis wrote that he was informed the Korean soldiers were being sent south, to Jeolla Province, to put down the Donghak Peasant Revolt caused by "the tyrannical conduct of the rulers and of their natural and debasing propensities in the practice of squeezing."

Callwell and Curtis then traveled to Seoul where they had an audience with King Gojong and his high officials. The English officers were "able to assure them that Her Majesty was in the enjoyment of excellent health and other interesting information of the same sort."

After the audience, the Englishmen proceeded to Ganghwa Island, leaving their wives in Jemulpo.

When they arrived at the "School of Maritime Defense," they were met by the 30 officers-to-be. They were relatively young (14-35 years old), but were diligent and determined to become a success. They were quite proficient in English ― having studied the previous year under the tutelage of another Englishman, William Du Flon Hutchinson.

When the British naval officers arrived, Hutchinson was not there ― he had accepted a position in Seoul with the Royal English School in February.

The 270 or so men who were to become "blue jackets" (junior enlisted) were "of ages varying from 12 years to 30 years, the height of each varying considerably, and their physical fitness being a question [the military authorities] prefer not to meddle with." Pay seems to have inspired them to join. Each man was given a large supply of rice, valued at about 3½ silver dollars, and 600 Korean cash (about one silver dollar).

Curtis described the sailors' uniforms (each sailor only had one) as being blue jackets and trousers with gold trim and a hat "composed of a very hard black substance, having a broad rim about 32 inches in circumference, the crown portion ascends to about six inches and cones towards the top."

According to Curtis, the large open space was to accommodate the married men's sangto (topknot). The unmarried men kept their hair in a long ponytail. On the front of the hats, "the name of the man and the corps he belongs to are written in Corean characters."

The sailors did not have boots but instead wore padded socks with "very low shoes, having a straw sole, the sides being composed of strings of twisted Corean paper."

They were armed with a mixture of matchlocks, muzzle-loading muskets and Peabody Martini rifles ― a few equipped with bayonets. Their naval vessel was an old five-oared whaler.

Despite their poor equipment, the sailors and cadets seemed motivated and Curtis began training them almost immediately. But Joseon's efforts to modernize its navy were swept away by the turmoil of the Sino-Japanese War.

Robert Neff is a historian and columnist for The Korea Times. He can be reached at robertneff103@gmail.com.