The Korea Times

The Korean wave to Hawaii: part 1

Waiting for an opportunity on the Jemulpo waterfront circa 1890-1900s    Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffIn early 1903, notices pasted or tacked to walls began to appear in markets and other busy places throughout Korea. These notices offered opportunities and hope ― things many people desperately wanted and needed. For many, the Land of the Morning Calm was one of oppression caused by social classes and Mother Nature. To use the modern term, it was “Hell Joseon.”Over the previous decade, the peninsula had suffered waves of drought, famine, pestilence, disease, lawlessness, insurrection and war. Hundreds and thousands died. Those who survived were often left with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, and beggars and thieves were frequently encountered in the streets. The beggars were nuisances whose pitifulness caused passersby to reluctantly give them small coins while the highwaymen were outright dangerous and would steal not only all of the passersby's coins but sometimes their lives.People were desperate to escape this “Hell Joseon” a

Jul 2, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Waves of destruction hit Korea in 1890s

The busy harbor of Jemulpo in the early 20th century    Courtesy of Diane Nars CollectionBy Robert NeffOn the morning of Feb. 3, 1899, the residents of Seoul woke up to heavy snow. In her diary, one American woman wrote that it was “snowing like anything” and the snowflakes were perhaps the largest she had ever seen. For her, the snow was an inconvenience, but for others, it was deadly ― especially when it melted suddenly. Along the west coast of the peninsula, the morning started out cold and beautiful but soon black clouds, pushed by sudden and powerful winds, darkened the entire sky. The bitter cold was replaced with a pounding rain and havoc was wreaked at various ports along the coast.A correspondent for the Shanghai Mercury (an English-language newspaper published in Shanghai) described Gunsan as being “perhaps the greatest sufferer” from the sudden and destructive storm.“[One] of the Japanese coasting steamers (at Gunsan) broke from her moorings and was driven upon some rocks and then was carried high up ashore and many hundreds of yards

Jul 1, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Warships on the Han River: Part 2

The frigate Seoul (FF952) is on display at Battleship Park in western Seoul's Mangwon-dong, April 2019.   Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffFollowing the French-Korean conflict known as “Byeonginyangyo” in 1866, Heungseon Daewongun, the Joseon regent, became painfully aware of the need to strengthen and modernize the country's own navy in order to fend off foreign intrusions and maintain its self-imposed isolation. He needed his own “vessels moved by fire.”In 1867, an immense but innovative project began at the small naval base at Yanghwajin using technology allegedly obtained from the General Sherman ― an ill-fated American merchant vessel that had dared to sail up the Taedong River the previous year. Unlike the French warships, the General Sherman never left Korea ― or did it? It has been suggested that the General Sherman was towed from Pyongyang to Yanghwajin where Kim Gi-du, a weapon and ship designer, was able to use it as a guide for the construction of three modern steam-driven warships.However, it seems more probable that the General Sherm

Jun 25, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Warships on the Han River: Part 1

The frigate Seoul (FF952) seemingly guards the bicycle lanes and is the main feature of the Battleship Park in Mangwon-dong, August 2018.  Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffThroughout the 19th century, Western-style ships were occasionally sighted around the Korean Peninsula. Sometimes they passed peacefully, a mere curiosity to their bewildered witnesses, while at other times these strange vessels fell afoul of the weather or upon treacherous unmapped reefs and were cast upon the shore. It was these latter encounters that were extremely annoying as the Joseon authorities had to be deal with the shipwrecked crews as kindly as possible and repatriate them quickly through either China or Japan. It is unfortunate Joseon was cursed with an undeserved reputation for being less-than-hospitable to shipwrecked survivors when, judging from the accounts, the survivors received far more favorable treatment here than they did in China or Japan. There were the occasional violent interactions between foreign sailors and Korean villagers and fishermen, but these were thankfully few in number

Jun 24, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Behind every man is…

Awaiting judgement in the past    Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffThere is an old saying ― perhaps frowned upon in these enlightened times ― that behind every great man is a great woman. A person's success is often due to the assistance of their partner ― and this seems to be true, even in crime.In 1896, the authorities in Seoul and Jemulpo (modern Incheon) began a harsh crackdown on fortunetellers, diviners, palm readers, prophets, sorceresses and shamans. Seoul's jails were filled with these poor individuals who, despite claiming to see into the future, were unable to predict their own arrests.The police in Jemulpo, not to be outdone by their metropolitan brethren, also began a crackdown. According to The Independent, a newspaper published in Seoul:“A few days ago a mudang (shaman) was raising a disturbance in a house at the port and the police promptly stopped it, but the mayor, Im O-chun, at the instigation of his concubine, called the policemen and rated them for enforcing the rule.”Of course, the editor of the newspaper, Seo Jai-pil (Philip Jaisohn) to

Jun 19, 2023By Robert Neff

Opinion

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 6: Pyongyang

After leaving Songdo (Gaeseong), John Baptiste Bernadou, a 24-year-old ensign in the United States Navy and temporarily assigned to the legation in Seoul, traveled to Hwangju ― a town “surrounded by a heavy wall which extends to the summit of the hills in the rear.”

Jun 18, 2023By Robert Neff

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 6: Pyongyang

Opinion

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 part 5: Gaeseong's bridges and tombs

Seonjuk Bridge (right) and its smaller replacement bridge (left) can be seen in the center of the image. In the background is Pyochung where two stone steles are kept commemorating the assassination ― one erected by King Yeongjo in 1740 and the other by King Gojong in 1872.  Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffJohn Baptiste Bernadou, a 24-year-old ensign in the United States Navy and temporarily assigned to the legation in Seoul, visited Gaeseong for a very short time in early July 1884 while on his way to Pyongyang. Bernadou's descriptions of Gaeseong are anemic ― especially in regard to the ruins of the city.According to Bernadou:“The ruins of the former palace are still be seen; they are to the northward of the city, at the foot of a range of granite hills like those at [Seoul]. The foundations along remain. Circular grooves, cut in certain stones such as are now made, would seem to show that the structures were of wood like those of the present day. A few walls and wide flights of ruined steps remain; the base of a small pavilion, a pile or rectangular blocks of stone,

Jun 12, 2023By Robert Neff

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 part 5: Gaeseong's bridges and tombs

Opinion

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 4 - Gaeseong's passive defiance

The South Gate of Gaeseong circa early 20th century was built between 1391 and 1393. It was badly damaged during the Korean War and was rebuilt in 1954. Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffIn the late 19th century, the people of Gaeseong were somewhat unlike the residents of other parts of the peninsula. When John Baptiste Bernadou, a 24-year-old ensign in the United States Navy temporarily assigned to the legation in Seoul, visited the city in early July 1884, he noted that the people of Gaeseong dressed somewhat differently from the people in Seoul. In one of the few articles he published about Korea, he wrote: “The black hat so common in the former city [Gaeseong] is replaced by a bullock driver's hat of matting, and the green gown worn over the head as a veil by the women of the capital is not here seen.”It is a shame that he did not elaborate on some of the other differences, but fortunately, other subsequent visitors did. Some of these visitors noted the great hospitality they received from the residents ― treated to pears, dried persimmons, dates and other dainties

May 27, 2023By Robert Neff

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 4 - Gaeseong's passive defiance

Opinion

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 3: Gaeseong, the old capital

A traveler and his pack team near Seoul in the late 19th century. Bernadou traveled on foot, but many of the early Westerners went by palanquin, ponies or bicycles.   Robert Neff CollectionBy Robert NeffJohn Baptiste Bernadou, a 24-year-old ensign in the United States Navy temporarily assigned to the legation in Seoul, may have been one of the earliest Western pathfinders between Seoul and two former Korean capitals (Gaeseong and Pyongyang) but his narrative was often lacking. This is extremely frustrating as he was so meticulous with his annotations of material collected while on his travels.Perhaps after a hard day of trekking in the mud and his constant upset stomach, he just did not have the energy to devote to writing in detail about the seemingly mundane villages he passed ― especially so early in his journey.He briefly noted that in the immediate vicinity of Seoul, the soil was poor and provided only light crops, but after some 20 kilometers, “the character of the country changes, and from here on it is wonderfully fertile.”He explained, “Great stre

May 21, 2023By Robert Neff

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 3: Gaeseong, the old capital

Opinion

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 2: Goyang and Beyond

The city walls of Seoul, photographed by Pierre Louis Jouy in the mid-1880s   Annual Report of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institute (1891)By Robert NeffSeoul, in the summer of 1884, was filled with rivalries among the small handful of young Western men. Each of these men (naval officers, diplomats and anthropological collectors) sought to be the “first” to visit or witness various locations and events on the Korean Peninsula. John Baptiste Bernadou, a 24-year-old ensign in the United States Navy temporarily assigned to the legation in Seoul, was no exception.A guide post, photographed by Pierre Louis Jouy in the mid-1880s   Annual Report of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institute (1891)After several months of language training (“closeted five hours daily” with his Korean teacher) and waiting for the weather to clear up, Bernadou departed Seoul on the morning of July 3 for his great adventure that would take him to the forbidden city of Pyongyang and then on to Uiju, near the border with China. He wasn't going alone; he was provided wit

May 20, 2023By Robert Neff

Robert Neff

Read more

The Korean wave to Hawaii: part 1

Waves of destruction hit Korea in 1890s

Warships on the Han River: Part 2

Warships on the Han River: Part 1

Behind every man is…

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 6: Pyongyang

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 part 5: Gaeseong's bridges and tombs

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 4 - Gaeseong's passive defiance

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 3: Gaeseong, the old capital

Bernadou's travels in Korea in 1884 Part 2: Goyang and Beyond

Top 5 stories