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Wed, October 4, 2023 | 22:22

Sinmiyangyo: The bloody US-Korea battle born of cultural misunderstanding

Sinmiyangyo: The bloody US-Korea battle born of cultural misunderstanding

Unsurprisingly, you have probably never heard of Bowline Tom, Bassilio, Fore Brace, Jib Sheet or Main Tack; they were the names given to five young shipwrecked Korean fishermen who were rescued by the American warship Colorado as it sailed to Nagasaki in May 1871. These fishermen - the youngest was only 19 and the oldest was 22 - were among the earliest Korean witnesses of th...

2021-07-24 09:50

English invasion of Gangwha Island in 1890s

English invasion of Gangwha Island in 1890s

When Mark Napier Trollope visited Gangwha Island in the spring of 1894, he described the island's chief city as “a miniature of Seoul, with its embattled walls climbing up and down the hills which surround it, its pavilioned gateways with their iron-plated gates, the old city bell hanging in its kiosk in the centre of the city, and rung night and morning for the shutting and ...

2021-07-19 08:20

Walking in the footsteps of the past: Jeondeung Temple in 1893

Walking in the footsteps of the past: Jeondeung Temple in 1893

One fine morning in the spring of 1893, John Wyers, the constable of the British Legation, left Seoul and walked the 40 kilometers to Jemulpo (modern-day Incheon). He described it as “the most charming walk imaginable” - not many of his fellow expats had the same generous opinion of that walk - and arrived in the port by afternoon. It was here that he met his traveling compan...

2021-07-18 07:09

Rafting adventures on the Geum River in the 1970s

Rafting adventures on the Geum River in the 1970s

When John K. Jackson, an American Peace Corps Volunteer, arrived in Gongju in February 1971, the first thing he noticed was Geumgang (Silk River) and its “lovely sandy shores.” The river would become an important part of his life while he lived in that city and is still one of his most cherished memories.

2021-07-11 08:35

Travelling down the Han River in 1903: 'Glad to be alive'

Travelling down the Han River in 1903: 'Glad to be alive'

In May 1903, Charles Allen Clark, an American missionary, made his first trip outside of the comforts of Seoul. Clark was still relatively new to Korea and his language ability and familiarity with Korean culture were still somewhat lacking. He did, however, provide an interesting view of what it was like to travel down the Han River to the Yellow Sea at the beginning of the ...

2021-07-10 08:52

Naval chow in Korean waters in 1900s

Naval chow in Korean waters in 1900s

“An army marches on its stomach,” is an old saying that has been attributed to Napoleon - or, depending on your source, Frederick the Great - emphasizing how important food is to the military. Anyone who has served in the military is more than aware of the impact the quality of food has on morale and discipline. For the American sailors and marines serving in the Far East in ...

2021-07-04 11:19

Fans, detractors of legation guards

Fans, detractors of legation guards

At the beginning of 1904, Seoul was a city filled with soldiers. Lillias Underwood, an American missionary, described the capital as having “many long rows of barracks all over the city, for the Emperor had nearly ten thousand troops” and the streets nearby Deoksu Palace were constantly filled with Korean soldiers and their officers guarding the Korean monarch. War between Ru...

2021-07-03 09:56

Han River bridges, then and now

Han River bridges, then and now

Up until the early part of the 20th century, the only way to cross the unfrozen Han River was by one of the many small ferries that operated on both banks. They carried everything - people, goods, chickens, pigs and even oxen and horses. When Horace N. Allen, an American missionary doctor, arrived in Seoul in 1884, rather than dismount and lead his pony onto the ferry, he ele...

2021-06-27 08:06

Bridging the Han River in 1900

Bridging the Han River in 1900

At the start of the 20th century, the Hangang Railroad Bridge was the first great engineering project to be completed in Korea, and it may have also been one of the most important. Prior to the construction of this bridge, the only way for the average person to cross the river was to walk across the ice during the winter or, when the river was free of ice, to take a boat or s...

2021-06-26 09:15

Blind faith

In the latter part of the 1890s, the authorities in Seoul began a campaign to curtail or even eliminate the activities of mudangs (shamans) within the city and its vicinity. Shamanism was viewed by many Korean progressives (and, of course, Christians) as a relic from the past and a means for some to exploit the superstitious beliefs of the common people to fill their own pock...

2021-06-20 09:12

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