The beginning of postal service in Korea
by Marc Van Diele
The history of Korea is both long and rich. The Manchurian invasion in 1627 put it under the sovereignty of the Manchurian Tsing Dynasty which held the throne of the Celestial Empire in Peking.
At the end of the 19th century, western powers and Japan became interested in the fate of Korea, which would bring about future treaties with Japan 1876, with the United States in 1883, with the United Kingdom in 1883 and with Russia in 1884.
If Russia's ambition in Korea were keen, those of Japan were even more intrusive. Korea was at the center of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894. Japan then conquered Korea, Formosa, a part of Manchuria, Port Arthur and Wei Hai Wei. Western powers then intervened and Japan lost control of Formosa. Russia obtained Port Arthur (on lease) and the English Wei Hai Wei which they kept until 1930. At the end of this era, the concept of Korean independence was put forward in regards to China in order to better be able to tear it apart. In February 1897, the King of Korea proclaimed an Empire. It was independence under political, economic and military pressure from Japan.
After the Japanese concessions of Fousan, Gensan and Chemoulpo, it would organize a postal service between themselves and Japan for the exclusive use of the two nations.
Shortly thereafter China conceded to a loan to Korea and a comparable service was started in 1882 between these three cities and China.
On December 1, 1884 a postal building was opened in Seoul which would incite a riot on that same day. At the end of 1895, without organizing a real postal service, the Japanese would transport mail within the country with the apposition of a special tax for internal post and add another tax for external post from the UPU.
The first postal issue dates from 1884. The post office mentions Tei Ko-Kou Denchi Ka Kou, and underneath "Imperial Japanese Post Office". In 1897, the Korean Emperor was directly represented at the World Postal Congress in Washington. In 1898, a French civil servant, Clemencet, was placed in charge of organizing Telegraphic and Telephonic Posts of the Land of the Morning Calm. On January 1, 1900, Korea became a member of the UPU.
There were "full functioning" offices, traditional PTT offices and mixed offices overseen by provincial civil servants who received 10% of the sale of postage stamps.
At the beginning of the century, Korea counted 37 full functioning offices of which two were in Seoul (the central office and the office of the western gate) and 326 mixed offices. The countryside was covered with 747 boxes and by 472 rural postmen who would make a daily round of roughly 15 kilometers. They would finish off their rounds for a payment of 15 and half sens per diem for lodging and shoes. Altogether these postal service agents reached a total of 1104 people. In 1901, 1,702,442 objects were sent of which 244,786 went abroad.
This rapid expansion is the image of economic development during this period of transition, where an old kingdom found itself projected directly into the imperialisms of the era, and above all the powerful will of Japan.
Moreover, after having won the Russo-Japanese war, the Land of the Rising Sun installed a General Resident in Korea on February 1, 1906. Korea was to become a simple protectorate.
The Emperor of Korea, after having asked in vain for American aide, sent a delegation to the Conference for Peace at The Hague in June 1907. The Japanese persuaded Emperor Kojong to step down in favor of his son Sun Jong. On July 24, 1907, they forced Korea to sign a protectorate treaty completed on November 17, 1905.
On July 1, 1905, the Korean post had already been taken over by the imperial Japanese post. Japanese stamps were then used, but Korean stamps were kept until August 31, 1909.
Let us not conclude without citing the story of Hendrick Hamel, a Dutch businessman who had given Korea the name of Land of the Morning Calm. Having found himself in Korea in 1653 and staying in Seoul for 12 years, he named the country Cho-sen (Morning Calm or Morning Serenity), the official name given to the country by the Emperors of China. He selected against the naming the country "Ko-rio" the name of the time and the Kingdom from 918 to 1392 (Koryo). The Yi Dynasty, which reigned until 1910, had taken power in 1392.
Bibliography
Gotha Almanac -- chapter on Korea - 1886, 1891, 1897, 1898, 1900-3, 1905,
1908, 1910.
A Handbook of Korea - 6th edition 1987, Korean Overseas
Information Service
Facts about Korea - 1983, Korean Overseas Information
Service
La Coree et la Guerre Russo-Japonaise 1904 - 174 pp-- Villetard de
laguerie
Europa Publications - Far East & Australasia -- chapters on
Korea - 1969, 1972-6
La vie Politique dans les deux Mondes -- Viallate &
Caude -- chapitres sur la Coree 1906/07, 1907/08/ 1910/11, 1911/12, 1912/13
(sous-chapitres du Japon poun les deux derniers)
L'Asie - Tome II - 1898
- Paris - M.L. Lanier - Choix de lectures de geographie (dans le chapitre sur
l'Empire Chinois).
May 29, 1993
Go back to the list of articles