KPC3460-3461: 100th Anniversary of the Death of Martyr Yu Gwansun

Yu Gwansun, the symbol of the March 1st Movement and a permanent figure of the national spirit of Korea, was arrested while shouting for the independence of the nation, tortured ruthlessly, and eventually passed away in 1920. In memory of the 100th anniversary of the death of Yu Gwansun, whose life ended in prison at the fine age of nineteen, Korea Post is issuing the commemorative stamp 100th Anniversary of the Death of Patriotic Martyr Yu Gwansun.

Born on December 16, 1902 in the small village of Jiryeong-ri, Idong-myeon, Mokcheon-gun, Chungcheongnam-do (presently Byeongcheon-myeon, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan-si, Chungcheongnam-do), Yu Gwansun was a girl with a spirited personality and sharp memory, as she could instantly memorize Bible verses upon hearing them. She was taught Confucian ways and filial piety from a young age, and the national spirit in her grew as she learned about new cultures based on Christianity. In 1910 when Yu Gwansun turned eight years old, Korea was disgracefully extorted of its national rights as the nation was colonized by the Japanese Empire. Alice Sharp, a missionary with strong conviction and ambition for female education, took notice of the bright Yu Gwansun. Yu Gwansun then enrolled at Ewha Hakdang (predecessor of Ewha Girls’ High School and Ewha Womans University) under a scholarship in 1915, where she was taught new ideas as her devotion to the nation grew stronger.

The death of Gojong (Emperor Gwangmu) on January 22, 1919 brought heavy grief on the people, and the thirty-three national representatives took this event as a golden opportunity for an independence movement. On March 1, before the funeral procession, the March 1st Movement was started with the announcement of the Korean Declaration of Independence by the thirty-three national representatives, and the unified voice of 20 million people resounded in and out of the country, wherever Korean compatriots were found. Yu Gwansun, who was then studying high school courses at Ewha Hakdang, formed the “five-person pact” with Kim Bok-sun, Guk Hyun-sook, Seo Myung-hak and Kim Hui-ja, and participated in the March 1st Independence Movement. Yu Gwansun then went to her hometown to avoid surveillance by the Japanese Empire, and she was arrested on April 1, 1919 on the charge of stirring up the independence movement at an Aunae marketplace in Byeongcheon and was sentenced to three years in prison. While imprisoned, she continued to encourage her colleagues even as she was severely flogged and tortured for shouting for the independence of her country. As a result of the torturing, Yu Gwansun died fighting for her country at Seodaemun Prison on September 28 of the following year.

Yu Gwansun, who shouted “Long live Korean independence” while unarmed and with a Korean flag in her hand before Japanese soldiers who were armed with guns and swords, continues to inspire us today after one hundred years of her death. On the commemorative stamp is the words of the young Yu Gwansun who cried out to the Japanese military policemen during the movement for independence. We hope that the commemorative stamp helps everyone remember Yu Gwansun who left behind her unyielding courage.