Chang Do-yong

Chang Do-yong (also romanized as Jang Do-young and variations thereof; Korean: 장도영; Hanja: 張都暎; 23 January 1923 – 3 August 2012[1][2]) was a South Korean general, politician and professor who, as the Army Chief of Staff, played a decisive role in the May 16 coup and was the first chairman of the interim Supreme Council for National Reconstruction for a short time until his imprisonment.[3][4]

In this Korean name, the family name is Chang.
Chang Do-yong
장도영(張都暎)
Chairman of the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction
In office
16 May 1961 – 3 July 1961
DeputyPark Chung-hee
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byPark Chung-hee
Minister of National Defense
In office
20 May 1961 – 6 June 1961
Preceded byHyun Suk-ho
Succeeded byShin Eung-gyu
Personal details
Born(1923-01-23)23 January 1923
Ryongchon, North Pyongan Province
Japanese Korea
(now North Korea)
Died3 August 2012(2012-08-03) (aged 89)
Orlando, Florida
United States
Military service
Allegiance Empire of Japan
 South Korea
Branch/service Imperial Japanese Army (1944–1945)
 Republic of Korea Army (1945–8 August 1961)
Years of service1944–8 August 1961
RankGeneral
Battles/warsSecond Sino-Japanese War
World War II
Korean War
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationJang Doyeong
McCune–ReischauerChang Toyŏng

Early life and education

Chang initially served in the Japanese imperial army during the Japanese occupation of Korea. He graduated from the history department of Toyo University, planning to become a teacher, but later served as an officer in China.[5][2]

Career

Involvement in the May 16 coup

Chang first learned of the coup from Park Chung-hee on 10 April 1961, who wanted him to lead the new government so that the entire military would support it. He responded by neither joining the plotters nor notifying the government.[6] This indecisiveness has been seen as giving legitimacy to the coup. In addition, Chang later convinced then-prime minister Chang Myon, that a security report containing leaked details of the coup (when it was scheduled to occur on May 12) was unreliable. This allowed the planners to postpone it to May 16.[7]

Rise and decline

After the coup, Chang was appointed as a figurehead leader while Park held the real power.[8] Soon afterwards, however, he formed a small faction of moderates, causing conflict with other more militarist officers, including Park.[9] At his peak, Chang occupied four positions: chairman of the Supreme Council, prime minister, defense minister, and army chief of staff.[10] Through May 1961, he attempted to gain recognition of the new government from the United States, meeting with John F. Kennedy on 24 May and promising a transfer to civilian control by 15 August (a priority for the US and president in name only Yun Posun, who Chang wanted to remain in office[11]) on 31 May. These moves quickly made him unpopular with the rest of the military leaders, who saw him as a threat to their power and the goals of the coup.[12] In June, after winning the acceptance of the US, Park and his followers turned the tide against Chang by implementing laws to restrict his influence. On July 3, Chang, the ten MPs posted around him for security, and forty-four other officers were arrested on charges of conspiring to execute a countercoup.[10][12] He surrendered without any resistance.[12]

Exile and later years

Before his trial, Chang had already made it clear that he would flee to the United States, a move his persecutors didn't object to.[12] After leaving in 1962, he completed his doctorate in political science at the University of Michigan. Chang claimed that he had visited South Korea in 1968 and met with Park as well as troops who participated in the Vietnam War.[13] He joined Western Michigan University as an associate professor in 1971 and retired in 1993.[2] By 2011, it was reported that he was suffering from dementia.[13]

Works
  • Yearning for Home (《망향》. 서울: 숲속의 꿈), autobiography, 2001, ISBN 9788995007280

References

Citations
  1. "Do Young Chang Obituary - Gotha, FL". Dignity Memorial. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  2. "Do Young Chang obituary | WMU News". wmich.edu. Western Michigan University. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  3. "5·16 당시 육참총장 장도영 전 국방장관 별세". www.hani.co.kr. 5 August 2012. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  4. "장도영 前 육군참모총장 회고록 출간". news.naver.com. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
  5. "5·16 당시 육참총장 장도영 전 국방장관 별세". www.hani.co.kr. 5 August 2012. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  6. Kim & Vogel 2011, p. 47-48
  7. Kim & Vogel 2011, p. 49-50
  8. "CURENT SITUATION IN SOUTH KOREA - CIA FOIA (foia.cia.gov)". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  9. "SOUTH KOREA - CIA FOIA (foia.cia.gov)". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  10. Kim & Vogel 2011, p. 89
  11. New Korean military leader Chang Do-yong public domain archival newsreel and stock footage – via www.youtube.com
  12. ""장도영 언행 혁명 방해" JP, 박 소장에게 보고 않고 기습 체포 … 박정희 "혁명에도 의리가" … JP "고뇌·아픔 없을 수 없었다"". JoongAng Ilbo. 6 April 2015. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  13. "장도영 美플로리다서 치매 투병… 군부가 정착지 정해줘". Seoul Shinmun. 17 May 2011. Retrieved 2019-11-30.

Bibliography
  • Kim, Byung-Kook; Vogel, Ezra F. (2011). The Park Chung Hee Era: The Transformation of South Korea. Harvard University Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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