Seoul National Cemetery
The Seoul National Cemetery (Korean: 국립서울현충원) is located in Dongjak-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, South Korea. When established by presidential decree of Syngman Rhee in 1956, it was the country's only national cemetery. As the cemetery reached capacity in the early 1970s, Daejeon National Cemetery was established in 1976. Both cemeteries had been overseen by the Ministry of Defence (South Korea) until 2005 but in 2006 the Daejeon National Cemetery was transferred to the Ministry of Patriots' and Veterans' Affairs (South Korea).
| Seoul National Cemetery | |
|---|---|
| South Korea | |
| Used for those deceased 1950–present | |
| Established | 1956 |
| Location | |
| Seoul National Cemetery | |
| Hangul | |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Guklib Seoul Hyeonchungwon |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kungnip Sŏul Hyŏnch'ungwŏn |
The cemetery is reserved for Korean veterans, including those who died in the Korean independence movement, Korean War, and Vietnam War.[1]
In August 2005, controversy was stirred by the visit of a North Korean delegation to the cemetery. The delegation was led by Kim Ki-Nam, and numbered 182 officials. The visit not only sparked outrage among those opposed to warmer relations with the North, but also raised fears that a future delegation from the South might be expected to pay their respects to Kim Il-sung in Pyongyang.[2]
The late president Kim Dae-Jung was interred there on Aug 23, 2009.
The Seoul National Cemetery is near Dongjak Station on Seoul Subway Line 4 or Seoul Subway Line 9. Except for some special days, normally, the Seoul National Cemetery allows access to the public.
Notable persons buried
- Syngman Rhee – President of Korea – buried 1965
- Park Chung-hee – President of Korea – buried 1979
- Yuk Young-soo – wife of President Park – buried 1974
- Kim Dae-jung – President of Korea – buried 2009
- Kim Young-sam – President of Korea – buried 2015[3]
- Lee Beom-seok – Prime Minister – buried 1972
- Park Tae-joon – Founder of POSCO – buried 2011
- Chae Myung-shin – ROK Army General – buried 2013
- Jang In-hwan – Korean Independence activist and assassin of Durham Stevens – buried 1975
- Yi Cheol-seung – Member of National Assembly
Incidents and controversy
Bombing incident at the gate of Seoul National Cemetery
On June 22, 1970, three North Korean agents broke into the cemetery and planted a bomb. One agent was killed when the bomb was accidentally detonated.[4][5]
Visited by the North Korean delegation
On August 14, 2005, a group of North Korean delegations including Vice Chairman of North Korea's Peace and Reunification Committee of North Korea, visited the Seoul National Cemetery.
Kim Dae-jung
On his death on August 18, 2009, he was buried at the National Cemetery in Dongjak-dong, in Seoul, not in Daejeon, the initially planned burial site.[6]
See also
- History of South Korea
- Daejeon National Cemetery
- Kumsusan Palace of the Sun – in North Korea
- List of Korea-related topics
- List of national cemeteries by country
- Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery – in North Korea
- Patriotic Martyrs' Cemetery – in North Korea
- United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Busan
- Cemetery for North Korean and Chinese Soldiers in Paju
- War Memorial of Korea – in Seoul
- May 18th National Cemetery
References
- http://www.snmb.mil.kr/snc_2009/web/eng_snc/m12.jsp# Archived 2012-06-10 at the Wayback Machine
- "N.Korean National Cemetery Visit Sparks Concern". Chosun Ilbo. 14 August 2005. Retrieved 9 January 2006.
- Kim Tong-hyung (26 November 2015). "S. Koreans mourn ex-President Kim in state funeral". Associated Press. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
- "武裝(무장)공비 2~3명 國立(국립)묘지 爆破(폭파)기도". NAVER Newslibrary. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
- "A KOREAN RED AGENT DIES IN SEOUL BLAST". The New York Times. June 23, 1970.
- "서울현충원 국가원수 묘역 빈자리 없어". www.munhwa.com. Retrieved 30 September 2018.