An ChunggÅ­n's A Treatise on Peace in the East Jieun Han ...

<strong>An</strong> Chunggŭn’s A <strong>Treatise</strong> on Peace in the East
Franklin Rausch, University of British Columbia
Jieun Han, Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies, Academy of East Asian Studies,
Sungkyunkwan University
On October 26 th , 1909 at a railway station in Harbin, Manchuria, <strong>An</strong> Chunggŭn (1879-1910)
shot and killed Itō Hirobumi (1841-1909), the first Resident-General of Korea. Itō had played an
important part in the colonization of Korea, forcing the singing of the 1905 and 1907 treaties, and the
abdication of the last independent Korean ruler, Kojong. <strong>An</strong>, a general in a Korean guerilla army
(ŭibyŏng, literally “righteous army”), saw Itō as an enemy of Korea and a threat to peace in the East.
Moreover, <strong>An</strong> believed that Itō had tricked the world into believing that Koreans supported the
Japanese protectorate. He thought that by killing Itō he would reveal the truth and that once the real
situation in Korea was known, either the Meiji Emperor would change Japanese policy or the
Western empires would intervene on Korea’s behalf.
After shooting Itō, <strong>An</strong> was arrested by Russian railway guards and then handed over to the
Japanese government, which put him on trial. <strong>An</strong> argued that since he had killed Itō as a soldier he
should be treated as a prisoner-of-war and tried in an international court. Despite his best efforts, he
was found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. Just before his execution, he stated that he had
killed Itō to safeguard peace in the East. After praying in silence for several minutes, he was hung.
<strong>An</strong> began to write his autobiography, The Story of <strong>An</strong> Ŭngch’il, on December 13 th , 1909, as
he awaited trial. He was still working on it when, on February 17 th , 1910, he met with Judge Hirashi
of the Kwantung high court and explained to him his ideas for how peace in the East could be
established. <strong>An</strong> wanted China, Japan, and Korea to work together to establish an East Asian Peace
Association; a joint bank issuing a single currency to be used in all three countries, which would
promote economic and industrial development; and military units composed of Chinese, Japanese,
and Korean young people who would study each other’s languages. He also proposed that the

Chinese, Korean, and Japanese emperors be crowned by the Pope and swear oaths promising that
they would cooperate with each other. The judge listened politely and according to <strong>An</strong>’s
autobiography, promised him that his execution would be delayed so that he could finish his
autobiography and write an essay detailing his proposals for establishing peace in the East. <strong>An</strong>
finished his autobiography on March 15 th , and began to write A <strong>Treatise</strong> on Peace in the East.
Unfortunately, the stay was not granted, and <strong>An</strong> was executed on March 26 th , 1910, before he could
finish his work. He was only able to complete the introduction and first chapter of what was meant
to be a four-chapter work.
<strong>An</strong>’s <strong>Treatise</strong> is an eclectic mix of the old and the new and so is an illustrative example of
how traditional Korean worldviews were shaped by modern Western ideas. <strong>An</strong>’s concern for racial
solidarity among Asians shows the contemporary influence of Asianism and Social-Darwinism. At
the same time, his Confucian education and Catholic religious beliefs also influenced the <strong>Treatise</strong>,
making it a work deeply concerned with morality. For <strong>An</strong>, the world was clearly defined between
good and evil, and people had the ability to choose which side they would stand on. Thus, the
<strong>Treatise</strong> can be characterized as a plea to the Japanese government to respect Chinese and Korean
sovereignty so that, in accordance with the principle of racial solidarity, they could unite and
defend Asia against Western imperialism.