Elwood 5566

(삼일 운동) Samil – (3-1) relates to March 1st 1919, which saw the emergence of the Korean Independence Movement. On this day, Korean independence fighters declared their independence from the colonial rule of Japan. The Japanese having been in occupation of Korea since 1910. The declaration, sparked widespread processions and demonstrations which Japanese authorities harshly supressed. In one village. Jeam-Ri,  all male sympathizers were herded into  a church and then burnt.  However, in the aftermath the Japanese authorities changed some of their policies especially those deemed particularly obnoxious by the independence fighters. Military police were replaced with a civilian police force and a limited press freedom was allowed. The march 1st Movement was significant in the establishment of the Republic of Korean Provisional Government, in Shanghai, in April 1919.

For those interested in taekwon-do, especially the patriotic and original taekwon-do as practiced by the ITF,  the history of which seems unknown here in Korea, Samil is the name given to one of the advanced patterns. The pattern contains  33 movements which represent the original 33 patriots who planned and penned the declaration.