The Donghak Peasants Rebellion
In the late 1800s, corruption was everywhere in Joseon, but it especially influenced the Jeolla Province. Perhaps Jeolla’s affluent farmland made the region a desirable target for corrupt officials. The governor of Gobu, Cho Byung Gab, was one of those officials. He exploited the region’s citizens through high taxes and intimidated them with false criminal accusations. Once, he took 1,000 nyang (₩20 million) from his people to build a commemorative monument for his father. He also levied a tax on water from an unnecessary reservoir after using farmers as laborers to build it. Many people grew angry with the governor’s harsh mandates. Among them was the future leader of Donghak Farmer Rebellion, Jeon Bong Jun.
Jeon Bong Jun was the son of a fallen aristocratic family. As a young man, he was greatly influenced by the religious ideology of Donghak. Donghak, founded in 1860 by Chae Je-U, preached equality for all. When Jeon Bong Jun’s father was killed for criticizing the governor, Jeon Bong Jun planned the Gobu Farmer Rebellion. He gathered farmers who were angry with the governor and wrote their names on a document known as the Sabal Manifesto. The names of the participants were written in random order to make it harder for officials to pinpoint the group’s leader. In January 1895, Jeon Bong Jun and his followers finally attacked a government office. At first, the rebellion did not get much attention. The incident was viewed by outsiders as a small village quarrel, but it turned out to be the start of a far greater uprising.
Cho Byeong Gab eventually fled and was replaced by a new governor. The incoming governor, although not as greedy as his predecessor, punished farmers for stirring unrest. The officer also blamed followers of Donghak. The religion was viewed as responsible for the rebellion because many farmers and the leader of the rebellion, Jeon Bong Jun, were affiliated with it. In March 1894, the farmers collaborated with Donghak members to fight against the government. The movement spread all over the Jeolla region, including villages like Buan, Gochang, and Heungdeok. This is called the First Donghak Farmer Rebellion. The rebel army won every battle. Even the royal army could not stand against the rebellion and their anger towards the government. The farmers showed remarkable ingenuity as fighters. During a conflict at Hwangtohyeon, the rebels cleverly remodeled a chicken house into a weapon that shielded them from bullets. Finally on April 27, only a month after the struggle, Jeonju castle fell into the hands of the rebel army.
When the government finally realized how serious the situation was, it asked for help from Qing Dynasty of China. This turned out to be a terrible mistake. It not only brought 2,000 Qing soldiers, but also 8,000 Japanese soldiers who had been searching for reasons to intervene. Threatened by the sudden military involvement of Japan, the Joseon government called for negotiations with the rebels to end the struggle as quickly as possible.
The First Donghak Farmer Rebellion came to a successful end for the rebels. In negotiations with the government, the rebels succeeded in passing treaties that defended citizens’ rights. These reforms abolished slave ownership, gave widows permission for a second marriage and divided land equally amongst farmers. It is seen today as the first step toward Korean democracy. However, it also paved the way for Japanese interference in Korea.