One of the Five Eulsa Traitors · Minister of Foreign Affairs (pro-Japanese collaborator)
| Life | 1858 ~ 1916 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 반남 박씨 |
Bak Je-sun (1858-1916) was a senior official of the Korean Empire. After passing a special civil service examination in 1883, he was dispatched to Qing China in 1886 to oversee trade affairs in Tianjin, and later held senior posts including deputy minister of Personnel and rector of Seonggyungwan.
Pro-Japanese activities: as foreign minister in 1905, he was one of the "Five Eulsa Traitors" who, under pressure from Japanese minister Hayashi, signed the Eulsa Treaty as plenipotentiary, an act that provoked several assassination attempts against him. He subsequently held the posts of chief state councilor and became Minister of the Interior in Yi Wan-yong's cabinet in 1909, and signed the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty in the same capacity in 1910.
After annexation he received the title of viscount, first class, and continued his pro-Japanese activities as an advisor to the Government-General's Central Council and head of the Confucian academy Gyeonghakwon, dying suddenly of illness in 1916 at age 57.