김좌진 金佐鎭
Independence activist who led the Battle of Cheongsanri to victory; commander-in-chief of the Northern Military Administration Office
| Life | 1889 ~ 1930 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 안동 김씨 |
Life & career
Kim Jwa-jin's pen name was Baegya (白冶), and he was from Hongseong, South Chungcheong Province. Early on he freed his household slaves and liquidated his family estate to found schools, devoting himself to the enlightenment movement, and in 1917 went into exile in Manchuria to devote himself to the armed independence movement.
He organized the Northern Military Administration Office (Bungno gunjeongseo) and served as its commander-in-chief, founding an officers' training institute to train independence-army soldiers. In 1920 he commanded the Battle of Cheongsanri, winning great victories over the Japanese army in several engagements in the Cheongsanri area. He then formed the Korean Independence Corps (1921) and founded the New People's Administration (Sinminbu, 1925), leading the self-government and armed struggle of overseas Koreans in Manchuria.
In 1930 he was assassinated in Manchuria and died a martyr. The government posthumously awarded him the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Republic of Korea Medal, in honor of his achievements.
Grave
In 1957 his remains were reinterred at Iho-ri, Seobu-myeon, Hongseong County, South Chungcheong Province.
Descendants
He had a son, Kim Du-han (1918–1972).