General and politician; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and 16th Minister of National Defense
| Life | 1922 ~ 1974 |
| Era | 현대 |
| Clan | 장흥 임씨 |
Im Chung-sik (1922-1974) was a South Korean general and politician; English Wikipedia gives his seat as Jangheung. He was born on 23 April 1922 in Gyegok-myeon, Haenam, and died in Seoul on 9 December 1974 aged 52. Korean Wikipedia has only a disambiguation page for the name, so this entry relies on English Wikipedia and similar sources.
He graduated in the first class of the Military Academy in 1946, then the Army Infantry School (1949), the US Army Field Artillery School (1954) and the Army College (1956). At the start of the Korean War he commanded the 18th Regiment as a lieutenant colonel, and led the 7th Division in 1952 and the 2nd Division in 1954. He moved to Army headquarters in 1960, commanded the 5th Corps in 1962, worked in the Defense Ministry in 1963 and became Army Deputy Chief of Staff in 1965.
He was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from April 1967 to August 1968 and 16th Minister of National Defense under President Park Chung-hee from 5 August 1968 to 10 March 1970, then served in the 8th and 9th National Assemblies. He received the Taegeuk, Ulchi, Chungmu and Hwarang Orders of Military Merit and the US Silver Star and Legion of Merit. Evaluations of activities under the military regime vary, so only his public career is summarized. Another military figure of the clan is the Imjin War leader Im Gye-yeong.
After commissioning in the first Military Academy class he served as regiment, division and corps commander and Army Deputy Chief of Staff. Years follow English Wikipedia.
He was 16th Minister of National Defense from August 1968 to March 1970. See also the Jangheung Im page.