The Hague Secret Emissary Affair- Fighting Against Japan

“Don’t cry for me if I die. Complete your mission. Fight to regain Korea’s independent sovereignty. I am willing to die for it.”

 –Emissaries Yi Sang-Seol, and Yi Wi-Jong 

 

Japan’s Takeover of Korea
Japan’s takeover of Korea wasn’t a fast overnight affair, painted with blood in a violent revolution. Instead, it was quiet, slow, years of the Japanese squeezing Korea tightly, muffling its screams as the rest of the world watched in apathy. In 1876, Japan forced open Korean ports, taking over economic dominance in the area. In 1895, Japan challenged China by sending troops to put down a revolt in Korea, ending China and Korea’s tributary relationship while also establishing military dominance. In 1905, Japan defeated Russia during the Russo-Japanese War, taking away Korea’s final ally and establishing political dominance. With Korea’s economic, military, and political sovereignty lost, Japan began its final act, forcing Korea to sign the Japan-Korea Protectorate Treaty, eliminating Korea’s diplomatic sovereignty.

Koreans were unhappy with this development, but with the slow squeezing of Japan, they were quickly losing the power to combat the Japanese. The Korean emperor, Gojong, decided that Korea would have to ask for help from other foreign powers to free itself from Japan’s grip. First, he turned to the United States. Korea and the US had signed a treaty years ago that promised mutual protection, so Gojong sent his longtime friend and American Homer Hulbert to the United States to request aid. Alas, the United States had no intention to honor the treaty, and instead had signed the Taft-Katsura agreement, which said that the United States would not interfere with Japan in matters concerning Korea, even if that meant Korea would become a protectorate of Japan. Clearly, the United States wasn’t going to help Korea, so Korea would need to try another country. Instead of going individually to every country, Gojong thought that Korea could try to gain assistance at the Hague, which was hosting the 1907 Hague Peace Conference. Since he expected Japan to try and stop his diplomats, Gojong dispatched Hulbert as a decoy and sent three emissaries in secret.

 

A Brief History: The Hague Peace Conference of 1907
The Hague Peace Conventions of 1899 and 1907 were international treaties that were negotiated between international powers to determine the laws of war and definition of war crimes. While pretty much all of these provisions would be violated with the arrival of World War 1, these conferences alongside the Geneva Convention were some of the first multilateral treaties that addressed the conduct of warfare and were the predecessors to the League of Nations and the United Nations. Another goal of the Hague Peace Conferences was to settle international disputes between countries in the form of an international court. Since Korea currently had an international dispute with Japan, Gojong believed that if he could bring attention to Korea’s problems and declare Korea as an independent nation in front of the world powers, then at least one of the countries would offer aid.

 

The Secret Emissary Affair
So, Hulbert failed to gain the United States’ support, leaving Emperor Gojong with no other choice but to plead for assistance from other foreign powers at the 1907 Hague Peace Conference. Three men were sent in secret, Yi Jun, Yi Sang-Seol, and Yi Wi-Jong. Korea was initially considered for attendance, but Japanese diplomats blocked the invite, declaring that Japan was the legal representation of Korea. With this, Japan had seized control of Korea’s diplomatic sovereignty, stripping Korea of a voice to defend itself with. The emissaries wanted to get one last desperate call for help out before they were completely silenced, so they went to the conference anyway, hoping Russia would get them in to speak. But like the United states, Russia too had abandoned Korea to Japan. All attempts at entry were blocked, and Korea no longer had a way to plead for help in the face of Japanese atrocities.

The trio still didn’t give up. They hung the flag of Korea outside their hotel, and took an ‘off-stage’ diplomatic approach to their cause. They started giving speeches on the streets desperate for those who passed by to stop and listen. While they couldn’t get the attention of the Peace Conference participants, the trio did manage to garner the attention of the foreign press and build support through them.

Alas, they could only do so much. With the world against them, the emissaries mission was wrought with failure and setback, with the final one being the death of Yi Jun. He was found dead in his hotel room, with no known cause of death. Japan used The Secret Emissary Affair in order to complete the takeover of Korea by removing Emperor Gojong from power.

Though the Secret Emissary Affair ended in failure, Yi Jun, Yi Sang-Seol, and Yi Wi-Jong are still national heroes in both South and North Korea. Their actions to desperately try and save their homeland , their ceaseless, defiant spirit paved the way for the future Korean protests that would arise as Koreans try to save their country from Japan’s oppression.

Written by: Mackenzie Migdal
Originally from New Mexico in the United States. Current fifth-year undergraduate at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa as a B.A. Candidate for Korean for Professionals and a B.A. Candidate for Political Science. Exchange student at Korea University, Intern at VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea)