Governor-General of Chōsen

{{Short description|Head of Korea under Japanese rule}} {{refimprove|date=December 2021}} {{Infobox official post | post = Governor-General | body = {{lang|ja-Latn|Chōsen}} | native_name = {{lang|ja|朝鮮総督}} | insignia = Goshichi no kiri.svg{{!}}class=skin-invert | insigniasize = | insigniacaption = 5–7 paulownia | insigniaalt = | flag = | flagsize = | flagalt = | flagborder = | flagcaption = | image = Makoto Saitō (cropped-2).jpg | imagesize = | alt = | imagecaption = '''Longest serving<br />Viscount Saitō Makoto'''<br />12 August 1919 – 14 April 1927<br />17 August 1929 – 17 June 1931 | department = | style = | type = | status = Abolished | abbreviation = | member_of = | reports_to = | residence = Official residence of the Governor-General of Chōsen | seat = Government-General Building, Keijō | nominator = | appointer = Emperor of Japan | appointer_qualified = | termlength = | termlength_qualified = | constituting_instrument = | precursor = Resident-General of Korea | formation = 1 October 1910 | first = Terauchi Masatake | last = Nobuyuki Abe | abolished = 12 September 1945 | superseded_by = Soviet Civil Administration<br />United States Army Military Government in Korea | unofficial_names = | deputy = | salary = | website = | footnotes = }}

The '''Governor-General of Chōsen''' ({{langx|ja|朝鮮総督|Chōsen Sōtoku}}; {{langx|ko|조선총독|Joseon Chongdok}}) was the chief administrator of the Government-General of Chōsen, a part of an administrative organ established by the Imperial government of Japan. The position existed from 1910 to 1945.

The governor-general of Chōsen was established shortly after the Korean Empire was formally annexed by the Empire of Japan in the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910 to replace the title of Resident-General. The governor-general of Chōsen was appointed from Tokyo and accountable to the emperor of Japan. The governor-general of Chōsen was responsible for the administrate ministry of the Chōsen regionin, including infrastructure, culture, justice, censorship, and the suppression of the Korean independence movement.<ref>Governor-General of Korea. 統計年報[''Statistics Annual Report'']</ref><ref>黄文雄 Kō Bun'yū 歪められた朝鮮総督府 [''Distorted facts about Governor-General of Korea''](in Japanese).光文社 Kobunsya</ref> [[File:Official residence of Governor General of Korea, Namsan.jpg|thumb|263x263px|European-style official residence of Governor General of Korea, at Namsan in 1911.]] The governor-general of Chōsen was seated in the General Government Building in Keijō after its completion in 1926.<ref>The building was demolished during the administration of South Korean president Kim Young-sam on August 15, 1995.</ref> Pending its completion, the governor-general resided at Namsan.<ref>잡지 일본지 조선(日本誌朝鮮) 1911 Magazine Japanese Chosun (Illustration)</ref>

== History == [[File:Japanese General Government Building.jpg|thumb|300px|Japanese General Government Building, Seoul]] After the annexation of Korea to Japan in 1910, the office of resident-general was replaced by that of governor-general. However, the position was unique in among Japan's external possessions, as the governor-general had sweeping plenipotentiary powers, and the position also entailed judicial oversight and some legislative powers. As of 1944, the governor-general did not command the Imperial Japanese Army or Imperial Japanese Navy units stationed in Chōsen.<ref name="Modern_Korea">{{Cite book|last=Grajdanzev|first=Andrew|title=Modern Korea|chapter=The Government of Korea|edition=2nd|publisher=Orchard Press |year=2007 |page=238|isbn=978-1-4067-3825-4}}</ref> Given the powers and levels of responsibility, only ranking full generals in the Imperial Japanese Army were selected for the post, with the sole exception of Viscount Saitō, a retired admiral.

The governor-general of Chōsen had a police organisation, which may have been partly involved in having Korean women working as comfort women.<ref>西岡力 Tsutomu Nishioka 政府は名誉回復の戦いを止めてはならぬ [The Japanese government must not stop demanding the restoration of honour] in Seiron March 2016 (in Japanese).産経新聞社 [Sankei Shimbun Sya]. p. 83</ref>{{better source needed |date= October 2021}}

After the Japanese defeat in World War II, the Korean Peninsula was administered by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea. The governor-general building was demolished during administration of South Korean president Kim Young-sam on August 15, 1995.

=== Prime Ministers of Japan === Four individuals who held the position of the governor-general of Chōsen also held the office of the prime minister of Japan. Three, Terauchi Masatake, Saitō Makoto, and Koiso Kuniaki, were governors-general before becoming prime ministers. One, Abe Nobuyuki, was prime minister before his appointment as governor-general. Ugaki Kazushige was named prime minister-designate, but he could not take office because he was unable to form a cabinet.

In addition, Resident-General Itō Hirobumi served four terms as prime minister prior to his appointment to Korea.

== Governors-general == {{Main|List of Japanese governors-general of Korea}}

After the annexation of Korea to Japan in 1910, the office of resident general was replaced by that of governor-general.

#General Count Terauchi Masatake 寺内正毅 (1910–1916) #''Gensui'' Count Hasegawa Yoshimichi 長谷川好道 (1916–1919) #Admiral Viscount Saitō Makoto 斎藤実 (1919–1927) #General Kazushige Ugaki 宇垣一成 (1927) #General Yamanashi Hanzō 山梨半造 (1927–1929) #Viscount Saitō Makoto 斎藤実 (second time 1929–1931) #General Kazushige Ugaki 宇垣一成 (second time 1931–1936) #General Minami Jirō 南次郎 (1936–1942) #General (ret'd) Koiso Kuniaki 小磯國昭 (1942–1944) #General (ret'd) Abe Nobuyuki 阿部信行 (1944–1945)

== References == *{{cite book | last = Kim | first = Djun | year = 2005 | title = The History of Korea | publisher = Greenwood Press | isbn = 0-313-33296-7 }} {{Reflist}}

== External links == * [http://rulers.org/ruljk.html#korea Rulers] {{Korea under Japanese rule}} {{Gaichi}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Governors-general of Chōsen Category:Anti-Japanese sentiment in Korea Category:Japanese imperialism and colonialism Category:Keijō