This is the site of Son Byeonghui’s House. One can find a single stone post that details the history today, but the significance of this place cannot be understated.

After all, it is a memorial dedicated to Son Byeonghui, who was one of the central figures of the March First Independence Movement. As I said, the news I brought to Korea eventually reached Son Byeonghui. He made the final decision to start the independence movement, and Christian and Buddhist organizations decided to join. I imagine the weight of being the head of Cheondogyo weighed heavily in his mind. Although Park Inho was the Head of Cheondogyo at the time, everyone thought that Son Byeonghui was the center of Cheondogyo.

I cannot imagine the weight of that decision. Donghak, the predecessor of Cheondogyo, staged its second uprising in September 1894, with Son Byeonghui as one of its leaders. Fight back against the West and Japan! Despite its righteous fervor, the Donghak Peasant Revolution ended in massive sacrifices. After that, Donghak members sought to fight against pro-Japanese Koreans, and eventually changed its name to Cheondogyo to expand its presence in Korea. In the end, it became much bigger than the entirety of Chritianity in Korea, but the odds of facing the might of Japan were not favorable. As the activists prepared for the March First Independence Movement, Cheondogyo handled the funding for the movement and the printing of the Korean Declaration of Independence. Those deeply involved with Cheondogyo became the national leaders, while Son Byeonghui‘s name became the first to grace the Korean Declaration of Independence.

Of course, their decision not to go to Tapgol Park, the starting point of the movement, is thought to be an unfortunate one. But I personally think that it is unproductive to focus only on one’s failings in pursuit of great projects.
Nationalist activists were the ones who carried the torch for the March First Independence Movement, but another important factor drove the spread of the movement. In retrospect, one can think of three groups involved in the March First Independence Movement: The ones who prepared, the ones who acted, and the ones who spread the movement. Added to that, some of us still remember the March First Independence Movement even though more than a century has passed.

Ah, there’s actually something that many, including myself, are curious about: The method of protest involved in the independence movement. The chant was ‘Long Live Joseon Independence’ or ‘Long Live Korean Independence’. The words Joseon, Korea, and independence are easy to understand, in that they invoke the names of states that preceded the Japanese colonial rule. But in Korean, ‘manse’ or ‘long live’ is an expression normally used to celebrate something. It is not known who came up with this in the first place, but the March First Independence Movement was also known as the Manse Movement, and most protests took similar forms. If I had to hazard a guess, I would imagine that it was something like ‘Hurray if Joseon or Korea becomes independent!’

Let’s move on to our next stop. It is the Central Temple of Cheondogyo, at the center of March First Independence Movement Road in Gyeongun-dong. It is a rather unique building that one can easily identify even from afar, particularly its red brick construction.