Yun Bong-gil
| Surname | Yun |
| Given Name | Bong-gil |
| Born | 21 Jun 1908 |
| Died | 19 Dec 1932 |
| Country | Korea |
| Category | Resistance |
| Gender | Male |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseYun Bong-gil (McCune-Reischauer romanization: Yun Ponggil) was born in Korea in Jun 1908. In 1930, he arrived in China to join the fledgling Korean nationalist movement based in Shanghai, China. He was a Korean nationalist who sided with Kim Gu, who thought assassination of Japanese leaders was a legitimate method to fight against the occupation. On 29 Apr 1932, with two bombs on his person, one inside a water bottle and one inside a lunch box, he attacked a gathering of Japanese leaders at Hongkou Park (now Lu Xun Park) in Shanghai. He successfully detonated the water bottle bomb, killing General Yoshinori Shirakawa and Government Chancellor Kawabata Sadaji. He also wounded General Kenkichi Ueda, Consul-General Kuramatsu Murai, and Special Envoy Shigemitsu Mamoru. He intended to detonate the lunch box bomb to kill himself, but he was arrested before he could do so. He was convicted by a military court in Shanghai and was transferred to Japan in Nov 1932. He was executed on 18 Dec 1932. He was buried in Nodayama cemetery in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. In May 1946, his remains were transferred to Seoul for burial at the Korean National Cemetery. He was posthumously awarded the Republic of Korea Cordon of the Order of Merit for National Foundation by the South Korean government in 1962.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia
Last Major Revision: Mar 2015
Yun Bong-gil Interactive Map
Photographs
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Yun Bong-gil Timeline
| 21 Jun 1908 | Yun Bong-gil was born in Yesan, Chungcheongnam Province, Korea. |
| 29 Apr 1932 | Yun Bong-gil detonated a bomb at Hongkou Park (now Lu Xun Park) in Shanghai, China, killing General Yoshinori Shirakawa and Government Chancellor Kawabata Sadaji. He failed to get away and was arrested. |
| 25 May 1932 | Yun Bong-gil was convicted of murder for the death of Yoshinori Shirakawa and Kawabata Sadaji in Shanghai, China. |
| 18 Nov 1932 | Yun Bong-gil was transferred to a prison in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. |
| 19 Dec 1932 | Yun Bong-gil was executed in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. |
| 1 Mar 1962 | The South Korean government praised the 29 Apr 1932 attack by Yun Bong-gil in Shanghai, China that killed two high ranking Japanese leaders and posthumously awarded Yun the Republic of Korea Cordon of the Order of Merit for National Foundation. |
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Visitor Submitted Comments
9 Apr 2015 11:00:51 AM
@Alan Chanter. He is a Korean national hero that dedicated his life for South Korean independence under Japanese rule. This bombing was the start of recognition of the Republic of Korea provisional government in Shanghai as an official nationalist organization. He is no terrorist suicide-bomber
28 Apr 2015 04:42:52 AM
The article contains an error - this guy did not die in 1962 - he was reburied then.
C. Peter Chen says:28 Apr 2015 06:51:05 PM
Thank you, the date has been corrected.
9 Feb 2019 12:50:49 PM
Hardly a terrorist attack, his victims were all Japanese military aggressors in China and Korea by use of force: Legitimate targets.
Well done, Soldier of Korean Independence!
19 Apr 2020 01:25:13 PM
@Alan Chanter I agree he is rather a resistant, not a terrorist. He intentionally and solely targeted the Japanese military commanders and officials. And he didn't conduct so-called "suicide-bombing". Judging a person from today's perspective (especially the stereotype of "terrorist"suicide bombing) is unfair.
All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB.
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26 Mar 2015 09:30:34 AM
If we wanted to hear about a terrorist suicide-bomber all we would need to do, today, is turn on the radio or television or pick up a newspaper. It is therefore difficult to understand why this cowardly killer is given a biography in WWIIdb when there are certainly a considerable number of people whose role in the conflict was of far greater importance but who have not yet been given a biography in the database.