The General Camp of the Liberation Army () was a regional command under the Military Affairs Department of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea which was organized in Sangando, Andong Province in 1920. It was formed by integrating the Republican Independence Corps with the Liberation Corps as its core, and it had a different founding entity from the Liberation Army Command, which the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea intended to establish in Sangando. Prior to the organization of the Liberation Army Command, the General Camp of the Liberation Army had already been established, and thus, the Sangando regional command of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was under the responsibility of the General Camp of the Liberation Army.
Background Several independence corps in the West Jiandao region, which were organized immediately after the March 1st Movement, showed a move to unite into one to wage a more effective war of independence. It was for this purpose that Cho Byeong-jun and Kim Seong-seong, representatives of the North Pyeongbuk Reading Department, An Yeong-seok and Kim Seong-seong, representatives of the Korean Youth Association, and Kim Seung-hak, representative of the Korean Independence Group, held a meeting in Yeongpyeong, Yeongcheon-gun around December 1919. As a result of the meeting, these representatives resolved to disband each current independent corps and form a unification organization.
In February 1920, Kim Seung-hak, An Byeong-chan, and Lee Tak were dispatched to Shanghai and reported this fact. Accordingly, the Provisional Government decided to establish the Korean Liberation Army, a direct agency of the Provisional Government, in North and South Manchuria, and established as its subsidiary organizations a local government department to supervise civil affairs, a district administration department to supervise military activities, and several military posts, which were independent military camps.
Agreement To effectively conduct the independence war, the urgent task above all else was the integration of armed groups from various regions. Recognizing that the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea should be the subject of integration, Woo Dong-jin immediately initiated the integration movement, with the Korean Youth Association as the main driving force. First, through consultations with officials from the Hanjuhoe, the Great Korean Independence Association, and the Pyeongbuk Governor-General's Office, an agreement was reached on the following five items:
Establish a unified agency for coordinating the actions of each organization and carry out operations to destroy domestic administrative institutions of the enemy. These operations should be conducted under the designated name of the Shanghai Provisional Government, rather than under the individual names of each organization. Use the name "Republic of Korea" as the official title. Send representatives to the Provisional Government to report on the situation and request a unification law name. Locate the unification agency at a suitable point along the Yalu River, which borders the domestic and approached areas. The expenses for the unification agency's security should be borne on average by each organization, but special funds from domestic sources should be used to supplement the agency's military expenses.
Based on the above agreement, in the following year, in February 1920, a mechanism for establishing unified contacts with each organization was set up in Hwandien County. Close contact was maintained with the Pyeongbuk Independence Army Headquarters, and activities were carried out. Then, in May of the same year, Kim Seung-hak, Ahn Byeong-chan, and Lee Tak went to Shanghai as representatives to report on the consolidation of the South and North Manchurian independence movements and the establishment of the unification agency. As a result, the Provisional Government made decisions regarding the establishment of the Armed Restoration Army's Department of Participation and Command Headquarters, as well as the establishment of military camps.
In accordance with this decision of the Provisional Government, the Liberation Army was organized in Gwanjeon County in early 1920. As soon as the liberation army was established, it appointed commanders to lead each department. Jo Byeong-jun was appointed as the head of the branch, and Jo Maeng-seon was appointed as the head of the headquarters. He took charge of the position.
Foundation Around June 1920, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai received information that a large-scale tour group consisting of US senators, congressmen, and their families, totaling 123 people, planned to visit Korea via the Philippines and China. The group included three members of the US Senate, 39 members of the House of Representatives, and 74 family members, among others. Their itinerary was scheduled to depart from the United States in July 1920, pass through the Philippines and China, and arrive in Korea on August 24.
The Provisional Government saw this as an excellent opportunity to raise awareness of the reality of colonial Korea and appeal for Korean independence. With An Chang-ho at the center, they focused on formulating a response plan to the visit of the US delegation. As a result, key measures were planned, including submitting a "petition" during the delegation's visit to China, appealing for Korean independence, and organizing protest movements mobilizing the people upon the delegation's arrival in Korea.
Coincidentally, in Shanghai, Yi Takh, the leader of the Korean Restoration Army (Daehan Gwangbokdan), was staying. Upon hearing the news of the US delegation's visit, An Chang-ho met with Yi Takh and asked if they could mobilize the youth in Andong (modern-day Dandong, China) for propaganda activities.
"When the US delegation enters Korea, we want to organize a protest movement. Can we mobilize the youth in Manchuria?" "No problem. I will personally go to Manchuria and deliver the plan."
Yi Takh readily agreed to mobilize his Liberation Corps members for the cause of "national salvation". He immediately sent a letter to Oh Dong-jin, who was serving as the acting leader of Liberation Corps, to relay the orders of the provisional government. The order was to organize a military force responsible for "actual combat actions" with the aim of Korean independence.
In July 1920, in Sangando, Andong Province (安東縣), the Liberation Corps, led by Yi Duk (이탁) and Oh Dong-jin (오동진), was integrated with the Min'guk Independence Corps (민국독립단) to organize the General Camp of the Liberation Army.
In August 1920, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea established the Liberation Army Command as a regional command under the Military Affairs Department (군무부) in Sangando (西間島) Province 1. However, it was already preceded by the establishment of the General Camp of the Liberation Army about a month earlier in July in Sangando. Subsequently, the actual regional command of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea that operated in Sangando was the General Camp of the Liberation Army.
Organization
The Army was organized as a special unit to composed of all armed anti-Japanese groups in South and North Manchuria to carry out only military purposes shortly after the headquarters of the Liberation Army was organized. In other words, the activities of each military camp of the Liberation Army, which was dispersed in various places, were reduced due to Japanese surveillance and oppression, and communication between units became difficult. It operated as an independent organization under the direct jurisdiction of the Military Affairs Department of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. The organizational structure consisted of three departments: the Military Department, the Advisory Department, and the Finance Department, all under the command of the General Headquarters. Under the Advisory Department, there was a military camp (군영). In Articles 4 to 5, it was stipulated that members should be between 18 and 50 years old and have rights and obligations similar to military regulations.
Military Council The members of the General Camp of the Liberation Army were selected through their own military council.
First Council Commander: Jo Mong-seon, Deputy Commander: Yoo Chun-geun, Chief of Staff: Lee Do, Military Government and Bureau Chief: Kim Seung-hak, Military Law Bureau Chief: Ryu Yeong-ha, Military Discipline Bureau Chief: Park Il-ryeok, Provisioning Bureau Chief: Hong Jik, Information Bureau Chief: Yang Gi-ha, Training Bureau Chief: Yeo Sun-geun.
Second Council In the second regular meeting in August 1922 were Oh Dong-jin as the Commander (총영장), Baek Nam-jun as the Military Department Chief and Chief of Staff (군사부장 겸 참모부장), and Lee Gwan-rin as the Finance Department Chief (경리부장).
In a situation like this, Oh Dong-jin, the second warrant officer of the Liberation Army, led the troops under his command and was stationed in Gwanjeon-hyeon, and renamed his unit to the Liberation Army of Chongyeong. Oh Dong-jin was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Liberation Army, and Jo Byeong-jun, the head of the accounting department, was appointed as the head of the accounting department. Meanwhile, the Cheonmasan Army in Korea was called the Liberation Army, and the armed groups active in the coastal areas of Bokpo and Bogyejiang were called Seokpo, and they actively fought against the Japanese military and police.
Units Furthermore, the Cheonmasan Army (천마산대) within the country was designated as the Iron Horse Separate Camp (철마별영), with Choi Si-heung appointed as the Camp Commander (별영장). The armed groups along the Byeokdong (벽동) and Pajeo River (파저강) coasts were designated as the Byeokpa Separate Camp (벽파별영), with Kim Young-hwa appointed as the Camp Commander. As a military organization under the Provisional Government, the General Camp of the Liberation Army, which carried out anti-Japanese warfare, engaged in 78 skirmishes with the Japanese military and police in 1920, raided 56 Japanese military posts, burned down myeon offices and Yeongrimchang in 20 locations, and killed 95 Japanese police officers. They carried out domestic guerrilla operations targeting the administrative bodies of the Governor General of Korea and police stations in regions such as Anju, Shinuiju, and Seoncheon.
In addition to the independence army units mentioned above, the Korean Korean Righteous Military Administration Office based in Ando-hyeon (奶頭山), the Yeojeon and Yeongjeon areas of the Middle East Line in northern Manchuria, the Reiji area around Hunchun, and the Gwangju area of Western Jiandao. Numerous independence corps, including the Taeju Army and the Baeksan Army Corps, were organized in the Manchuria and Primorsky Krai from 1919 to 1920 and operated under the slogan of a war of independence against Japanese imperialism.
Military Camps