http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/opinion/200408/kt2004080418425354130.htm
(214) The Seoul Capitol Building
By Andrei Lankov
For some 75 years, downtown Seoul was dominated by a large grayish
building in the ``neo-classical’’ style, so fashionable in Europe of the
1910s and 1920s. To Westerners, this structure was known as Seoul
Capitol (a name Koreans never used). Indeed, its shape was reminiscent
of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington D.C. The building was the
seat of the Japanese colonial administration in Korea and this pedigree
let to its demise in 1996 when it was demolished amongst great
nationalist pomp.
Technically, Korea lost its independence in 1910, but by that time the
Korean king had already been a powerless puppet for several years. All
important decisions had to be confirmed by the Japanese resident
general. Nonetheless, the transfer of complete control over the country
led to explosive growth in the Japanese bureaucracy. In 1910, the
resident general was assisted by 73 Japanese officials. In 1911, the
central colonial bureaucracy had 840 officials. Of course, these people
needed office space, and the old residency building was too small for them.
Thus, in 1911 it was decided to construct a new building for the
colonial headquarters. The place was chosen carefully. The new complex
had to stand near the entrance to Kyongbok Palace, the old residence of
the Korean kings. Actually, the governor general’s office was
deliberately positioned to hide the palace from downtown Seoul. This was
to remind the Koreans who were the real masters in their country.
In order to make room for the building, some parts of Kyongbok Palace
were demolished, and even the Kwanghwa-mun Gates, the pride of Korean
architecture, were threatened. These actions led to outrage.
Surprisingly, the voice of protest was raised neither by the Korean
intellectuals nor by international public opinion. The Koreans were too
frightened and international opinion did not matter much those times. It
was a prominent Japanese intellectual, Yanagi Mineyoshi, who pressed the
colonial government, demanding protection of Korea’s cultural heritage.
His one-man crusade greatly annoyed the colonial authorities that
initially believed the author of the critical articles was an ethnic
Korean (the Chinese characters for his name, unlike most Japanese names,
do appear in Korean). Yanagi Mineyoshi’s fight eventually saved
Kwanghwa-mun and some other examples of Korean architectural heritage.
But let’s return to the governor general’s office building (a.k.a. Seoul
Capitol). The building was reminiscent of many colonial offices erected
across the globe in what were then ``colonies’’ and which later became
the ``Third World.’’ For example, it is surprisingly similar to the
British colonial office in New Delhi. Nonetheless, the building had a
touch of Japanese nationalist symbolism. It had the shape of the Chinese
character ``日’’ which was part of the word ``Japan (日本).’’ Its dome
had the shape of the Japanese imperial crown and its decorations
reminded observers of Japan’s ``civilizing mission’’ in East Asia.
Curiously enough, despite all these nationalist references, a Western
architect designed the structure. The colonial authorities invited Georg
De Lalande, a German national, who from 1901 lived and worked in Japan
and China. He was well known in Japanese architectural circles and had
designed a number of Tokyo’s important landmarks. De Lalande was
assisted by Japanese architects, one of who, Nomura Ichiro, took over
the project after de Lalande’s death in 1914.
Construction work began on June 25, 1916, and it took a full decade to
complete the project. Those who, like the present author, only saw the
Seoul Capitol in the booming 1990s cannot appreciate how impressive it
must have looked in earlier decades. Seoul of the 1920s was a city of
one or two-story houses with straw roofs still seen in the downtown
area. Thus, that imposing building was the city’s major landmark until
the late 1960s, when economic growth and large-scale construction
changed the city beyond recognition. The interior was equally impressive
with marble floors, spacious halls, and granite walls contrasting with
the humble dwellings of most Koreans, and projected an image of opulence
and authority.
The Seoul Capitol witnessed not only the height of colonial rule, but
its demise as well. In this building, Abe, the last Japanese governor,
signed the official statement of surrender on Sept. 9, 1945. However,
after the collapse of colonial rule, the Seoul Capitol remained at the
center of Korean politics. But that is another story…