운양 김윤식의 국제 정세인식과 외교론

Abstract

In this thesis, awaiting a historical upheaval era of a great turn in the civilization, it is to look into how Unyang(雲養) Kim Yun Shik(金允植)(1835～1922), the confucionista bureaucrat and intellectual, searched and acted on the issues and solutions for the pending initiatives of such era. The Chosun dynasty of the opening port era when Kim Yun Shik started to enter the diplomatic stage was in a situation where the aggression of foreign imperialism especially the fight between Chung, Japan and Russia would imperil the existence of Chosun dynasty itself. He precisely knew the grim internal reality of Chosun that needed to react and survive such international reality that Chosun faced and realized that strenuous efforts through enhancing a sudden military force were needed. However, Kim Yun Shik realized that a sudden strenuous effort was impossible and was a long-term initiative that could be possible through a widespread innovation of the Chosun dynasty and it was not easy. Therefore, a sudden plan to control the foreign aggression were needed till the Chosun dynasty could reform the current status and have strenuous efforts of their own. The plan that Kim Yun Shik chose that could be implemented right away was to protect the autonomy through diplomatic strategies. The diplomatic strategy that Kim Yun Shik chose was to align with foreign powers in terms of commercial treaty and avoid the isolation from the international society and maintain and strengthen the client country system with Chin based on the traditional worship diplomacy while securing the autonomy from the domestic politics and diplomacy. Kim Yun Shik realized that within the international arena, Chosun was a small and weak country that has a risk of becoming a subject country of another country if it would claim to become a autonomous country. When you claim to become a autonomous country at a state where autonomy cannot be guaranteed through having strenuous efforts, you could lose your autonomy and become a country forgotten. The client country diplomacy strategy, that is the pro-Chung line toward China that was opted by Kim Yun Shil till 1895 was a safety device to protect themselves from foreign aggression till the weak Chosun has its strenuous efforts by themselves. The pro-Japan attitude of Kim Yun Shik after the Chung-Japan war and Gabojunguan and Russia-Japan war was also a part of a diplomatic strategy that was set as a new protection shield for the autonomy of Chosun upon Japan that became the new leader in East Asia replacing China. Witnessing the effort of Japan and its reaction to Russia during the process of su pressing the Euihwadan event in 1900, Kim Yun Shik was sure that Japan would be the new force replacing China that can protect the autonomy of Chosun from the aggressions of foreign forces. However, the Ulsa treaty that was signed right after the Russia Japan war smashed his expectations of him toward Japan. At a state where it became a protected country that ‘the whole nation became someone else' property and a king with no power’, his diplomatic policy which was to maintain the status of a autonomous country by having a strong country as its protecting shield and enhancing its own strenuous efforts became useless.