I'm working on a timeline that starts after the Second World War. I was looking into ways to keep Korea together rather than it being split along the 38th after the war, and I came up with something that I think sounds alright. However, I am far from an expert, and this could be totally off-base, so I would love to hear some opinions. So, here it is:
After the end of the Second World War in 1945, the United States and the Soviet Union began a joint occupation of the Korean peninsula, with responsibilities to be divided at the thirty-eighth parallel, with the Americans administering the South and the Soviets administering the North. After much deliberation, the Allies decided on December 7 to establish a trusteeship for the administration of Korea for a five-year period, during which time the Korean people would be able to develop a provisional government. Both the United States and the Soviet Union expressed a desire for a single democratic government of Korea, and thus, they agreed to a joint committee to run the trusteeship.
By that time, the Korean people had already begun to organize. Yo Un-Hyung, a center-left Korean leader to whom the Japanese Governor General had transferred power after the Japanese Occupation of Korea ended, had organized the Committee for the Preparation of Korean Independence (CPKI) on August 17. Less than a month later, on September 6, several Korean leaders from across the political spectrum formed the Korean People’s Republic. Right-winger Rhee Syngman served as President, Yo Un-Hyung served as Vice President, left-wing Nationalist Cho Man-Sik served as Minister of Finance, centrist Kim Ku served as Minister of the Interior, center-rightist Kim Kyu-Sik served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Communist Kim Il Sung served as Minister of the Army. This government, much like the people it represented, disapproved of the trusteeship over Korea; after decades of occupation, the Koreans were anxious to begin running their own affairs. The People’s Republic collapsed after the Allied occupation began, although its various leaders remained in contact, in varying degrees, with one another.
Although neither the Americans nor the Soviets recognized the People’s Republic, both saw that the potential benefits that could come of many of its leaders. The once-allied powers were then entering the Cold War, and both the Americans and the Soviets looked to Korean leaders as tools in their struggle. The Soviet Union first backed Cho Man-Sik, but after it became clear that he was not a staunch supporter of Communist ideals, they turned to Kim Il Sung. The Americans primarily backed Rhee Syngman, although the American military leaders, especially Lieutenant General John Hodge, who was in charge of American operations in post-war Korea, saw Rhee’s dictatorial and corrupt tendencies and therefore preferred Kim Kyu-Sik. Tensions between left-wing and right-wing groups began to flare, and the Americans and the Soviets did little to quash the conflicts.
Had these interests diverged for too long, it is quite likely that Korea would have remained divided far beyond the 1940s. As fate would have it, this would not be the case. On February 8, Rhee Syngman was shot dead by a young Communist; shortly thereafter, on February 19, Kim Il Sung was mortally wounded by a grenade thrown by a right-winger. In the days after these deaths, Yo Un-Hyung reassembled the leaders who had comprised the Korean People’s Republic and formed what became known as the Second Korean People’s Republic. He was chosen as its President. He urged the Korean people to remain calm and forgive one another, because, despite political differences, they were all Koreans. As he put it, “Blood runs thicker than water.” He and Kim Kyu-Sik, who became the Vice President, worked tirelessly to keep the Second Korean People’s Republic together and to present a united Korea to the Americans and the Soviets.
The Second People’s Republic realized that recognition by both the Americans and the Soviets was necessary. In March of 1946, Kim Kyu-Sik went to the Americans, and Yo Un-Hyung went to the Soviets. While both were more amenable to the ideas of the Koreans than they had been a year prior, both were unsure of how to proceed. Both faced significant pressure from Nationalists on their own side of the border. The Americans worried that in the event of an uprising, the Seoul-based Communist leader Pak Hon-Yong could consolidate power, while the Soviets had failed to find a suitable leader for a united Korean Communist Party. Eventually, the two both reluctantly agree to recognize the People’s Republic, not out of any real approval of the system, but out of pragmatism: the Americans were certain that the resulting government would be democratic, and thus favor them, while the Soviets were certain that Mao would move south into Korea after consolidating power. Regardless of the underlying reasons, the three parties entered into negotiations in May, and emerged with an agreement in August, whereby both the American and Soviet governments agreed to United Nations oversight of democratic elections to be held in March. After official recognition by the United Nations on September 8, the People’s Republic of Korea was born.
After the end of the Second World War in 1945, the United States and the Soviet Union began a joint occupation of the Korean peninsula, with responsibilities to be divided at the thirty-eighth parallel, with the Americans administering the South and the Soviets administering the North. After much deliberation, the Allies decided on December 7 to establish a trusteeship for the administration of Korea for a five-year period, during which time the Korean people would be able to develop a provisional government. Both the United States and the Soviet Union expressed a desire for a single democratic government of Korea, and thus, they agreed to a joint committee to run the trusteeship.
By that time, the Korean people had already begun to organize. Yo Un-Hyung, a center-left Korean leader to whom the Japanese Governor General had transferred power after the Japanese Occupation of Korea ended, had organized the Committee for the Preparation of Korean Independence (CPKI) on August 17. Less than a month later, on September 6, several Korean leaders from across the political spectrum formed the Korean People’s Republic. Right-winger Rhee Syngman served as President, Yo Un-Hyung served as Vice President, left-wing Nationalist Cho Man-Sik served as Minister of Finance, centrist Kim Ku served as Minister of the Interior, center-rightist Kim Kyu-Sik served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Communist Kim Il Sung served as Minister of the Army. This government, much like the people it represented, disapproved of the trusteeship over Korea; after decades of occupation, the Koreans were anxious to begin running their own affairs. The People’s Republic collapsed after the Allied occupation began, although its various leaders remained in contact, in varying degrees, with one another.
Although neither the Americans nor the Soviets recognized the People’s Republic, both saw that the potential benefits that could come of many of its leaders. The once-allied powers were then entering the Cold War, and both the Americans and the Soviets looked to Korean leaders as tools in their struggle. The Soviet Union first backed Cho Man-Sik, but after it became clear that he was not a staunch supporter of Communist ideals, they turned to Kim Il Sung. The Americans primarily backed Rhee Syngman, although the American military leaders, especially Lieutenant General John Hodge, who was in charge of American operations in post-war Korea, saw Rhee’s dictatorial and corrupt tendencies and therefore preferred Kim Kyu-Sik. Tensions between left-wing and right-wing groups began to flare, and the Americans and the Soviets did little to quash the conflicts.
Had these interests diverged for too long, it is quite likely that Korea would have remained divided far beyond the 1940s. As fate would have it, this would not be the case. On February 8, Rhee Syngman was shot dead by a young Communist; shortly thereafter, on February 19, Kim Il Sung was mortally wounded by a grenade thrown by a right-winger. In the days after these deaths, Yo Un-Hyung reassembled the leaders who had comprised the Korean People’s Republic and formed what became known as the Second Korean People’s Republic. He was chosen as its President. He urged the Korean people to remain calm and forgive one another, because, despite political differences, they were all Koreans. As he put it, “Blood runs thicker than water.” He and Kim Kyu-Sik, who became the Vice President, worked tirelessly to keep the Second Korean People’s Republic together and to present a united Korea to the Americans and the Soviets.
The Second People’s Republic realized that recognition by both the Americans and the Soviets was necessary. In March of 1946, Kim Kyu-Sik went to the Americans, and Yo Un-Hyung went to the Soviets. While both were more amenable to the ideas of the Koreans than they had been a year prior, both were unsure of how to proceed. Both faced significant pressure from Nationalists on their own side of the border. The Americans worried that in the event of an uprising, the Seoul-based Communist leader Pak Hon-Yong could consolidate power, while the Soviets had failed to find a suitable leader for a united Korean Communist Party. Eventually, the two both reluctantly agree to recognize the People’s Republic, not out of any real approval of the system, but out of pragmatism: the Americans were certain that the resulting government would be democratic, and thus favor them, while the Soviets were certain that Mao would move south into Korea after consolidating power. Regardless of the underlying reasons, the three parties entered into negotiations in May, and emerged with an agreement in August, whereby both the American and Soviet governments agreed to United Nations oversight of democratic elections to be held in March. After official recognition by the United Nations on September 8, the People’s Republic of Korea was born.