Geoje is a
city||South Korea is divided into 8 provinces , 1 special autonomous province , 6 metropolitan cities , and 1 special city...
located in South Gyeongsang province, just off the coast of the port city of
BusanBusan Metropolitan City, also known as Pusan is the largest port city in South Korea and the fifth largest port in the world. Busan has a population of about 3.6 million. It is South Korea's second largest metropolis, after Seoul. The city is located on the Southeasternmost tip of the Korean...
,
South KoreaSouth Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often simply referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul, the second largest...
. The former
DaewooDaewoo was a major South Korean chaebol . It was founded on 22 March 1967 as Daewoo Industrial and was dismantled by the Korean government in 1999. Prior to the Asian Financial Crisis of 1998, Daweoo was the second largest conglomerate in Korea after Hyundai, followed by LG and Samsung...
Shipyard (now DSME) in
OkpoOkpo-dong is dong of the city of Geoje in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The village is located on the eastern coast of Geoje Island and a center of the island....
and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) in Gohyeon are both located on Geoje Island. The city also offers a wide range of tourist sights. The city is made up of a number of islands, of which by far the largest is
Geoje IslandGeojedo or Geoje Island is the principal island of Geoje City, on the southern coast of Gyeongsangnam-do province, South Korea. It is joined to land by two bridges from nearby Tongyeong. Sinhyeon is the largest town on the island...
.
History
In 757,
Gyeongdeok of SillaKing Gyeongdeok of Silla was the 35th ruler who reigned from 742 to 765 over the kingdom of Silla. He is perhaps best known today for his efforts to encourage Buddhism....
classified the island as "Geoje-gun" (Geoje county). Modern Geoje is classified as a "si" (city). In 1170,
Uijong of GoryeoEmperorUijong of Goryeo was the 18th monarch of the Goryeo dynasty of Korea. He honored his advisors with many ceremonies but hated the warriors, often forcing them to participate in martial arts competitions for the entertainment of himself and the civil officials, as well as assigning them petty...
secretly escaped to Geoje when Jung Jungbu raised a rebellion against him, instating his brother,
MyeongjongKing Myeongjong was monarch of the Goryeo dynasty of Korea. He was the third son of Emperor Injong.Although it was intended that Injong's second son should succeed his father, he was assassinated because Jeong Jung-bu feared that he might become a threat to him in the future...
as king. Geoje served as a strategic location in preparation of the naval forces for the
Oei InvasionThe , also known as the Gihae Eastern Expedition , was the 1419 military expedition from Joseon against pirate bases on Tsushima Island, which is located in the middle of the Korea Strait between the Korean Peninsula and Kyushu....
of
Tsushima IslandTsushima is an island of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34°25'N and 129°20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture. The city of Tsushima encompasses the entire island.- Geography :...
in 1419 by the Korean general
Yi Jong MuYi Jong Mu was a Korean general who led the Oei Invasion to conquer Tsushima Island in 1419.He was noted for leading a fleet of 227 ships and 17,285 soldiers which landed at the Tsushima Island in Aso Bay on June 19, 1419, after initial successes, reaches the village of Funakoshi...
. At the time of the
Seven-Year WarTwo Japanese invasions of Korea and subsequent battles on the Korean peninsula took place from 1592 to 1598. Toyotomi Hideyoshi led the newly unified Japan into the first invasion with the professed goal of conquering Korea, the Jurchens, Ming Dynasty China and India. The second invasion was...
in 1592, admiral
Yi Sun-sinYi Sun-sin was a Korean naval commander noted for his victories against the Japanese navy during the Japanese invasions of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty...
gained a great naval victory against Japanese invaders near the town of Okpo in Geoje. Since then. Yi was referred to by his noble title, "Chung Mu Gong," which roughly translates into English as "Earner of Great National Respect."
Between the years of 1950 and 1953, the military government of General Douglas MacArthur used the island as a place for the settlement for 170,000 POWs, and a prison war camp measuring at 11,800,000 m² was established during these years. After the war, a portion (23,000 m
2) was converted into a tourist attraction.
The Geneva Convention of 1949 failed to foresee to the development of hardcore, organized prisoner groups on Geoje-do in 1951-52 or to provide protection for the captor nation in dealing with stubborn resistance, mainly as a result of the harsh treatment that the prisoners received from the military government.
Geography
Geoje city covers an area of 401.63 km², encompassing Geoje-do (383.44 km²) and 60 other small islets, of which 10 are inhabited. The main island is joined to land by two bridges from nearby
TongyeongTongyeong is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. In 2007, it had an area of 238.69 km2 and a population of 136,047 people. It is divided into 1 eup , 6 myeon and 11 dong . Chungmu city and Tongyeong county were reunited in 1995, creating Tongyeong City as we know it today...
.
Climate
Geoje experiences a temperate climate, and temperatures reaching below zero degrees Celsius in winter are frequent during December to February. However, the island is kept relatively warm by the influence of warm ocean currents.
Demographics
Geoje had a population of 219,500 according to the whitebook published by Goeje City in July 2008. Most of the population depends on shipbuilding to support their livehood, and this can be evidenced in the fact that nearly 33% of its number of workers is employed for the industry.
Tourism
Geoje offers a variety of attractions, including
OedoOedo is an island of Geoje city, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea. It is a marine western-style botanical garden in Hallyeo Haesang National Park, built by Lee Chang-ho and his wife when they settled on the island in 1969.- History :...
(located 4km from Geoje), a marine western-style botanical garden in Hallyeo-Haesang National Park, built by Lee Chang-ho and his wife when they settled on the island in 1969.
Tourists also visit Jisim-do for trekking. Jisim is known for its Camellia vegetation. However, the Maemi typhoon in 2003 severely affected the island's plant life. Another popular tourist attraction, Haegeumgang-do (located southeast of Geoje) hosts the Sipja Donggul Cave. Buddhist and Shamanist sculptures can be found in the cave.
Islands of Geoje city
- Geoje
Geojedo or Geoje Island is the principal island of Geoje City, on the southern coast of Gyeongsangnam-do province, South Korea. It is joined to land by two bridges from nearby Tongyeong. Sinhyeon is the largest town on the island...
(거제도, 巨濟島)
- Oedo
Oedo is an island of Geoje city, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea. It is a marine western-style botanical garden in Hallyeo Haesang National Park, built by Lee Chang-ho and his wife when they settled on the island in 1969.- History :...
- Galgotdo (Haegeumgang)
External links