Lee Byung-chul (; 12 February 1910 – 19 November 1987) was a South Korean businessman who founded the Samsung Group, the country's largest

chaebol A chaebol ( , ; , ) is a large industrial South Korean conglomerate run and controlled by an individual or family. A chaebol often consists of multiple diversified affiliates, controlled by a person or group. Several dozen large South Kore ...

( conglomerate). Lee founded Samsung in 1938, at the age of 28. He is recognized as the most successful business magnate in South Korea's history.

Early life and education

Lee was born on 12 February 1910 in

Uiryeong County Uiryeong County () is a county in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. Uiryeong County has a population of 27,550 (2019) and is one of the least populated counties in South Korea. History Early history No presence of Neolithic artefacts have ...

, South Gyeongsang Province, then part of the

Korean Empire The Korean Empire, officially the Empire of Korea or Imperial Korea, was a Korean monarchical state proclaimed in October 1897 by King Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. The empire lasted until the Japanese annexation of Korea in August 1910. Dur ...

. He was born the youngest son of four siblings to father Lee Chan-woo and mother Kwon Jae-lim. He was the son of a wealthy land-owning

yangban The ''yangban'' () were part of the traditional ruling class or gentry of dynastic Korea during the Joseon period. The ''yangban'' were mainly composed of highly educated civil officials and military officers—landed or unlanded aristocrats wh ...

family, a branch of the Gyeongju Lee clan. He attended high school at Joongdong High School in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, and in 1929, he enrolled in the Department of

Political Economy Political or comparative economy is a branch of political science and economics studying economic systems (e.g. Marketplace, markets and national economies) and their governance by political systems (e.g. law, institutions, and government). Wi ...

Waseda University Waseda University (Japanese: ), abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the Tōkyō Professional School by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the fifth Prime Minister of Japan, prime ministe ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

but didn't finish his studies and decided to drop out in 1931. In 1982, Lee was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

from

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

Career

Samsung

Lee established a trucking business and

real estate business Real estate business is the profession of buying, leasing, managing, or selling real estate (commercial, industrial, residential, or mixed-use development, mixed-use premises)."Real estate": Oxford English Dictionary online: Retrieved September 18 ...

Daegu Daegu (; ), formerly spelled Taegu and officially Daegu Metropolitan City (), is a city in southeastern South Korea. It is the third-largest urban agglomeration in South Korea after Seoul and Busan; the fourth-largest List of provincial-level ci ...

on 1 March 1938, which he named Samsung Trading Co, the forerunner to

Samsung Samsung Group (; stylised as SΛMSUNG) is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational manufacturing Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in the Samsung Town office complex in Seoul. The group consists of numerous a ...

. Samsung means () which explains the initial corporate logos. By 1945, Samsung was transporting goods throughout Korea and to other countries. The company was based in

by 1947.

Korean War

Samsung was one of the ten largest "trading companies" when the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

started in 1950.Watkins, Thaer, "The Chaebol of South Korea", Website, downloaded 22 July 2011

With the First Battle of Seoul, conquest of Seoul by the North Korean army, Lee was forced to relocate his business to

Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...

. The massive influx of U.S. troops and equipment into Busan over the next year and a half of the war proved to be highly beneficial to Lee's trading company.

Federation of Korean Industries

In 1961, when

Park Chung Hee Park Chung Hee (; ; November14, 1917October26, 1979) was a South Korean politician and army officer who served as the third president of South Korea from 1962 after he seized power in the May 16 coup of 1961 until Assassination of Park Chung ...

seized power in the

May 16 coup The May 16 military coup d'état () was a military coup d'état in South Korea in 1961, organized and carried out by Park Chung Hee and his allies who formed the Military Revolutionary Committee, nominally led by Army Chief of Staff Chang Do ...

, Lee was in Japan and for some time he did not return to South Korea. Eventually, a deal was struck and Lee returned but Samsung had to give up control over the banks it acquired and follow economic directives from Park's government. The first step of the Federation of Korean Industries was established in August 1961. The association was founded by Samsung Group chairman Lee Byung-chul. Later in life, Lee served as chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries and was known as the richest man in Korea."Samsung's development in chronological order"

Cultural and art

In 1965, he established the Samsung Culture Foundation to promote a broad range of programs to enrich Korean cultural life.

Samsung Electronics

In 1969, Samsung Electronics Manufacturing (renamed

Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SEC; stylized as SΛMSUNG; ) is a South Korean multinational major appliance and consumer electronics corporation founded on 13 January 1969 and headquartered in Yeongtong District, Suwon, South Korea. It is curr ...

) and later merged with Samsung-Sanyo Electric. Samsung Electronics Manufacturing had 45 employees and about sales in 1970 and it made household electronics exclusively.

Personal life

Death

After his death, Ho-Am Art Museum was opened to the public for tours. His collection of Korean art is considered one of the largest private collections in the country, featuring a number of art objects that have been designated " National Treasures" by the Korean government.Ho Am Art Museum, "Official Web Site"
Ho-Am is located a short distance from the Everland park, one of South Korea's popular amusement parks (Everland is also owned by the Samsung Group). He died in 1987 in Seoul South Korea

Family tree

Lee's family tree

Source: Lee's children with # 1st daughter: , The founder of Hansol and spouse of its former chairman, Dr. Cho Wan-hae, M.D # 1st son: , Founder of

CJ Group CJ Corporation (), doing business as CJ Group () or simply CJ, is a South Korean conglomerate holding company, operating internationally. It is one of the largest chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous businesses in ...

(in which he lost the lawsuit alongside Lee Kun-hee), father of current CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun # 2nd son: , Founder of Saehan # 2nd daughter: Lee Suk-hee, spouse of LG board director Koo Cha-hak, younger brother of the emeritus chairman, Koo Cha-kyung and paternal uncle of the former deceased chairman, Koo Bon-moo # 3rd daughter: Lee Soon-hee # 4th daughter: Lee Deok-hee, widow of Lee Jeong-gi # 3rd son: Lee Kun-hee, 2nd chairman of

, father of 3rd and present Samsung chairman

Lee Jae-yong Lee Jae-yong (; born June 23, 1968) is a South Korean business executive who has served as the executive chairman of Samsung Electronics since October 2022. He is the only son of Lee Kun-hee and Hong Ra-hee. As of December 2024, Lee has an e ...

and Hotel Shilla president Lee Boo-jin # 5th daughter: Lee Myung-hee, spouse of Chung Jae-eun, chairwoman of

Shinsegae Shinsegae Inc. (, ) is a South Korean department store Franchising, franchise, along with several other businesses, headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. The firm is an affiliate of Shinsegae Group, South Korea's leading retail ''chaebol'', and ...

group and mother of Chung Yong-jin. Lee's children with Kuroda # 4th son: Lee Tae-whi # 6th daughter: Lee Hye-ja

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Byung-chul 1910 births 1987 deaths 20th-century South Korean businesspeople Samsung people South Korean art collectors South Korean Buddhists South Korean company founders Waseda University alumni Lee family (South Korea)