The Provisional Capital Memorial Hall () is a

museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

in Bumin-dong,

Seo District, Busan Seo District () is a ''Subdivisions of South Korea, gu'', or district, in south-west central Busan, South Korea. Administrative divisions Seo-gu is divided into 8 legal ''dong'', which altogether comprise 14 administrative ''dong'', as follow ...

, South Korea. The building was used by the

President of South Korea The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (), is the head of state and head of government of South Korea. The president directs the executive branch of the Government of South Korea, government and is ...

Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965), also known by his art name Unam (), was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisiona ...

, when Busan was the provisional capital of South Korea during 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 ...

History

The building was first completed on August 10, 1926, during the 1910–1945 Japanese colonial period. It used as the residence of the governor of South Gyeongsang Province, when the capital was moved from Jinju to Busan. It would continue to be used as such until 1983. An exception to this was the period from 1950–1952, when it served as the residence of the President of South Korea during the Korean War. On July 1, 1983, the capital of South Gyeongsang Province was moved to

Changwon Changwon (; ) is the capital and largest city of South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea (with a population of 1,025,702 ), and the 11th largest city of the South Korea, country. A port city, Changwon is bordered by Masan Bay to the south, and the ...

, and this hall was renovated and turned into a museum. It opened on June 25, 1984 (the anniversary of the Korean War). Renovation work was conducted and more exhibitions were added between 1997 and 2000.

Description

It is a two-story building with an internal area of . The property it is on has an area of . Both floors have history exhibits. The second floor has the desk, bed, and chair that Rhee used. There is a '' byeongpung'' (Korean

folding screen A folding screen, also known as pingfeng (), is a type of free-standing furniture consisting of several frames or panels, which are often connected by hinges or by other means. They have practical and decorative uses, and can be made in a variet ...

) with a poem by Rhee. This building was renovated from April 2000 to November 2001 to its current state. During the renovation, the Photographic Gallery section was added. The gallery houses a collection of photographs from the Korean War. The Provisional Capital Memorial Hall is Designated Artifact #53 of Busan Metropolitan City.

Gallery

Provisional Capital Memorial Hall Bedroom Dinningroom 11-10490.jpg, Dining room (2011) Provisional Capital Memorial Hall Library 11-10481.jpg, Rhee's study (2011) Provisional Capital Memorial Hall Restroom 11-10495.jpg, Bathroom (2011) Provisional Capital Memorial upstairs office display 11-10511.jpg, Upstairs display (2011)

References

External links

Homepage
(in English) Museums in Busan Buildings and structures of Korea under Japanese rule Buildings and structures completed in 1926 1984 establishments in South Korea {{SouthKorea-museum-stub