Coup d'état of December Twelfth

The Coup d'état of December Twelfth (Hangul: 12.12 군사반란; Hanja: 12.12 軍事叛亂) or the "12.12 Military Insurrection" was a military coup d'état which took place on December 12, 1979, in South Korea.

12.12 군사반란
DateDecember 12 1979
LocationSeoul
Also known as12.12 Military Insurrection
ParticipantsROK Army Major General Chun Doo-hwan
OutcomeFifth Republic of South Korea
Part of a series on the
History of South Korea
Preludes to Division 191048
Japanese rule 191045
Korean Provisional Government 191948
People's Republic of Korea 194546
USAMGIK 194548
First Republic 194860
Korean War 195053
Syngman Rhee government 194860
April Revolution 1960
Second Republic 196061
Chang Myon cabinet 196061
May 16 coup 1961
Constitutional Vacuum 196163
Yun Bo-seon government 196162
Supreme Council for National Reconstruction 196163
Third Republic 196372
Park Chung-hee government 196379
Yushin Constitution 1972
Fourth Republic 197281
Assassination of Park Chung-hee 1979
December 12 coup 1979
May 17 coup 1980
Gwangju Uprising 1980
Fifth Republic 198188
Chun Doo-hwan government 198187
June Democracy Movement 1987
Sixth Republic 1988present
Roh Tae-woo government 198893
Kim Young-sam government 199398
1997 Asian financial crisis 19972001
Kim Dae-jung government 19982003
Roh Moo-hyun government 20032008
Lee Myung-bak government 20082013
Park Geun-hye government 20132016
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Republic of Korea Army Major General Chun Doo-hwan, commander of the Security Command,[1][2] acting without authorization from Acting President Choi Kyu-ha, ordered the arrest of General Jeong Seung-hwa, ROK Army Chief of Staff, on allegations of involvement in the assassination of President Park Chung Hee.

After Jeong's capture, 29th Regiment of the 9th Division, along with the 1st and 3rd Airborne Brigades, invaded downtown Seoul to support the 30th and 33rd Capital Security Group loyal to Chun, then a series of conflicts broke out in the capital. Two of Jeong's allies, Major General Jang Tae-wan (Capital Security commander) and Major General Jeong Byeong Ju (special forces commander), were also arrested by the rebel troops. Major Kim Oh-rang, Aide-de-camp of Jeong Byeong Ju, was killed during the gun-fight.

By the next morning, the Ministry of Defense and Army HQ were all occupied. Chun and his fellow 11th class of Korea Military Academy graduates, such as Major General Roh Tae-woo, commanding general of 9th Infantry Division, and Major General Jeong Ho-yong, were in charge of the Korean military. Chun was supported in the coup and the subsequent consolidation of power by the powerful private club of military officials called Hanahoe.

The Coup d'état of December Twelfth and the Coup d'état of May Seventeenth ended the Fourth Republic of South Korea and led to the Fifth Republic of South Korea.

See also

  • Coup d'état of May Seventeenth
  • Gwangju Democratic Uprising
  • History of South Korea
  • List of Korea-related topics

Further reading

  • Don Oberdorfer, The Two Koreas (Addison-Wesley, Reading, Mass, 1997, ISBN 0-201-40927-5, p. 121)
  • Young, James V. Eye on Korea: An insider account of Korean-American Relations. (Texas A&M University Press, College Station, TX) 2003. ISBN 978-1585442621

References


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