Notes from the Korean Legation in the United States to the Department of State, 1883-1906

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Retrieve imperfect matches to accommodate spelling variations or approximate spellings sometimes found in historical documents.

Overview

Notes from the Korean Legation in the United States to the Department of State, 1883–1906

This collection comprises notes from the Korean legation in the United States to the State Department in chronological order. Included in the volumes are communications from Korean rulers (Choson dynasty) and officials of the Korean Foreign Office to presidents of the United States or secretaries of state, drafts of communications from presidents of the United States or secretaries of state to Korean officials, memoranda prepared by State Department officials commenting on Korean notes, memoranda of conversations between officials of the Korean legation and the Department of State, and drafts and texts of agreements or proposed agreements between Korea and the United States. Some enclosures include copies of proclamations, speeches, issues of newspapers, and notes by U.S. officials commenting on these communications.

Some correspondence is ceremonial, including communications sent as official recognition of a particular envoy's diplomatic credentials as well as invitations to meetings, ceremonies, funerals, and other events.

The records relate to many phases of U.S. relations with Korea. These notes concern such topics as duties and tariffs, trade agreements, care and treatment of shipwrecked seamen, reparations for the destruction of the U.S. merchant ship General Sherman and the subsequent military action against Korea; the Sinmiyangyo Incident; extraterritorial rights, cultural affairs, anti-missionary activities, the Sino-Japanese War, and the Russo-Japanese War.

Collection Facts

Date Range:
1883-1906
Language:
English
Extent:
1 manuscripts; 265 items; 436 pages
Source Institution:
National Archives (United States)
Korea ended its isolationism in the early 1880s and began to engage in diplomatic and cultural exchange with the United States and Europe. This illustration from Le Petit Journal depicts the Korean pavilion at the Universal Exhibition of 1900 in Paris, France.
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