This is the first of a three-part contribution on diplomatic relations between Korea and France, which marked the 130th anniversary of its establishment this year.  – Ed.

On June 4, 1886, in Seoul, Korea and France concluded the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation. The year 2016 marks the 130th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and France.

Despite this, Korean and French do not quite know each other. Although recently due to the Korean wave, the French have started acquiring certain interest in Korea, the extent of this interest pales in comparison with that they harbor with respect to countries such as Japan, China, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Korea is in the same situation. Most Koreans, including the intellectuals, consider France to be a country worth a backpack trip. France in their minds is associated with pop songs, delicious food (although they are not sure about its exact nature), fashion, novels and movie characters. These associations rarely include the birthplace of modern democracy or best-practice modern technologies.

Although Koreans and the French view each other in a way that seems to ignore the real traits of the two countries, examining the past closely allows one to realize the deep relationship between the two countries. 

The Persecution of Catholics and the French Campaign against Korea (1886)

Half a century prior to 1886 when Korea and French formally established diplomatic relations, the French Catholic missionaries of the Societe des Missions Etrangeres de Paris had already started arriving in Korea in 1836. 

Being a vassal state of China, the Chosun of those days had been pursuing the policy of closed doors, shutting itself away from the outside world as a result of the trauma it suffered during the Japanese and Manchu invasions in the 16th and 17th centuries. The number of merchants and missionaries attempting to propagate the Catholic faith in the Hermit Kingdom was really small, with the Catholic missionaries being primarily French-led by Pierre Maubant.

Late Chosun fully embraced the ideas of Neo-Confucianism since Korea had traditionally been a country where Confucianism had the status of an official ideology. For that reason Confucian ideas permeated all strata of both material and spiritual life in Chosun. As a result, the Christian doctrine that taught the existence of a whole new world came to be considered an impure and dangerous ideology that ran counter to the policy of the Korean state, so in 1791 the full-scale persecution of all things Christian began.

Despite these grave circumstances, the French missionaries continued their work of spreading Christianity while trying to stay out of public officials’ eyes. Meanwhile, part of the French government’s outward expansion policy was to encourage and protect French missionaries, being ready to resort to the gunboat policy if deemed necessary.

In the spring of 1866, horrendous persecution began. The purge of 1866 was the sixth in a series of similar purges, taking the lives of 8,000 Korean Christians and eight French missionaries. The French government could not afford to ignore this slaughter, so a retribution followed.

Advised by the French charge d’affaires in Beijing, Henri de Bellonet, the French fleet on Oct. 13, 1866 attacked and took possession of Ganghwado Island in the Yellow Sea close to the mouth of the Hangang River . The Chosun soldiers fiercely fought to repel this attack. Confused by de Bellonet’s hostile actions, the French government urgently summoned him back to France. Thus, the punitive military expedition carried out by the French fleet soon came to a halt.

In a way, the first official contact between France and Korea was in fact a military clash. After that incident there was no contact between the two countries’ governments until 20 years later when the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation was signed.

Opening up the country—Franco-Korean Treaty of 1886

By the second half of the 19th century, the Korean government had already sensed the imminent collapse of the Sinocentric world order. Being unable to protect itself from outside threats anymore, the Qing Empire lost the status of a world power.

As a result of this development, Korea had to establish diplomatic relationships with Japan and the Western powers that were at the time advancing their influence to the East.

In 1876 Japan and Korea signed a treaty that led to the establishment of a trade representation and a consulate. Due to this treaty Korea was now regarded as an independent state rather than China’s vassal state. This was the first stage of Japan’s policy of expanding its power across the continent as it effectively allowed it to have a strong grip on the Korean Peninsula. The Western powers were then trying hard to secure profit by continuously negotiating in Seoul for the conclusion of a commercial treaty with Korea. Since the Qing dynasty was unable to impede this process, it meant China’s role as Korea’s suzerain was coming to an end.

In May 1882, the United States (also advocates of the gunboat policy), Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and Russia in 1884 succeeded at signing commercial treaties with Korea.

France was the last of the Western powers to sign the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation with Korea on June 4, 1886, formally establishing diplomatic relations with the country. There are two reasons why it happened so late. One reason is that France was at war with China in Tongking at the time. Another is that the French government took a very tough stance on the problem of the Catholic missionaries in Korea and their freedom to preach the Gospel. The 1866 event had not been forgotten.

This treaty stipulated peace and friendship between the Korean king and the French presiden. It also established French consular jurisdiction over French citizens, including the French missionaries, set out the rules of commercial exchange between the two countries and entitled France to the status of the most favored nation.

A distinguishing feature of this treaty is its reciprocity with respect to the two nations. At the time when the Western powers tried to forcefully pursue their interests by engaging in unfair diplomacy and signing biased contracts, clause 9 of the treaty ostentatiously stipulated the principle of equal treatment of the two signing parties.

However, differences in the two countries’ attitudes still show in the treaty in that France emphasizes the importance of freedom for the Catholic missionaries, while Korea inserts the requirement for France to unconditionally arbitrate international conflicts involving Korea, should such occur.

The following year, the treaty was formally proclaimed, and Victor Collin de Plancy, the first French consul to Korea, arrived in Seoul in 1887, inaugurating a new era in the Franco-Korean diplomatic relationship. It took Korea quite some time to establish its representation in Paris. It was only after the proclamation of the Korean Empire in 1898 that the first consulate was established in France. This was elevated to the status of legation in March 1900. The first consul sent to Paris was YongChan Min.

By Lee Chang-hoon

Lee Chang-hoon, a former president of Halla University and Veolia Water Korea, is now the president of the Seoul ASEM Institute for International Relations and the representative for Korea of the French ports of Le Havre-Rouen-Paris called HAROPA. Lee holds a doctorate from the University of Paris X. He can be reached at leech771@seoulasem.com. — Ed.