Governor-General of Korea

Governor-General of Korea
General-Government building, Seoul
Korean name
Hangul	조선총독
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Joseon Chongdok
McCune–Reischauer	Chosŏn Ch'ongdok
Japanese name: Chōsen Sōtoku (?)

The post of Governor-General of Korea served as the chief administrator of Korea while it was held as Chōsen from 1910 to 1945. The seat of the colonial government was the General Government Building, completed in 1926.

After the annexation of Korea to Japan in 1910, the office of Resident-General was replaced by that of Governor-General. However, the position was unique in among Japan's external possessions, as the Governor-General had sweeping plenipotentiary powers, and the position also entailed judicial oversight and some legislative powers. As of 1944, the Governor-General did not command the Imperial Japanese Army or Imperial Japanese Navy units stationed in Korea. Given the powers and levels of responsibility, only ranking full generals in the Japanese Army were selected for the post (with the sole exception of retired admiral Saitō Makoto).

After the Japanese defeat in World War II, the Korean Peninsula was administrated by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea. The Governor-General building was completely demolished during administration of South Korean president Kim Yong-Sam on August 15, 1995.

Four individuals who held the position of the Governor-General of Korea also held the office of the Prime Minister of Japan. Three, Terauchi Masatake, Saitō Makoto, and Koiso Kuniaki, were Governors-General before becoming Prime Ministers. One, Abe Nobuyuki, was Prime Minister before his appointment as Governor-General. Ugaki Kazushige was named Prime Minister-designate, but he could not take office because he was unable to form a cabinet.