Independence Gate
| Independence Gate | |
Independence Gate (front), Seoul, South Korea
|
|
| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Dongnimmun |
| McCune–Reischauer | Tongnimmun |
Coordinates: 37°34′20.25″N 126°57′35.23″E / 37.5722917°N 126.9597861°E
The Independence Gate (Hangul: 독립문; Hanja: 獨立門) is a memorial gate located in Seoul, South Korea. The gate was built following the First Sino-Japanese War to inspire a spirit of independence away from Korea's previous status as a Chinese tributary state, which was declared by the Treaty of Shimonoseki. It was designed by Soh Jaipil, a Korean political activist.
The Independence Gate was built to replace the Yeongeunmun Gate, which was a symbol of diplomatic relations between Korea and Qing Dynasty China. To raise funds for the building, the Independence Club collected contributions. The two supporting pillars of Yeongeunmun Gate remain in front of the Independence Gate.
Construction of the gate began on November 21, 1896, and it was completed on November 20, 1897.
The design, by Soh Jaipil, was modeled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It measures 14.28 meters in height, 11.48 meters in width, and is made of approximately 1,850 pieces of granite.
...
Wikipedia