The Only Shrine Dedicated to Ahn Jung-geun Nationwide
Memorial Ceremony for the 113th Anniversary of Ahn Jung-geun's Martyrdom to Be Held on the 26th
Haedongsa Temple, located in Jangheung-gun, Jeollanam-do, is the only shrine in the country dedicated to An Jung-geun.
According to Jangheung-gun on the 22nd, this place was built in 1955 with donations collected by the Juksan An clan of Jangheung and local influential figures.
The Juksan An clan enshrines the portrait and memorial tablet of An Jung-geun at Haedongsa Temple in Jangheung. [Photo provided by Jangheung County]
At that time, the Juksan An clan lamented that there were no descendants of An Jung-geun, who belonged to the Sunheung An clan, to perform ancestral rites, so they built the shrine and enshrined his portrait and memorial tablets.
The original Haedongsa was an octagonal hipped roof house with two bays on each side. Although it had two bays, one side of the front and one side of the side had an extended bay, so the inner sanctuary was the size of one bay on each side.
The interior floor was made of well-structured wooden flooring. It had a double roof above, and at the very top, a metal ornament was installed, giving it a simple yet dignified appearance.
Between 1996 and 2000, Haedongsa was rebuilt along with the restoration of Mansusa Temple. Haedongsa now has three bays in the front and one bay on the side with a veranda. The roof is a hipped-and-gabled roof with layered eaves.
Inside the shrine, the calligraphy “Haedong Myeongwol (海東明月),” known to be written by the then president, is preserved. Enshrined inside are An Jung-geun’s portrait and memorial tablets, and three facsimiles of his handwritten calligraphy are framed and hung.
An Jung-geun assassinated Ito Hirobumi, the Japanese Resident-General and the mastermind behind Korea’s invasion, at Harbin Station in China on October 26, 1909.
After six trials, he was sentenced to death on February 14, 1910, and died a martyr in Lushun Prison, China, on March 26. He was posthumously awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Republic of Korea, in 1962.
Jangheung-gun is reorganizing the Haedongsa area, which is also a national memorial site designated by the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, into a memorial space.
With a budget of 7 billion KRW under the “An Jung-geun Historical and Cultural Resource Development Project,” the county has completed infrastructure such as a patriotic exploration trail around Haedongsa.
This year, they plan to develop content such as a memorial history hall and exhibits to use the site as an educational and experiential venue for students nationwide.
Through the project to promote An Jung-geun’s spirit, a nationwide flash mob themed on Haedongsa and An Jung-geun is also planned.
On the 26th, marking the 113th anniversary of An Jung-geun’s martyrdom, Jangheung-gun is calmly preparing a memorial ceremony so that anyone can easily visit Haedongsa and honor his patriotism.
County Governor Kim Seong said, “I hope that An Jung-geun’s spirit of patriotism will be passed on to future generations through Haedongsa,” and added, “We will successfully complete the ongoing project to promote An Jung-geun and utilize it as a local historical and cultural resource.”
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