Key takeaways
Gyeongseong Prison opened in 1908, and its name later changed to Seodaemun Prison (1912), then Seodaemun Hyeongmuso (1923). Fact After the March First independence movement of 1919, the number of imprisoned independence fighters surged, and large-scale expansion with red-brick facilities followed. Fact
Yu Gwan-sun — the teenage independence activist widely regarded as one of Korea's most revered martyrs, arrested for her role in the March First Movement — was held in the underground cells of the women's prison here and subjected to severe torture. Fact This underground prison, built by Japan's colonial government in 1916 specifically to hold female independence activists, consisted of four solitary cells, each roughly 1.4 meters high and barely a meter square, along with a torture room. Fact Yu Gwan-sun died here on September 28, 1920 — from a ruptured bladder, the day before she was due to be released. Fact Her remains later went through a troubled history, passing through the Itaewon cemetery before being processed as an unclaimed grave.
What to look for on site
- The genuinely cramped, small scale of the underground cells in the women's prison
- The red-brick cell blocks expanded after the March First Movement
- Exhibits and records related to Yu Gwan-sun
Responsible framing
Handle exhibits related to torture and death without sensationalizing them — focus on conveying the facts accurately.