When the peasant uprising that began in Gobu, Jeongeup, was on the verge of being dispersed, the peasant leadership — centered on Jeon Bong-jun, Kim Gae-nam, and Son Hwa-jung — declared a renewed uprising at Mujang, in what is now Gochang. The Mujang Proclamation, issued here on the 20th day of the third lunar month, 1894, clearly stated the goal of bo-guk-an-min — "protect the nation, comfort the people" — from a corrupt state. This declaration marked the moment a revolt confined to Gobu turned into a nationwide revolution.
How did the anger that began in Jeongeup become a nation's revolution? The answer stands right here. If the raid on Gobu was one county's protest, the proclamation at Mujang was the moment that protest became a declaration addressed to the entire country. Historians regard this proclamation as the point where the uprising evolved into something categorically different from the peasant revolts that had come before it.