The Forgotten Political Elites of North Korea

This book comprises the biographies of the North Korean politicians whose actions played a pivotal role in shaping the formation of the country during the late 1940s, the Korean War of 1950-53 and the power struggles of the mid-1950s.

Autorentext

Fyodor Tertitskiy is Leading Researcher at the Institute for Korean Studies at Kookmin University, South Korea. He studies North Korean military, social and political history and is the author of The North Korean Army (2022) and Soviet-North Korean Relations During the Cold War (2023).

Inhalt

1. Introduction 2. Lost and forgotten: Failed candidates for the North Korean throne 3. The Brigade faction: Fates of those who served with Kim Il-sung in the Soviet Army 4. Yu Sng-ch'l: Kim Il-sung's former comrade-in-arms and his testimony 5. Mikhail Kan: Stepping away from power 6. Innokentiy Kim: How an officer of Stalin's secret police stood for North Koreans 7. Pak Chng-ae: The woman with an iron heart 8. Mun Il: North Korea's Moriarty 9. Chang Hak-pong: chronicler of the early days of North Korea 10. Pang Hak-se: The founding father of the North Korean secret police 11. Aleksei Hegay and his mysterious death 12. Vice-Minister Kang Sang-ho: the story of his service in the North Korean police and of his miraculous escape from the DPRK 13. Nam Il: The general who signed the Korean War armistice 14. Pak Ch'ang-ok: Kim Il-sung's (equally) evil twin 15. Lee Sang-jo: An ambassador who challenged the Leader 16. Pak i-wan: Vice-Premier who had a heart 17. Conclusion