Park Chung-hee is one of the most controversial figures in South Korea. While some people say that he’s a hero who led the miracle of the Han River. others say that he was merely a dictator who hindered the nation’s development as a democratic entity.

Regardless of one’s opinion, we can all agree that Park Chung-hee had a tremendous impact on the course of modern South Korea. Numbers of scholars have discussed his presidency as part of the effort to better understand South Korea. People, however, often overlook his time before he entered the office, especially his childhood.

Park’s family was a yangban class, aristocrats of the Joseon dynasty; however, they had to suffer extreme poverty. This misfortune was a consequence of Park’s father’s involvement in the Donghak movement. Park’s father jeopardized his and his family’s yangban status. As a punishment Park’s grandfather decided to not inherit his fortunes to his oldest son, Park’s father. In a very limited situation, Park went to Kumi elementary school.

He was an excellent student and continued studying and went to Daegu National University of Education, a school for future elementary school teachers. After graduating from Daegu National University of Education, he becomes a teacher for a short amount of time and decides to go to Manchuria to attend Manchukuo Military academy. Even in the Japanese Military Academy, he showed great responsibility and excellence, being the top student in his classes.

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