The May 18 Democratic Uprising in Gwangju is considered to be the symbol of the Korean democratic uprising. It was a righteous civil resistance against the then military dictatorship. The May 18 Memorial Cemetery in Mangwol-dong is the place where the victims of the uprising are buried. People from all over the county continue to visit to admire the spirit of the dead protectors. Sangmudae was the military building where innocent citizens were prisoned, but now its site has become the future-oriented center of the newly-developed town. The May 18 Memorial Park and May 18 Liberty Park are located near the old site of Sangmudae. In addition, you can visit many other May 18 historic sites downtown.
The Hallowed Site of Democratization, May 18 National Cemetery
New May 18 Cemetery
325 victims are buried at this graveyard. They were our neighbors and friends who carried arms to protect their families and themselves and make a last-ditch stand against the military dictatorship. A student was killed after leaving a letter to his mother. am ready to sacrifice myself for national freedom.Each of them was a loved son of a mother or a devoted father of a child. This graveyard reminds visitors of the lofty spirit of the uprising in addition to the anger of the victims and their families. Every May, the cemetery holds memorial ceremonies and events with the victims sobbing families. The human rights groups fighting for freedom and justice make a pilgrimage to this holy land.
TEL 062-266-5187
- Opening hours : 08:00~19:00(Mar. ~ Oct.) 08:00~17:00(Nov. ~ Feb .)
Old Cemetery of National Democratic Heroes
'The victims of the May 18 Democratic Uprising in 1980 had been buried in dishonour for 17 years. When their graves were moved to this new cemetery in 1997 their honour was redeemed. The removed tombs were replaced by imitations. Now, there are the graves of 37 national democratic heroes including Jongcheol Park and Namju Kim and two other democratic victims at this sacred site. Although the city has constructed a new cemetery for these democratic heroes, the original cemetery will remain as a historic site to continuously remind us of the spirit of the May 18 Democratic Uprising.
[ Memorial Route ]
Gate of Democracy → May 18 Democratic Square → Gate of Memory → Worship Square → Memorial Monument → May 18 Cemetery → Enshrining Altar → Gate of History → 7 Historic Events of Korean Civil Resistance → Sungmoru Pavilion → Old May 18 Cemetery
[ Cemetery Tour ]
The Gate of Democracy, the Democracy Square, and the Gate of Memory stand in a line from the entrance of the cemetery. At the center, there is a memorial monument in the shape of Danganjiju, a traditional stone pillar. Then, you should first stop by the Enshrining Altar which looks like an ancient Korean dolmen and keeps portraits and memorial tablets of the May 18 victims. The Gate of History exhibits documentary photos of the movement in the basement. This traditional building will lead you to the Old May 18 Cemetery.
Supervised by(Contact) : May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising Enhancement Division(+82-62-613-3672)
Sangmu Area, Place of Memory and Spirit Promotion
May 18 Memorial Park with Lessons from History
The May 18 Memorial Park is located on an old 49-acre site called Sangmudae in Ssangchon-dong, Seo-gu, and looks like a green island enclosed by an apartment complex. It embraces tall tree forests and a wild flower garden such as day lilies and irises. It was constructed to retrieve the honor of the participants of the May 18 Uprising and teach history lessons to young people. It is composed of the May 18 Convention Center, the Owolru Tower, the Gwangju Education Center for Students, restaurants, rest areas and trails.TEL 062-376-5197
Space for Memory and Spirit Promotion
This building materializes the brilliant lights which symbolize the lofty spirit of May 18. It also looks like a design of Taegeuk that stands for the entity of the cosmos from a bird-eye view. Its architectural theme is h, Gwangju!, be an eternal light.The ground level consists of some memorial sculptures, meanwhile the basement prepares for a space of memorial. If you go up the stairs next to Daedong Square, the sculpture of a citizen giving his arms to a wounded college buddy first comes to sight. At the back of it, there is the entrance, in the shape of a coffin leaning backwards, to the basement of the space of memorial. There, the names of the victims are carved in the wall around the statues of a mother who is embracing her son dead body and weeping bitterly.
May 18 Liberty Park, Scars of the Uprising
Innocent citizens were captured, tortured, and killed by martial forces during the May 18 Democratic Uprising here. In order to remind visitors of the value of liberty, the old prison, court and military camps are restored at this place that is 100m (about 100 yd.) away from the original site in order to make visitors keenly feel the value of liberty. TEL 062-376-5183
Former Military Prison, Sangmudae
It is located in the deepest part of the park, lain with barbed-wire. Many citizens were forcefully arrested and severely tortured under the false charge of rioters by martial law forces. For example, the prisoners were forced to sit up 16 hours a day. The central watchhouse kept watching on the prisoners in six cells in a fan-shaped pattern. There were about 800 prisoners locked and even 150 inmates locked together in one cell. They were standing at the edge of life and suffering from heat exhaustion and hunger.
The Military Court
The building on the left side of the living quarters served as courts for military trials for the uprising participants. Many prisoners sang the national anthem to protest against the unjust trials. The closed trials were proceeded in an extremely threatening atmosphere with armed military policemen. They pronounced prison sentences including death and life imprisonment to most of the accused.
Supervised by(Contact) : May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising Enhancement Division(+82-62-613-3672)
The Hallowed Site of Democratization, May 18 National Cemetery
