A History of Tae Kwon Do and the Studio of Korean Karate

In the span of history there have been many martial arts but Tae Kwon Dos history starts relatively recent, beginning in only the 1950s. Tae Kwon Do was built upon the earlier striking arts schools of Korea which in turn was built upon Japanese Karate and Chinese Chuan Fa. Although only a relatively short amount of time has passed since its inception, Tae Kwon Dos history is plagued by political intrigue and fighting amongst its various leaders, with its control moving through different peoples and groups. This is a fate the Studio of Korean Karate has avoided. The striking arts in Korea started with the original schools or Kwans, and this was prior to the formation of Tae Kwon Do. A number of these Kwans were founded in the 1940s, one of the most notable (and first to be founded) was the Chung Do Kwan. The original founders of these Kwans had studied Japanese Shotokan, Shudokan, Shito Ryu and even Chinese Chuan Fa. The Chung Do Kwan was founded by Lee Won Kuk who called his art Tang Soo Do. Lee Won Kuk had studied Shotokan under Funakoshi Gichen and his son Yoshitaka while he was a university student studying in Japan in the 1920s. While studying Shotokan there he received a 2nd Dan rank. During 1945 in Korea, Lee started the Chung Do Kwan. After only two years the Chung Do Kwan would become a success gaining financial support as well as acceptance from the public and the military. Lee taught till around 1949 after refusing a government position and being jailed. Lee and his family left for Japan and eventually moved to the United States of America. Around 1953 General Choi Hong Hi began his association with the Chung Do Kwan, being given an honorary 4th Dan as well as becoming the Kwans leader. This was done in order to use Chois military position and authority to increase the visibility of the Chung Do Kwan. Many notable figures were either students of Chung Do Kwan or associated with it including Jhoon Rhee Gu, the father of American Tae Kwon Do. The name Tae Kwon Do was first used in 1955. Until this point the striking arts in Korea was usually referred to as Kong Soo Do or Tang Soo. Kong Soo Do was the Korean pronunciation of the Chinese characters which are read as Karate Do in Japanese, and Tang Soo Do translates as China hand Way. It was a strong

desire of General Choi Hong Hi that Koreas martial arts should be distinct from its Japanese and Chinese base and one of the ways he did this was to use a true Korean name. Tae Kwon Do means Way of hand and foot fighting and it started being used by the Chung Do Kwan, the Oh Do Kwan and the military during this time. Many other Kwan leaders choose to not yet use this name and preferred the older names. In 1959 the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association was formed. At its first meeting the heads of every major Kwan were present. The Association was short lived however as the leader of the Moo Duk Kwan, Hwang Hi withdrew shortly after the KTAs founding. Many saw this first Tae Kwon Do Association as simply a fulfillment of Choi Hong His personal aspirations to have his own association and develop the martial arts as he thought they should be.1 Hwang Hi would help combine the Korea Kong Soo Do Association and the Korea Tang Soo Do Association and register the name Korea Soo Bahk Do Association with the Korean Amateur Sports Association which was run by the Ministry of Education under the federal government. There would be fighting among the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association and the Korea Soo Bahk Do Association as Choi Hong Hi wanted to maintain control of the martial arts in Korea. Between the creation of the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association and the unification of the Kwans in the late 1970s there was a great amount of turmoil between the various Associations and Kwans as well as major political strife. In 1961 in Korea there a military coup carried out by General Park Chung Hee. From 1961 till 1965 Choi Hong Hi was appointed ambassador to Malaysia by General Park. Many think the appointment was a means to keep him out of Korean politics during the first years of the new government. In 1961 during Chois absence the Korea Tae Soo Do Association was formed as a means to further unification of the various martial arts groups. This Association expanded and in 1962 became the 28th official sport of the Korean Amateur Sports Association. Choi retuned to Korea in 1965. His time in Malaysia was not completed wasted and supposedly while there Choi completed creating the Chang Hon forms. These forms were introduced to the Chung Do Kwan and Oh Do Kwan and were mainly taught at these schools. Choi still had a lot of influence in Korea and in 1965 he became the 3rd president of the Korea Tae So Doo Association. Not long after becoming president Choi changed the name to the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association. While

Choi was president he would send demonstration teams to fourteen countries as means to being introducing Tae Kwon Do to the world. In 1965 the Korea Soo Bahk Do Association and the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association were nearly united. Hwang Hi was said to have agreed to the Unification Declaration but the next day labeled it invalid. Choi Hong His term as president of the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association lasted almost a year until he resigned, or was asked to resign. Around this time the president of the Korean Amateur Sports Association proposed a training center be built for the training of Koreans for international competition and president Park Chung Hee agreed. In 1966 the International Tae Kwon Do Federation was also founded, with leadership of the Federation being given to Choi. With Choi in control the Federation almost immediately began operating entirely independent from the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association and Choi required all instructors and students in the Federation to use the Chang Hon forms he had created. Up until this time groups had still used the old Japanese forms and now the old forms were completely dropped by the Federation. 1n 1967 Kim Young Chae would become the 5th president of the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association. While under Kims direction the Korea Tae Kwan Do Association would start the efforts to build the Kuk Ki Won national gym which is still in use by the World Tae Kwon Do Federation today. Also during this time tournament rules were revised for sparring, and protective equipment began being used. Also the forms were created that are still in use by the Korea Tae Kwan Do Association and the World Tae Kwon Do Federation. The gap between the Korea Tae Kwan Do Association and the International Tae Kwan Do Federation was widening as both now had different sets of technical criteria.2 From the late 60s till the early 70s the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association was faced with the issue of where the true power laid, whether with the Association or with the Kwans. Study and promotions were still done at the individual Kwans and then passed on to the Association. This process led to some problems as a Dan ranking at a Kwan wasnt always the same ranking with the Association. The Korean government had been directly involved with the martial arts since 1961 and many saw Tae Kwon Do as a means for Korea to leave its mark on the world. True unification was seen as necessary by both the Association and the Korean

government, however there were two problems being faced. The first problem was Choi Hong Hi has been spreading his version of Tae Kwon Do around the world via the International Tae Kwon Do Federation. The Second problem was realistically the Kwans still held the power instead of the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association. In 1971 Kim Un Young would become president of the Tae Kwon Do Association. In 1972 Korean President Park Chung Hee would declare Tae Kwon Do Koreas official sport. This would officially put into motion the change from Tae Kwon Do being a martial art to a martial sport. Over the next ten to fifteen years the Kwan systems would be abolished and the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association would sever its ties with the International Tae Kwon Do Federation. As a means to remove Kwan power, during this time the government would require school permits with specific regulations that many Kwans could not meet. As a result of this many did not receive permits and were closed. In 1972 the Kuk Ki Won was officially opened as well as Tae Kwon Do being added to the official curriculum of primary schools as well as middle and high schools. Between 1972 and 1974 Choi Hong Hi moved from Korea to Toronto, Canada following the Korean government trying to take control of the International Tae Kwan Do Federation. It was at this time the Korea Tae Kwan Do Association severed ties with the Federation. People now had to choose between an official Tae Kwon Do in Korea and the Tae Kwon Do run by Choi without government control. Further pressure was placed on anyone teaching the old style or Japanese forms to fall in line with the Association. In 1973 the World Tae Kwon Do Federation was created to be an international arm controlled by the Association. The move from art to sport caused a great deal of conflict for many instructors. Throughout the 1970s many changes were made by the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association with regards to this. Sparring rules were changed, as well as techniques and forms. Slowly the self-defense and pure combat aspects of the art were stripped away. Around 1972 the Palgye and Tae Geuk forms were introduced for underbelts. Although the use of the Palgye forms were short lived by 1980 the Tae Geuk forms were the official underbelt forms and are still in use today by the Association. Many considered these forms to be another step towards the sport aspect of Tae Kwon Do.

With Choi Hong Hi more or less out of the way, the Korean government and the Tae Kwon Do Association focused its efforts on uniting the Kwans. By the 1970s there were forty to sixty different Kwans in Korea most offshoots of the original nine. Many Kwan leaders debated whether to simply join in unifying or to oppose. Joining meant losing control of technique, tradition, and finances. Going against the Korean government however could be political suicide. The Association consolidated the Kwans into 9 major schools in 1974 and in 1976 they were simply renamed to Kwans 1 through 9. By 1978 the Kwan system was officially ended. Promotions would now be overseen by the Kuk Ki Won at the recommendation of individual instructors and no longer by Kwan leaders. Even after all of this some Kwan names still exist from schools outside of Korea; there is still a World Song Moo Kwan and a World Chang Moo Kwan. With Tae Kwon Do as a sport gaining international recognition the Korean government saw a need to create a historical background and tradition to go with it. While techniques had changed since its start in Korea, Tae Kwon Do had a direct link to Karate and Chuan Fa that would be difficult to ignore. The International Tae Kwon Do Federation would say the art was created solely by Choi Hong Hi and was simply a modern version of Tae Kyon which was the ancient Korean kicking game/art. The Korean government and the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association would take things a step further, linking Tae Kwon Do to as far back as 37 BC using murals, tombs and old texts as proof. To this day the Association teaches Tae Kwon Do as having no realistic link to its Japanese or Chinese roots. After unifying and closing the Kwans as well as establishing a supposed deep history it was time for Korea to move Tae Kwon Do into international spotlight by making Tae Kwon Do a sport in the Olympics. In 1986 Tae Kwon Do was an official sport in the Asian Games and in 1987 in the Pan American Games. Tae Kwon Do was accepted as a demonstration sport in the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games as well as the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. Finally in 2000 at the Sydney, Australia Olympic Games Tae Kwon Do was practiced by the World Tae Kwon Do Federation was a full medal sport. Even after this those who did not follow the new sport version of Tae Kwon Do continued to teach the art in the previous manner. The International Tae Kwon Do Federation still continued successfully, as well as the many splintered schools throughout the world. The inclusion of Tae Kwon Do in the Olympics was certainly not something wanted by

all and many thought it would follow the same fate as Judo when it became an Olympic sport. At one time Judo was once one of the best known martial arts in the world. In 1964 Judo had become an Olympic sport and less than ten years later Judo studios decreased by seventy percent. Once the driving purpose for a martial art/sport becomes international completion many think that only those with the ability to compete in this arena would continue on, and this could be seen in the massive drop in studios worldwide. With the Tae Kwon Do becoming an Olympic sport there was a power shift of sorts between the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association and the World Tae Kwon Do Federation. Initially the Association was in charge with the Federation simply being the international arm of this group. Through the 1980s and 1990s with the popularization of Tae Kwon Do as an Olympic sport, the Federation began to be the main group with the Association simply becoming the Korean part of this group. Eventually the Federation became the one who called the shots for Korean Tae Kwon Do. After the death of Choi Hong Hi in 2002 the International Tae Kwon Do Federation found itself splintered into three main groups. One group is led by Chois son, Choi Jung Hwa and is still headquartered in Canada. In 2001 he was elected to take over, however Choi Hong Hi decided he himself should remain president and shortly before he died he named Ung Chang as his successor. The Federation was supposed to have a democratic process to elect a new leader and they decided this was unfair appointment, so Tran Trieu Quan was elected head of the Federation in 2004. Between the elections and reelections this had splintered the Federation into multiple groups as certain people wanted to follow different leaders. The Studio of Korean Karates history has taken a very different path from that of the Korean Tae Kwon Do that was followed by both the International Tae Kwon Do Federation as well as the Korea Tae Kwon Do Association/World Tae Kwon Do Federation. This history can first be traced back Jhoon Rhee Gu who was a student of the Chung Do Kwan and received a Dan ranking there. In the 1950s Jhoon Rhee moved to the United States and began teaching the Korean martial art which he has become famous for. At the urging of Choi Hong Hi Jhoon Rhee would introduce Americans to the Chang Hon forms and this is one of the

reasons the Chang Hon forms are still in use today by many of the Tae Kwon Do organizations in the United States. In the 1960s Neil McVoy would begin learning Tae Kwon Do under Jhoon Rhee and in 1967 would receive his first Dan. Neil would continue studying Tae Kwon Do as well to become the head instructor at the Washington D.C. and the Vienna, VA Jhoon Rhee Institutes. In 1968 Neil also taught an accredited course in Tae Kwon Do at the Mount Vernon Junior College in Washington D.C and in 1968 through 1976 Neil taught Tae Kwon Do at the University of Maryland. In 1971 Neil would become the Chief Referee for the U.S. Eastern Regional Karate Championships and continue until 2006. He would also become an Official tournament judge for the D.C. Jhoon Rhee Institute in 1972. In 1973 Neil would found the Studio of Korean Karate (originally named the College of Korean Karate) and continue to teach there until 2006. Since its founding the studio of Korean would move through different locations first being at an office in Laurel and then moving to Laurel high school. The Studio would relocate to a dance studio in College Park and finally move to its current location at the REI shopping center. Tae Kwon Dos history may be relatively short but in that time there have been many changes to its focus and direction. While its original roots came from the Japanese and Chinese martial arts it has since evolved to have a definite Korean spin. Korean Tae Kwon Do is now controlled by the splintered International Tae Kwon Do Federation as well as the World Tae Kwon Do Federation, although who is said to actually be in charge will certainly differ depending on who is asked. Korean Tae Kwon Do especially under the World Tae Kwon Do Federation has mainly turned into a pure sport with most of its original art and self-defense aspects removed. While this change from art to sport has had a deep impact on Tae Kwon Do, the Studio of Korean Karate still teaches Tae Kwon Do as a martial art and this can be seen through its history, from Neil McVoy, back to Jhoon Rhee Gu and finally back to the Chung Do Kwan. This history shows how the Studio has been able to avoid the politics and changing from art to sport that Korean Tae Kwon Do has seen.

Endnotes
1.

Glen Jones, Korean Martial Arts Handbook: A Guide to History, Arts, Schools, Styles, Forms, and Terminology Past and Present (Gambrills: Hermit Kingdom Publishing, Inc. 2006) 140
2.

Jones 146

Bibliography Jones, Glen. Korean Martial Arts Handbook: A Guide to History, Arts, Schools, Styles, Forms, and Terminology Past and Present. Gambrills, MD: Hermit Kingdom Publishing, Inc. 2006 Gillis, Alex. A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tae Kwon Do. Toronto, Ontario: ECW Press, 2011