Taewonsu
| Taewonsu Grand marshal | |
|---|---|
 Shoulder boards for the rank oftaewŏnsu | |
| Country |  North Korea |
| Service branch |  Korean People's Army |
| Formation | April 1992 |
| Next higher rank | None |
| Next lower rank | Konghwaguk Wonsu[a] (Marshal of the Republic) |
| Taewonsu | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 대원수 |
|---|---|
| Hancha | |
| Revised Romanization | Daewonsu |
| McCune–Reischauer | Taewŏnsu |
Taewonsu(대원수,lit. 'grand marshal') is the highest possiblemilitary rankofNorth Koreaand is intended to be an honorific title forKim Il-sungandKim Jong-il.It is often confused withMarshal of the RepublicandMarshal of the Korean People's Army,but ranks above both.[1]The rank is senior to that ofWonsu.The title also exists in Chinese military history asdàyuánshuài(same Sino-Korean charactersĐại nguyên soái), and was briefly taken bySun Yat-sen.[2][3]
History
[edit]
The rank oftaewonsuwas created by a joint decision of theCentral CommitteeandCentral Military Commissionof theWorkers' Party of Korea,theNational Defence Commissionand theCentral People's Committeein April 1992 to honorKim Il-sungon his 80th birthday (Day of the Sun). In February 2012, his son and successorKim Jong-ilwas awarded the title posthumously on the occasion of his official 70th birthday (Day of the Shining Star). [4][5]
The insignia fortaewonsuis similar towonsubut with an added crest worn beneath the shoulder board's large marshal star (and an added crest added to the parade uniform's marshal star worn below the collar), below theEmblem of North Korea.The rank insignia is based on the rank ofGeneralissimo of the Soviet Union.
Rank comparison
[edit]According to rank comparison charts of theUnited States Forces Korea(USFK),taewonsuis equivalent to a "seven-star general", with the junior ranks ofwonsuandchasulisted as six and five stars respectively.[6]
The South Korean armed forces have never made an attempt to declare an equivalent to thewonsuranks of North Korea, and indeed often deride these ranks as having been created so as to "outrank" the military leaders of other nations, rather than for any necessary purpose of military administration. Even so, the holders of these ranks have commanded one of the largest military forces in the Pan-Asian theater therefore giving some credence to their existence.[7]
See also
[edit]Other pronunciations of the charactersĐại nguyên soái
- Dayuanshuaiin Chinese
- Dai-gensui,the Japanese equivalent
- Wonsu,a rank lower thanTaewonsu
- Gensui
Notes
[edit]- ^공화국 원수;Cộng hòa quốc nguyên soái
References
[edit]- ^Yi, Wonju (28 April 2022)."S. Korea urges N. Korea to stop escalating tensions over Kim's pledge to bolster nuclear power".Yonhap News Agency.Retrieved29 April2022.
- ^The People's Liberation Army as organization: reference volume v 1.0 - Volume 1 - Page 30 James C. Mulvenon, Andrew N. D. Yang, Center for Asia-Pacific Policy (Rand Corporation) - 2002 "Rank Categories - Ranks 1. Generalissimo (dayuanshuai) 2. Marshal (yuanshuai) 3. General Grade (jiangguan).."
- ^China this century - Page 169 Rafe De Crespigny - 1992 "In 1917 Sun Yatsen took for a time the title dayuanshuai, which basically means 'commander-in-chief; though it is a general term rather than a military rank, it was translated as"
- ^James Fleming Broken Border - Page 22 2009 "President Kim Jong Il is a man of many titles: Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army, Commander of the Armed Forces, Taewŏnsu (a seven–star general), Chairman of the National Defense Committee, General Secretary,... "
- ^Armstrong, Charles: "The Role and Influence of Ideology". In Kyung-Ae Park, Scott Snyder (ed.)North Korea in Transition: Politics, Economy, and Society2012 "Kim Jong Il... and on April 20th, 1992, he was named “Marshal” (Wonsu). Kim Il Sung had been named “Generalissimo” (Taewonsu)... "
- ^USFK Comparative Ranks Chart Publication (2006)
- ^U.S. 7th Fleet Sharem Intelligence Brief, published 13 Dec 2007
External links
[edit]- Image of Kim Il-sung in thetaewŏnsuuniform
- Image of Kim Jong-ilwonsuand Kim Il-sungtaewŏnsushoulder/collar insignia and crests
