Our martial art of Tang Soo Do (the way of the China hand)
traces its origins to ancient times, when the Korean peninsula was divided into
three kingdoms: Silla, Korguryo, and Baekche. Silla was suffering constant
harassment from Japanese pirates. Responding to a request from the Sillan
government, Korguryo sent 50,000 soldiers to drive the pirates away. These
soldiers were trained in a martial art known as Tae Kyon, and they passed along
this martial art to the Sillan warriors, who incorporated it into their military
training.
Silla assembled an elite fighting corps of young nobility called the Hwarang
(Flower of Youth). In addition to regular military training, the Hwarang
subjected themselves to rigorous mental discipline and severe physical hardship
in order to achieve a harmonious existence of mind and body. The Hwarang lived
by five codes of Human conduct which are still the foundation of our arts
philosophy:
Loyalty to your country
Obedience to your parents
Trustworthiness between friends
Courage: never retreat in battle
Avoidance of unnecessary violence and killing
The practice of Tae Kyon was primarily restricted to the military and nobility
until 1790, when the first book was written on the art. By this time, Tae Kyon
had become known as Subak and the three kingdoms had united to form a single
nation.
During a long period of peace, the country turned its emphasis from the military
to education, and with this cultural shift, the practice of Subak began to
decline. What knowledge there was of the art was handed down within families
from one generation to the next.
In 1909, the Japanese invaded Korea and banned the practice of all military arts
for native Koreans. Some Koreans organized themselves into underground factions
and traveled to remote temples to study the martial arts, while others left
Korea entirely to study in China and even Japan itself.
Korea was liberated in 1945, at the end of World War II. By this time, many
Korean martial arts styles existed, varying according to the amount of influence
each master had absorbed from Chinese and Japanese styles and to how much the
native Subak/Tae Kyon had been modified. Also in 1945, kwans (schools) were
organized to teach the native Korean martial arts. Each school emphasized a
different aspect of Subak/Tae Kyon and various names emerged for each system,
including Soo Bahk Do, Kwon Bop, Tae Soo Do and Tang Soo Do.
Grandmaster Hwang Kee was one of those who left Korea, going to mainland China
to study. In 1945 he founded the Moo Duk Kwan, one of the more prominent kwans,
and originated Tang Soo Do. We trace our heritage in the United Tang Soo Do
Federation directly back to the Moo Duk Kwan.
In 1955, the Korean government sponsored consolidation of the kwans under the
umbrella term Tae Kwon Do (the art of kicking and punching). The leaders of the
Tae Kwon Do movement wanted to organize the art into a worldwide sport aimed at
eventually gaining Olympic recognition. Tae Kwon Do, now the national sport,
made its Olympic debut as a demonstration sport in 1988 in its homeland, Seoul,
Korea. It appeared again as a demonstration sport at the 1992 Olympics in
Barcelona, Spain. The year 2000 marked the fulfillment of the Tae Kwon Do dream
when it at last became a full medal sport in the summer Olympic games.
The Moo Duk Kwan, under the leadership of Grandmaster Hwang Kee, remained
separate from the Tae Kwon Do movement and continued to teach Tang Soo Do as a
traditional martial art, emphasizing self-defense over the sport aspect.
In 1955, the Korean government sponsored consolidation of the various kwans
(schools) under the umbrella term Tae Kwon Do (the art of kicking and punching).
The leaders of the Tae Kwon Do movement wanted to organize the art into a
worldwide sport aimed at eventually gaining Olympic recognition. Tae Kwon Do,
now the national sport, made its Olympic debut as a demonstration sport in 1988
in its homeland, Seoul, Korea. It appeared again as a demonstration sport at the
1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. The year 2000 marked the fulfillment of the
Tae Kwon Do dream when it at last became a full medal sport in the summer
Olympic games.
The Moo Duk Kwan, under the leadership of Grandmaster Hwang Kee, remained
separate from the Tae Kwon Do movement and continued to teach Tang Soo Do as a
traditional martial art, emphasizing self-defense over the sport aspect.