Joseon–United States Treaty of 1882


A Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce and Navigation, also known as the Shufeldt Treaty, was negotiated between representatives of the United States and Korea in 1882.
The treaty was written in English and Hanja, with the final draft being accepted at Chemulpo near the Korean capital of Hanseong in April and May 1884. It was Korea's first treaty with a western nation. After the United States assented to the Taft–Katsura agreement, the intervention clause was effectively nullified.

Background

In 1876, Korea established a trade treaty with Japan after Japanese ships approached Ganghwado and, following the Ganghwa Island incident, threatened to open fire on the Korean capital city. Treaty negotiations with the U.S. and with several European countries were made possible by the completion of this initial Japanese overture.
Negotiations with Qing were a significant feature of the process which resulted in this treaty. The Chinese played a significant role in the treaty negotiation, although Korea was an independent country at the time, which was explicitly mentioned in the treaty.

Treaty provisions

The United States and Korea negotiated and approved a 14 article treaty. The treaty established mutual friendship and mutual assistance in case of attack; and the treaty also addressed such specific matters as extraterritorial rights for U.S. citizens in Korea and most favored nation trade status.

Abstract

The treaty encompasses a range of subjects.
  • Article 1 provides:
  • Article 2... exchange of diplomatic and consular representatives
  • Article 3... United States vessels wrecked on coast of Korea
  • Article 4... United States extraterritorial jurisdiction over its citizens in Korea
  • Article 5... merchants and merchant vessels shall reciprocally pay duties
  • Article 6... reciprocal rights of residence and protection of citizens of both nations
  • Article 7... prohibiting export or import of opium
  • Article 8... export of "breadstuffs" and red ginseng
  • Article 9... regulating importation of arms and ammunition
  • Article 10.. reciprocal rights to employing native labor
  • Article 11.. students exchanges
  • Article 14.. the usual most-favored-nation clause
The treaty remained in effect until the Treaty of Portsmouth in 1905.

Aftermath

Joseon sent a diplomatic mission to the U.S. in 1883, marking the first ever such official visit to North America by Koreans. The U.S. treaty established a template which was explicitly modeled in treaties with European nations — Germany in 1883, Russia and Italy in 1884, France in 1886, and others as well.
The treaty remained in effect even until the U.S. recognized 'Article 2' in the Treaty of Portsmouth of 1905, which eventually cleared the way for Japan's takeover of Korea in 1910.