Kim Il-sung

Workers' Party of Korea

Kim Sŏng-ju 15 April 1912 Mangyongdae, Pyongyang, South Pyongan Province, Japanese Korea

8 July 1994(1994-07-08) (82) Hyangsan Residence, Hyangsan County, North Pyongan Province, North Korea

12 October 1966 – 8 July 1994

Founder and first leader of North Korea In this Korean name, the family name is Kim. Eternal Leader Generalissimo Kim Il-sung김일성 Kim in 1950General Secretary of the Workers' Party of KoreaIn office 12 October 1966 – 8 July 1994Secretary See list Choe Yong-gon Kim Il Pak Kum-chol Ri Hyo-son Kim Kwang-hyop Sok San Ho Pong-hak Kim Yong-ju Pak Yong-guk Kim To-man Ri Kuk-jin Kim Jung-rin Yang Hyong-sop O Jin-u Kim Tong-gyu Han Ik-su Hyon Mu-gwang Kim Jong-il Hwang Jang-yop Kim Yong-nam Kim Hwan Yon Hyong-muk Yun Ki-bok Hong Si-hak Preceded by Himself (as Chairman)Succeeded by Kim Jong-ilPresident of North KoreaIn office 28 December 1972 – 8 July 1994Premier See list Kim Il Pak Song-chol Ri Jong-ok Kang Song-san Ri Kun-mo Yon Hyong-muk Kang Song-san Vice President See list Choe Yong-gon Kang Ryang-uk Kim Tong-kyu Kim Il Pak Song-chol Rim Chun-chu Ri Jong-ok Kim Pyong-sik Preceded by Office establishedSucceeded by Office abolishedChairman of the Workers' Party of KoreaIn office 24 June 1949 – 12 October 1966Vice Chairman See list Ho Ka-i Pak Hon-yong Kim Il Pak Chang-ok Pak Chong-ae Pak Kum-chol Pak Yong-bin Choe Yong-gon Jong Il-yong Kim Chang-man Ri Hyo-son Preceded by Kim Tu-bongSucceeded by Himself (as General Secretary)1st Premier of North KoreaIn office 9 September 1948 – 28 December 1972First Vice PremierKim IlVice Premier See list Pak Hon-yong Hong Myong-hui Kim Chaek Kim Il Jong Il-ryong Nam Il Pak Ui-wan Jong Jun-thaek Kim Kwang-hyop Kim Chang-man Ri Jong-ok Ri Ju-yon Pak Song-chol Choe Yong-jin Preceded by Office establishedSucceeded by Kim IlSupreme Commander of the Korean People's ArmyIn office 5 July 1950 – 24 December 1991Preceded by Choe Yong-gonSucceeded by Kim Jong-il Personal detailsBornKim Sŏng-ju (1912-04-15 ) 15 April 1912 Mangyongdae, Pyongyang, South Pyongan Province, Japanese Korea (now Pyongyang, North Korea)Died8 July 1994(1994-07-08) (aged 82) Hyangsan Residence, Hyangsan County, North Pyongan Province, North KoreaResting placeKumsusan Palace of the Sun, PyongyangNationalityNorth KoreanPolitical partyWorkers' Party of KoreaOther political affiliationsWorkers' Party of North Korea (1946–1949) Communist Party of China (1931–1946)Spouse(s)Kim Jong-suk ​ ​(m. 1941; died 1949)​Kim Song-ae ​ ​(m. 1952)​ChildrenKim Jong-ilKim Man-ilKim Kyong-huiKim Kyong-jinKim Pyong-ilKim Yong-ilParentsKim Hyong-jikKang Pan-sokRelativesKim dynastyResidencePyongyang, North KoreaProfessionPoliticianSignatureMilitary serviceAllegiance North Korea  Soviet Union Communist ChinaBranch/service  Korean People's Army Ground Force Red Army Northeast Anti-Japanese United ArmyYears of service1941–19451948–1994Rank Taewonsu (대원수, roughly translated as Grand Marshal or Generalissimo)Unit88th Separate Rifle Brigade, Red ArmyCommandsAll  (Supreme Commander) Battles/warsWorld War IIKorean WarKorean nameChosŏn'gŭl김일성 Hancha金日成 Revised RomanizationGim Il(-)seongMcCune–ReischauerKim IlsŏngBirth nameChosŏn'gŭl김성주 Hancha金成柱 Revised RomanizationGim Seong(-)juMcCune–ReischauerKim Sŏngchu Central institution membership 1980–1994: Member, Presidium of the Political Bureau of the 6th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1970-1980: Member, Political Committee of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1966–1994: Secretariat of the Workers' Party of Korea 1966-1970: Member, Standing Committee of the Political Committee of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1961-1970: Chairman, Political Committee of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1956-1961: Member, Standing Committee of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1948–1994: Deputy, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Supreme People's Assembly 1946-1956: Member, Political Committee of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1946–1994: Member, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Other offices held 1982-1994: Chairman, Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea 1972–1992: Chairman, National Defense Commission of the Central People's Committee of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea 1970-1982: Chairman, Military Commission of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea 1992-1993: Chairman, National Defense Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea 1947-1948: Chairman, People's Committee of North Korea 1946–1949: Vice Chairman, Central Committee of the Workers' Party of North Korea 1946-1947: Chairman, Provisional People's Committee of North Korea 1945–1946: Chairman, North Korea Bureau of the Communist Party of Korea Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (Inaugural holder) Kim Jong-il → Kim Il-sung (/ˈ k ɪ m ˈ ɪ l ˈ s ʌ ŋ , -ˈ s ʊ ŋ / ; Korean: 김일성 , Korean pronunciation:  ; born Kim Sŏng-ju (김성주), 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of Premier from 1948 to 1972 and President from 1972 to 1994. He was also the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) from 1949 to 1994 (titled as Chairman from 1949 to 1966 and as General Secretary after 1966). Coming to power after the end of Japanese rule in 1945, he authorized the invasion of South Korea in 1950, triggering an intervention in defense of South Korea by the United Nations led by the United States. Following the military stalemate in the Korean War, a ceasefire was signed on 27 July 1953. He was the third longest-serving non-royal head of state/government in the 20th century, in office for more than 45 years. Under his leadership, North Korea was established as a communist state with a centrally planned economy. It had close political and economic relations with the Soviet Union. By the late 1950s and during the 1960s and 1970s, North Korea enjoyed a higher standard of living than the South, which was suffering from political chaos and economic crises. The situation was reversed in the 1980s, as a newly stable South Korea became an economic powerhouse which was fueled by Japanese and American investment, military aid and internal economic development, while North Korea stagnated and then declined during the same period. Differences emerged between North Korea and the Soviet Union, chief among them was Kim Il-sung's philosophy of Juche, which focused on Korean nationalism, self-reliance and socialism. Despite this, the country received funds, subsidies and aid from the USSR and the Eastern Bloc until the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. The resulting loss of economic aid adversely affected the North's economy, causing widespread famine in 1994. During this period, North Korea also remained critical of the United States defense force's presence in the region, which it considered imperialist, having seized the American ship USS Pueblo in 1968, which was part of an infiltration and subversion campaign to reunify the peninsula under North Korea's rule. Kim outlived his allies Joseph Stalin by four decades and Mao Zedong by almost two decades, and remained in power during the terms of office of six South Korean Presidents and ten US Presidents. Known as the Great Leader (Suryong), he established a personality cult which dominates domestic politics in North Korea. At the 6th WPK Congress in 1980, his oldest son Kim Jong-il was elected to be a Presidium member and chosen to be his successor. Kim Il-sung's birthday is a public holiday in North Korea called the "Day of the Sun". In 1998, 4 years after his death, Kim Il-sung was declared "eternal President of the Republic".