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Cho Kyŏnghan, hailing from Sunch’ŏn (Sŭngju), Chŏllanam -do, participated in the independence movement in Korea in conjunction with the Gunners Group and the Korean
Independence Group, among others. Afterwards, in May 1927, Cho Kyŏnghan went to Manchuria (northeastern China) to seek asylum, and threw himself into a very bumpy armed struggle against the Japanese. In January 1934, he advanced into Nanjing and other cities in China to lead various political parties that were devoted to the independence movement. Also, in the first half of the 1940s, he served as a member of the cabinet of the Korean Provisional Government, as well as in an important post withthe Korean Restoration Army, vigorously campaigning for the independence movement. In this way Cho Kyŏnghan was able to conduct diverse independence
movements overseas for 20 years. Such exploits were rare among independence activists from the Chŏlla-do region. As the Japanese pushed for a full-blown attack on Manchuria in thewake of the September 18, 1931 Incident (the so-called Manchurian Incident), Cho Kyŏnghan, in October of the same year, joined the Korean Independence Army, which had been established in northern Manchuria by the Korean Independence Party, as one of its major leaders. Afterwards,
having been appointed to major posts such as the chief of staff and the head of the publicity unit, he fought many battles against the Japanese in conjunction with Chinese volunteer military units such as the Jirin Self-Defense Army. In particular, from January 1932 to October 1933, he joined
numerous battles against the Japanese, including those of Shulanxian, Shuangchengbao, Jingbohu, Dongjingcheng, Taidianziling and Dongningxiancheng, dealing great blows to the Manchurian National Army and the Japanese Army, and earning himself great victories in the process. Notably, in the Battle of Taidianziling, he led his army to take a vast quantity of the Japanese Army’s military supplies, thereby achieving a great victory. The independence movement - led by the Korean Independence Army - in the Manchurian region, where Cho
Kyŏnghan conducted such vigorous activities, not only contributed greatly to the liberation of Koreans in northeastern China (Manchuria), but also struck serious blows against the imperialist Japanese campaign in Manchuria, lending the movement even greater significance. Furthermore, together with major figures from the Korean Independence Party and the Korean Independence Army, he moved to mainland China to join the independence movement forces active there, thereby making a great contribution to the development of Korea’s overseas independence movement. Such achievements deserve to be highly evaluated. The joint battle against the Japanese, uniting the Korean Independence Army (which Cho Kyŏnghan joined) with Chinese volunteer military units, has been evaluated as part of the efforts of the populace to form a united front against imperialism and to campaign for anti-Fascism by confronting the imperialist Japanese invasion of China.