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The native Koreans were not aware that the American President Wilson was not the quite the good person he claimed to be. America had years earlier agreed to Japan's annexation of Korea. The 33 organizers of the movement were mostly Christian idealists and had no experience in mass movement, so the March failed disastrously. The Japanese suppressed the movement with brutal force, firing into groups of Korean Christians singing hymns. Christian leaders were nailed to wooden crosses and were left to die a slow death "so that they can go to heaven." Mounted police beheaded young schoolchildren and police burned down churches. The official Japanese count of casualties include 553 killed, 1,409 injured, and 12,522 arrested, but the Korean estimates are much higher, over 7,500 killed, about 15,000 injured, and 45,000 arrested. As a part of the occupation, the Japanese government banned the practice of martial arts in Korea, but pursuit of martial arts by Koreans was not completely eliminated, thought it was restricted to the Japanese military.

Taekkyon existed in underground schools and it was practiced by Korean citizens living abroad. One of the more common places for Koreans to go to learn martial arts was Japan, and several Koreans who were to become influential in the development of Taekwondo, began their martial art study in Japan.

Buddhism was dominant in the Silla Dynasty and in the following Koryo Dynasty, while Confucianism dominated the subsequent Joseon Dynasty. While Koreans may admire Koguryo for strength and Paekche for refinement, they seem to regard Silla's mixture of Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism (Taoism) and native shamanism as having been uniquely Korean.

When Japan entered World War II, the Koreans were drawn into the war because of their occupation by the Japanese. After the war ended, the Japanese were forced from Korea by the allies and Korea was divided between the allies, thus beginning another occupation.

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