Chapter 11: Taekwondo Development

1945: Moo Duk Kwan

The "Moo-duk-kwan" (military virtue training hall) was founded on November 9, 1945, by Hwang Kee (aka. Ki-Chang Hang). Moo Duk Kwan's customs were the strongest among the first five big Kwans. There are two distinct schools of Moo Duk Kwan which evolved from a single source in modern Korean: Tang-soo-do (way of the Chinese hand or knife hand) (the Japanese character used to depict this term is the same one used in karate) and Moo-duk-kwan, a division of Taekwondo.

Kee was an expatriate of Korea during much of its Japanese occupation. He said he initially studied the Korean arts of Soo-bak-do and Taekkyon in his homeland before leaving Korea in 1936 to immigrate to China and work for the Southern Manchuria Railroad.In early interviews, Kee states that he studied numerous systems of Chinese martial arts while living in China. He said that, "At that time, in China, the instruction was not publicized like it is now. Most instructors introduced techniques to only a few people. Only people who would not misuse the knowledge they were allowed to study." Later he said that he also studied a system of karate while in China, though none of this has ever been substantiated. This has lead to debate as to where he actually came upon his advanced knowledge of the martial arts. Nevertheless, he helped modern Korean martial arts gain worldwide acceptance.