| Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps | |
|---|---|
| 대한민국의 해병대사령관 | |
 Flag of the Commandant of the Marine Corps | |
| Incumbent Lt. Gen. Ju Il-Seok since December 6, 2024 | |
| Republic of Korea Marine Corps | |
| Inaugural holder | Shin Hyun-joon |
| Formation | April 15, 1949 |
The Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps (Korean: 대한민국의 해병대사령관) is the head of the South Korean marines. The current commandant is Ju Il-Seok, starting from 6 December 2024.
History
The first commandant was Shin Hyun-joon, serving from April 1949 to October 1953. The billet of commandant was disbanded in 1973 and re-established in 1987. The commandant typically holds the rank of lieutenant general (Korean: 중장).
List
| No. | Portrait | Commandant of the Marine Corps | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commandant of the Marine Corps | ||||||
| 1 |
 | Major General Shin Hyun-joon (1915–2007) | 15 April 1949 | 15 October 1953 | 4 years, 183 days | |
| 2 |
 | Major General Kim Seok-beom (1915–1998) | 15 October 1953 | 4 September 1957 | 3 years, 324 days | |
| 3 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Dae-shik (1918–1999) | 4 September 1957 | 24 June 1960 | 2 years, 294 days | |
| 4 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Seung-un (1918–1999) | 24 June 1960 | 1 July 1962 | 2 years, 7 days | |
| 5 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Du-chan | 1 July 1962 | 11 July 1964 | 2 years, 10 days | |
| 6 |
| Lieutenant General Gong Jeong-sik (1925–2019) | 11 July 1964 | 1 July 1966 | 1 year, 355 days | |
| 7 |
| General Gang Gicheon (1927–2019) | 1 July 1966 | 1 July 1969 | 3 years, 0 days | |
| 8 |
| General Jeong Gwang-ho (1922–2020) | 1 July 1969 | 1 July 1971 | 2 years, 0 days | |
| Second Vice Chief of Naval Operations | ||||||
| 9 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Yeon-sang | 10 October 1973 | 10 July 1975 | 1 year, 273 days | |
| 10 |
| Lieutenant General Lee Dong-yong | 10 July 1975 | 31 August 1977 | 2 years, 52 days | |
| 11 |
| Lieutenant General Jeong Tae-seok | 31 August 1977 | 26 September 1979 | 2 years, 26 days | |
| 12 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Jeong-ho (1931–2013) | 26 September 1979 | 16 March 1981 | 1 year, 171 days | |
| 13 |
_Lieutenant_General_Choi_Ki-duk_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%B5%9C%EA%B8%B0%EB%8D%95_(DM-SC-83-01633).jpeg) | Lieutenant General Choi Ki-duk (1930–2016) | 16 March 1981 | 28 December 1982 | 1 year, 287 days | |
| 14 |
_Lieutenant_General_Park_Hee-jae_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EB%B0%95%ED%9D%AC%EC%9E%AC_(DF-ST-85-10540_Nightmare_Range,_Republic_Of_Korea).jpeg) | Lieutenant General Park Hee-jae (1932–2020) | 28 December 1982 | 4 September 1984 | 1 year, 251 days | |
| 15 |
| Lieutenant General Seong Byeong-mun | 4 September 1984 | 3 September 1986 | 1 year, 364 days | |
| 16 |
_Park_Koo_II.jpeg) | Lieutenant General Park Koo-il (1934–2020) | 3 September 1986 | 31 October 1987 | 1 year, 58 days | |
| Commandant of the Marine Corps | ||||||
| (16) |
| Lieutenant General Park Koo-il (1934–2020) | 31 October 1987 | 3 September 1988 | 308 days | |
| 17 |
| Lieutenant General Choi Gap-jin | 3 September 1988 | 3 September 1990 | 2 years, 0 days | |
| 18 |
| Lieutenant General Jo Gi-yeop | 3 September 1990 | 30 June 1992 | 1 year, 301 days | |
| 19 |
| Lieutenant General Lim Jong-rin | 30 June 1992 | 30 June 1994 | 2 years, 0 days | |
| 20 |
| Lieutenant General Lee Sang-mu | 30 June 1994 | 29 June 1996 | 1 year, 365 days | |
| 21 |
| Lieutenant General Jeon Do-bong (born 1942) | 29 June 1996 | 8 April 1998 | 1 year, 283 days | |
| 22 |
| Lieutenant General Lee Gap-jin | 8 April 1998 | 18 October 1999 | 1 year, 193 days | |
| 23 |
_Lieutenant_General_Kim_Myung-hwan_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EA%B9%80%EB%AA%85%ED%99%98_(DM-SD-03-03062).jpeg) | Lieutenant General Kim Myung-hwan | 18 October 1999 | 11 October 2001 | 1 year, 358 days | |
| 24 |
_Lieutenant_General_Lee_Chul-woo_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%9D%B4%EC%B2%A0%EC%9A%B0_(DM-SD-03-15003).jpeg) | Lieutenant General Lee Chul-woo | 11 October 2001 | 22 April 2003 | 1 year, 193 days | |
| 25 |
_Lieutenant_General_Kim_In-sik_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EA%B9%80%EC%9D%B8%EC%8B%9D_(DM-SD-05-10218_USMC_Recruit_Depot,_San_Diego).jpeg) | Lieutenant General Kim In-sik | 22 April 2003 | 2 May 2005 | 2 years, 10 days | |
| 26 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Myung-gyun | 2 May 2005 | 28 April 2006 | 361 days | |
| 27 |
| Lieutenant General Lee Sang-ro | 28 April 2006 | 8 April 2008 | 1 year, 346 days | |
| 28 |
_Lieutenant_General_Lee_Hong-hee_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%9D%B4%ED%99%8D%ED%9D%AC_(%EA%B5%AD%EC%A0%95%EA%B0%90%EC%82%AC_(7438812230)).jpg) | Lieutenant General Lee Hong-hee | 8 April 2008 | 23 June 2010 | 2 years, 76 days | |
| 29 |
_Lieutenant_General_Yoo_Nak-jun_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%9C%A0%EB%82%99%EC%A4%80_(2010.12.4_%EA%B9%80%EA%B4%80%EC%A7%84_%EA%B5%AD%EB%B0%A9%EC%9E%A5%EA%B4%80_%EC%9E%84%EB%AA%85_(7445568934)).jpg) | Lieutenant General Yoo Nak-jun | 23 June 2010 | 18 October 2011 | 1 year, 117 days | |
| 30 |
 | Lieutenant General Lee Ho Yeon | 18 October 2011 | 28 September 2013 | 1 year, 345 days | |
| 31 |
_Lieutenant_General_Lee_Yeong-ju_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%9D%B4%EC%98%81%EC%A3%BC_(2013.9.27_%EA%B5%B0_%EC%9E%A5%EC%84%B1_%EC%A7%84%EA%B8%89_%EB%B0%8F_%EB%B3%B4%EC%A7%81_%EC%8B%A0%EA%B3%A0_(10047189556)).jpg) | Lieutenant General Lee Yeong-ju (born 1957) | 28 September 2013 | 13 April 2015 | 1 year, 197 days | |
| 32 |
_Lieutenant_General_Lee_Sang-hoon_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%9D%B4%EC%83%81%ED%9B%88_(ROK_Marine_Corps_commandant_visits_Okinawa_151211-M-XX124-102).jpg) | Lieutenant General Lee Sang-hoon (born 1959) | 13 April 2015 | 13 April 2017 | 2 years, 0 days | |
| 33 |
_Lieutenant_General_Jun_Jin-goo_%ED%95%B4%EB%B3%91%EC%A4%91%EC%9E%A5_%EC%A0%84%EC%A7%84%EA%B5%AC_(UNC-CFC-USFK_photo_170625-A-HU462-383).jpg) | Lieutenant General Jun Jin-goo (born 1962) | 13 April 2017 | 12 April 2019 | 1 year, 364 days | |
| 34 |
| Lieutenant General Lee Seung-doo | 12 April 2019 | 13 April 2021 | 2 years, 1 day | |
| 35 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Tae-seong (born 1966) | 13 April 2021 | 7 December 2022 | 1 year, 238 days | |
| 36 |
| Lieutenant General Kim Gye-hwan (born 1968) | 7 December 2022 | 6 December 2024 | 1 year, 365 days | |
| 37 |
| Lieutenant General Ju Il-seok (born 1969) | 6 December 2024 | 44 days | ||
Notelist
References
- Durand 2017, p. 16.
- Durand 2017, p. 27.
- ^ Durand 2017, p. 28.
Sources
- Durand, James (2017). "General Shin Hyun-joon: Father of the Marine Corps" (PDF). International Journal of Korean Studies. XXI.