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Wonsu
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wonsu | |
|---|---|
 
|
|
| Korean name | |
| Hangul: |
원수
|
| Hanja: |
元帥
|
| Revised Romanization: | Wonsu |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Wŏnsu |
A Wonsu is the highest military rank of the Republic of Korea (ROK) armed forces and is the combined equivalent of a General of the Army, Fleet Admiral and Marshal of the Royal Air Force in other nations. The rank exists on paper only, and has never been held by an officer of the South Korean Armed Forces. It is theorized that the rank could be bestowed in the event of another major war; however, such a rank would only be issued in the event of a prolonged conflict.
The South Korean rank insignia for Wonsu is heavily influenced by United States military insignia, in that a five star pentagon design is used very similar to the U.S. rank of General of the Army.
The rank of Wonsu also found in the military of North Korea where it is held by senior only by Kim Jong-il. A North Korean Wonsu is rated above the rank known as Chasu (Vice Marshal) with the North Korean Wonsu considered the equivalent of a six star general.
An even higher rank, that of Dae Wonsu may be held by the commander-in-chief of the entire North Korean military. Kim Il-Sung once held this supreme rank as president of North Korea.
Coincidentally, "wonsu" is also a word meaning "enemy"(怨讐) in South Korea. The two words have different etymologies and completely different hanja, but are homophonous and so are written identically in hangul. This is not the case in North Korea, where the government has addressed the issue by changing the word for enemy to "wonssu" (원쑤).