Incheon

Incheon, also Inch’ŏn, formerly Chemulpo, city in northwestern South Korea, on the Yellow Sea, at the mouth of the Han River. Located about 35 km (about 22 mi) southwest of Seoul, Incheon serves as the capital city's chief port and naval facility, owing to its excellent ice-free harbor. Incheon imports textiles, silk, metals, railroad material, and petroleum, and exports rice, beans, ginseng, hides, wheat, electronic equipment, and paper. The city also boasts industries that process lumber, refine petroleum, and manufacture chemicals, steel products, and textiles. Fishing plays an important role in the local economy, as it has for the last 500 years. Salt is also extracted from salt fields on the nearby tidal flats. Public swimming beaches and excellent seafood attract crowds of visitors to Incheon in the summer. The city is administered directly at the level of a province by the central government of South Korea.

Incheon has historically played a crucial role in the opening of Korea to the outside world. The city was the site of the first visit to Korea by Western envoys in 1882. The following year Incheon was one of three Korean treaty ports—along with Busan and Wonsan—opened to foreign trade. In 1900 a railroad connection was established with Seoul. Incheon developed into a modern seaport during the period of Japanese rule in Korea, from 1910 to 1945, when measures were taken to protect port facilities from the 10 m (33 ft) tide level fluctuations.

During the Korean War (1950-1953), Incheon was the site of a major landing of United Nations troops led by United States general Douglas MacArthur in September 1950. Widely considered to be a pivotal moment in the war, this landing led to the first liberation of Seoul. Population 2,475,139 (2000).