Coup d'état of December Twelfth

The Coup d'état of December Twelfth (Hangul: 12.12 군사반란; Hanja: 12.12 軍事叛亂) or the "12.12 Military Insurrection" was a military coup d'état which took place on December 12, 1979, in South Korea.

Republic of Korea Army Lieutenant General Chun Doo-hwan, commander of the Security Command, acting without authorization from Acting President Choi Kyu-ha, ordered the arrest of General Jeong Seung-hwa, ROK Army Chief of Staff, on allegations of involvement in the assassination of President Park Chung Hee. This led to a bloody shoot-out at the Army Headquarters and the Ministry of Defense. By the next morning, Chun and his fellow eleventh class military academy graduates such as Major General Roh Tae-woo, commanding general of 9th Infantry Division, and Major General Jeong Ho-yong were in charge of the Korean military. Chun was supported in the coup and the subsequent consolidation of power by the powerful private club of military officials called Hanahoe.

Coup d'état of December Twelfth and Coup d'état of May Seventeenth ended the Fourth Republic of South Korea and led to the Fifth Republic of South Korea.