He was born on September 7, 1869, in
Hanseong,
Gyeonggi as the eldest of three children of Park Joo-pyo and Namyang Hong. In 1887, he took the exam in
Mugwa and on September 28, 1896, he entered the
Military Academy of Korean Empire.
Yi Hak-gyun, the academy principal, was a nationalist who opposed Japanese influence, which influenced Pak's beliefs. He graduated on March 21, 1897, and was commissioned as a Second-Lieutenant in the
Imperial Korean Guards. Afterwards, on November 11, 1899, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in the army and was appointed as the platoon commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Siwi Regiment and on July 23, 1900, he was promoted to the rank of captain and took the command of the 1st company of the 1st Qinwi Regiment. Then on 14 August 1900 he took the command of company leader of the 1st Siwi Regiment. On 15 February 1904, Park was promoted to Major and became the 1st Battalion leader of
1st Siwi Regiment. In August 2003, he was selected as a national figure of South Korea. == In popular culture ==