Garden of Gratitude at Gwanghwamun Square draws 100,000 visitors in 80 days

The Garden of Gratitude at Gwanghwamun Square surpassed 100,000 cumulative visitors to its Freedom Hall just over 80 days after opening, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said Thursday.

As of 10 p.m. Wednesday, Freedom Hall had recorded 100,040 cumulative visitors since the garden opened May 13, the city said.

Seoul initially tracked only visitors to Freedom Hall, the site's indoor space, but began separately counting visitors to the above-ground sculpture "Light of Gratitude 23" from July 9. Combined daily attendance at both venues averaged 3,779 from July 9 through Wednesday. Gwanghwamun Square, which first opened in August 2009 and marks its 17th anniversary this year, was renovated and reopened in 2022 with more than double the pedestrian area and expanded fountain and green spaces.

Since the Garden of Gratitude opened May 13, the site has drawn a steady stream of family visitors seeking hands-on history education, as well as students, foreign nationals and domestic and international tour groups.

In July, a volunteer group from the UN Memorial Cemetery in Busan visited Freedom Hall to honor the sacrifices of the nations that fought in the Korean War. That same month, descendants of Ethiopia's Kagnew Battalion — which served in the war — paid a visit and performed Korean songs as a gift. The Kagnew Choir, made up of those descendants, sang "Hometown Spring" and "Alone, Arirang" and staged a fan dance.

Kang Seok, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Balanced Development Bureau, said the city would continue expanding cultural and education programs so that the Garden of Gratitude could grow beyond a simple exhibition facility into "a living memorial platform that lets people experience historical meaning and broadens intergenerational dialogue and international solidarity." He added that the city would work with citizens to make Gwanghwamun Square and the Garden of Gratitude "a beloved symbol of history, culture and peace representing the Republic of Korea."

The Garden of Gratitude was created to honor the sacrifice and dedication of the 22 nations that fought in the Korean War and to reestablish Gwanghwamun Square as a historical and cultural space embodying the identity of liberal democracy. Construction began in November last year and took six months to complete. The symbolic sculpture and exhibition facility cost a total of 20.6 billion won ($14.5 million). Mayor Oh Se-hoon, then a mayoral candidate, attended the completion ceremony on May 13 and said that while Gwanghwamun Square had long been home to the patriotic spirit of Admiral Yi Sun-sin and the benevolent spirit of King Sejong, "there was actually no space to remember the freedom and prosperity of a free Republic of Korea, or the solidarity with citizens of the world." The Garden of Gratitude, he said, "fills exactly that void." He added that "the liberal democracy and peace that the veterans of the participating nations fought to defend are the core values our Constitution upholds and the most important values sustaining today's Republic of Korea," and that "Gwanghwamun Square, where Koreans and foreigners mingle freely, is the place where the Garden of Gratitude can shine brightest."