The History of South Korea formally begins with the establishment of South Korea on 15 August 1948, although Syngman Rhee had declared the establishment of it on 13 August because Korea was then divided to the 38th parallel north in accordance with a United Nations arrangement as the war had ended with the Japanese and was administered by the Soviet Union in the North and in the United States in the South. The Soviets and Americans were unable to agree on the implementation of Joint Trusteeship over Korea and this was leaded in the 1948 with two separate governments, each claiming to be the legitimate government of all of Korea and eventually it was led to a war in Korea. In the end Korea was separated into countries which are called North and South Korea.
After the separation, South Korea's subsequent history is marked by alternating periods of democratic and autocratic rule. Civilian governments are conventionally numbered from the First Republic of Syngman Rhee to the contemporary Sixth Republic. The First Republic, arguably democratic at its inception, became increasingly autocratic until its collapse in 1960. The Second Republic was strongly democratic, but was overthrown in less than a year and replaced by an autocratic military regime. The Third, Fourth, and Fifth Republics were nominally democratic, but are widely regarded as the continuation of military rule. With the Sixth Republic, the country has gradually stabilized into a liberal democracy.
Since its inception, South Korea has seen substantial development in education, economy and culture. Since the 1960s, the country has developed from one of Asia's poorest to one of the world's wealthiest nations. Education, particularly at the tertiary level, has expanded dramatically. It is said to be one of the "Four Tigers" of rising Asian states along with Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
