Born April 15, 1912
Man'gyondae, Korea
Died July 8, 1994
P'yongyang, North Korea

Premier of North Korea

Kim Il Sung was a communist dictator who ruled North Korea throughout the Cold War. The Cold War was an intense political and economic rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted from 1945 to 1991. Asserting his rule with an iron hand, Kim Il Sung was the longest-serving leader of a communist government in the twentieth century. He created an almost mythical cult status for himself within North Korea, but he was little known elsewhere because he purposely kept North Korea isolated from the outside world.

Early years

Kim Il Sung was born Kim Sung Ju in April 1912 to a middle-class Korean family in the village of Man'gyondae, located in northwestern Korea. He was the oldest of three sons. His father, Kim Hyung-jik, was a...