Born in Gyeongnam, he went to study in the United States in 1897, where he studied literature at Roanoke University and completed his master’s degree at Princeton University in 1904. After returning to Korea in 1905, he served as the secretary-general of the Gyeongseong Youth Association and concurrently held positions as the vice-principal of Gyeongshin School and a professor at Yeonhui College. In 1913, he went to China and took the lead in the overseas national movement.
In March 1919, as a representative of the Korean provisional government in Shanghai, he attended the peace conference held in Paris, France, intending to submit a petition to inform about the situation in Korea, but it ended up being in vain. After the establishment of the provisional government, he served as the Secretary-General and the Minister of Education, and in September, he became the chairman of the Korean Commission in the United States.
He later returned to the United States to continue his studies and received a doctorate in law from Roanoke University in 1923. In 1924, he worked as a professor in Shanghai and Sichuan, and in 1944, he became the vice-chairman of the Korean provisional government. After returning to Korea in 1945, he was elected as the chairman of the legislative committee of the Korean provisional government. In 1952, he was abducted by the Communist Party and passed away under suspicious circumstances.
In 1989, the government posthumously awarded him the Order of Merit for National Foundation.
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