Park Chung Hee
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Francesca Maria Barbara Donner (Korean: 프란체스카 도너; Peurancheseuka Doneo; June 15, 1900 – March 19, 1992) was the inaugural First Lady of South Korea, from 1948 to 1960, as the second wife of Syngman Rhee, the first president of the Republic of Korea.
During the flight, Rhee and Francesca Donner, his Austrian wife, went to the cockpit to thank the pilot and crew. Rhee's wife offered the pilot a valuable diamond ring in thanks, which was courteously declined.
Syngman Rhee met his wife, Francesca Donner, an Austrian delegate, at a League of Nations conference in Geneva and they married in October, 1933. He died of stroke, on July 19, 1965, at the age of 90 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Oct 11, 2023 · Syngman Rhee, a Princeton Ph.D. graduate, went on to become the first president of South Korea in 1948. His tenure as president was marred by controversy over autocratic tendencies.
Rhee eventually became the first president of the Republic of Korea, and as a result his Austrian wife became South Korea’s first First Lady. To date, no scholarly publication has exclusively detailed Donner-Rhee’s life.
Jul 19, 1998 · Syngman Rhee (born March 26, 1875, P’yŏngsan, Hwanghae province, Korea [now in North Korea]—died July 19, 1965, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.) was the first president of the Republic of Korea (South Korea).
May 22, 2024 · Syngman Rhee and his wife Francesca with Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower in Washington D.C., July 1954. Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library. Though often considered a forgotten war, the Korean War had an impact of global proportions.
Rhee, his Austrian-born wife, Francisca Donner, and adopted son lived in exile in Honolulu, Hawaii, until Rhee died of a stroke on July 19, 1965. His body was returned to Seoul and buried in the National Cemetery on July 27 of the same year.
Franziska and Ree fell in love and got married. Franziska followed her husband first to the USA and then to Hawaii, where a small group of exiled politicians worked on their return.
Formerly Rhee's personal secretary, Yi and his wife (Mrs. Rhee's confidant, and a power-behind-the-scenes) had convinced the childless Rhee to adopt their son as his legal heir. For fear that Rhee's health might be impaired, he was carefully shielded from all information that might upset him.
