Preface m II Sung has ruled the northern half of Korea for four decades, the only political leader the North Korean people have known. While he is still general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and still president of the republic, he has effectively turned over the daily operation of the party and the government to his son. Kim II Sung is called the supreme leader and the sun of the nation.

The record of Kim's accomplishments is indeed impressive. He fought the Japanese despite insurmountable odds and persisted to the end without submitting to the Japanese. Returning from the Manchurian plains at the end of World War II without political roots in Korea, he served under the Soviet occupation authorities in order to consolidate his power. Supported by his partisan guerrillas, Kim used the political division of Korea to his advantage by eliminating his rivals. In an effort to reunify the divided country militarily, Kim launched an attack on the South, thus starting the Korean War, and he was saved from sure defeat only by the Chinese volunteers. By the time the Chinese troops withdrew from Korea, he was able to claim undisputed political leadership.