In Juche 12 (1923) when he was 12-years old, Kim Il Sung made a 250-mile Journey for Learning to get a good knowledge of Korea, his homeland.

Two years later, he again set out on the same long journey with a high ambition to liberate the country from the Japanese imperialist aggressors, a journey which covered the course from Mangyongdae in Pyongyang, his birthplace, to northeastern China.

Through his journey he experienced the tragedies the homeland was suffering from Japan's colonial rule and hardened his will never to return home unless he liberated the country.

With this firm pledge, he had waged a fierce anti-Japanese armed struggle for many years to accomplish the historic cause of national liberation.

To convey his undying feats for national liberation, the Korean people built the Arch of Triumph at the foot of Moran Hill in Pyongyang in April 1982. Carved in relief on it are letters reading "1925-1945".