Although the Korean Peninsula was liberated from Imperial Japanese rule by the Allies at the end of World War II on 15 August 1945, it was caught in the middle of a Cold War power struggle between the Soviet Union and the United States.
It took until 1948 for a democratic election for National Assembly members to be held in South Korea. The elected assembly members set upon creating a constitution, and decided upon a presidential and unicameral system. The constitution was formally adopted and promulgated by South Korean President Syngman Rhee on 17 July 1948.