 Samcheonggak was first established in 1972 by the authoritarian Park Chung-hee government as a traditional Korean entertainment venue (Kisaeng house) for high-ranking government officials, especially the meeting between the respective Red Cross groups of South and North Korea.After the assassination of Park Chung-hee by Kim Jae-kyu in 1979, Samcheonggak operated as a private restaurant.Samcheonggak was closed due to financial problems in December 1999 and purchased by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in May 2000.