Their escape took place in secrecy; it was arranged by the pro-Russian official Yi Bum-jin, the Russian consul Karl Ivanovich Weber, and others.

The event, which was triggered in part by the king's fear of a coup d'état and his reaction to the murder of his wife Empress Myeongseong by the Japanese, marked a shift in Joseon politics away from the pro-Japanese reform faction and toward to the conservative faction which had been aligned with Queen Min (later given the title Empress Myeongseong).

Members of the old cabinet were killed or forced to flee, including Kim Hong-jip, Eo Yun-jung, and Yu Gil-jun.

Trade and resource concessions were granted to Russia, and to a lesser degree to other Western powers including the United States.

After the Russo-Japanese war, Japan, determined to secure more control, signed a coercive treaty in 1905 that made Korea a protectorate.