Charles King Armstrong (born February 11, 1962) is an American historian of North Korea. From 2005 to 2020, he worked as the Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies at Columbia University, spending his last year on sabbatical after the university's determination that he had committed extensive plagiarism. Armstrong's works dealt with revolutions, cultures of socialism, architectural history, and diplomatic history in the contexts of East Asia and modern Korea, with a focus on North Korea.
His 2013 book, Tyranny of the Weak, won the John K. Fairbank Prize, but he returned it in 2017 after the American Historical Association asked him to account for issues with the citations, including plagiarism and source fabrication. He was investigated by Columbia in 2020 relating to rape accusations from a student, where he was found guilty of "harassment" and violating school policy prohibiting sexual relations of professors with students.[1][failed verification] He left Columbia in June 2020.