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Urban combat in Seoul, 1950, as US Marines fight North Koreans holding the city.
Egyptian support troops (there were no Egyptian forces involved in the fighting!) that are about to board U.S. Army Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw helicopters to be transported to the front lines at the 6th Transportation Helicopter Company, Eighth Army, Korea (December 1953).
The location[]
Over view[]
The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula in East Asia. It extends southwards for about 684 miles from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan, Yellow Sea, Korea Strait, Cheju Strait and Korea Bay. It extends southwards for about 684 miles (1,100 km) from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan (In Korea known as Donghae/East Sea) to the east, and the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the first two bodies of water. The peninsula's area is 219,140 sq km (84,610 sq miles), with a total coastline length of 8,458 km (5,255 miles). The Southern population has grown greatly since 1955, but the Northern population has only had modest groath.
- Countries: North Korea/North Korea.
- Borders on: China, Russia, Sea of Japan, East China Sea, Yellow Sea, Korea Strait.
- Highest point: Paektu Mountain 2,744 m (9,003 ft).
- Lowest point: sea level.
- Length: 1,100 km (684 mi), north to south.
- Area: 220,847 km2 (85,270 sq mi).
- Population: 74,461,933 (2012).
- Population density: 337 / km2 (873 / sq mi).
- First human population occered: circa ~800,000 BCE.
Climate and terrain[]
Circa ~70% of the Korean Peninsula is covered by mountains, although there are some arable lands on the plains between the mountain ranges. The eastern Taebaek Mountains are a mountain range that stretches across North Korea and South Korea. They form the main ridge of the Korean peninsula, with others forming near the border with China. The west coast, including Seoul, Inchon and Pyongyang, and the souhern region south of Busan (Pusan) is a flat arable land.
The climate of Korea differs dramatically from north to south. The southern regions experience a relatively warm and wet climate similar to that of Japan, affected by warm ocean waters including the East Korea Warm Current. The northern regions experience a colder and to some extent more inland climate, in common with Manchuria. For example, the annual precipitation of the Yalu River valley (600 mm (24 in)) is less than half of that on the south coast (1,500 mm (59 in)). Likewise, there is a 20 °C (36 °F) difference in January temperature between the peninsula's southern and northern tips
The entire peninsula, however, is affected by similar general patterns, including the East Asian monsoon in midsummer and the frequent incidence of typhoons in autumn. The majority of rainfall takes place during the summer months, with nearly half during the monsoon alone. Winters are cold, with January temperatures typically below freezing outside of Jeju Island. Winter precipitation is minimal, with little snow accumulation outside of mountainous areas.
Major settlements[]
Busan, a large port city in South Korea, is known for its beaches, mountains and temples. Busy Haeundae Beach has a Folk Square with traditional games such as tug-of-war, while Gwangalli Beach is a nightlife hub with views of modern Diamond Bridge. Beomeosa, a Buddhist temple built in 678 C.E., is at the base of Geumjeong Mountain, which offers challenging hikes.
Seoul, the capital of South Korea, is a sprawling metropolis where hyper-modern skyscrapers, high-tech subways and pop culture meet Buddhist temples, palaces and street markets. Notable attractions include futuristic Dongdaemun Design Plaza, a convention hall with curving architecture and a rooftop park; Gyeongbokgung Palace, which once had more than 7,000 rooms; and Jogyesa Temple, site of centuries-old locust and pine trees.
Incheon played a major role in the Korean War. It is the place where Korea opened up to the world in 1883. Incheon is the second largest port city in Korea and was the first city in Korea to truly begin modernizing. Wolmido Island and Yeonan Pier are top tourist attractions of Incheon and Incheon International Airport, Incheon Bridge and Incheon Songdo International City, a free economic zone and lon standing transportation hub. The city is undergoing a extrnsive real estate development and arts revival. The ultramodern, massive Incheon International Airport, with railway connections to Seoul, features a casino, spa and golf course. Yeonan Pier, close to the popular Incheon Fish Market, is the starting point for many boat tours. Incheon is also known for its beach-lined islands, including Yeongjong and Muui-dong. The population is 2.838 million (2014).
Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. It is a lot poorer, drabber and run down than Seoul. Many of the apartments are communist era styled monoliths of drab and sometimes white washed concrete. This devistated the citie's public image with the few tourists that come in from the West.
Chŏngjin is the capital of North Korea's North Hamgyong Province and the country's third largest city. It is sometimes called the City of Iron. The Chongjin concentration camp is a forced labour camp in North Korea for political prisoners. The official name is "Kwan-li-so" (English: Penal-labour Colony) No. 25.
The city Chongjin was a small fishing village prior to the Japanese annexation of Korea and its date of establishment is distant, but unknown. The Chinese characters for its name mean 'clear river crossing'. During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, Japanese forces landed at Chongjin, and established a supply base due to its proximity to the front lines in Manchuria. The Japanese remained after the end of the war, and in 1908, declared the city an open trading port both for transport of Korean resources and as a stopping point for resources from China.
Rivers and mineral resources[]
The Taebaek Mountains (or T’aebaek Mountains, (Korean: T’aebaek-sanmaek)) are economically, important for the mining of iron, coal, tungsten, timber, fluorite, and limestone. Many of the slopes are extensively covered in forests. Some Magnesite, zinc, iron, and tungsten, coal and manganese are also present in the DPRK, with most of the coal and manganese in the northern pats of the country.
They are also the locatin of the sources of South Korea’s most important rivers, among them the Han, Naktong and Kŭm.
Languages[]
The Koreanic languages is a language family consisting of the modern Korean language together with extinct ancient relatives closer to it than to any proposed links with Mongolic, Turkic, Tungusic, or Japanese. Among extant languages, Korean is considered by most linguists to be a language isolate, and by others as part of the widely rejected Altaic family. The Jeju language of Jeju Island, considered by some as a dialect of modern Korean, is distinct enough to be considered a language in its own right by other authorities. Some consider that rather than being a language isolate, Korean forms a small language family together with Jeju.
North Korean standard language or Munhwaŏ (문화어, 文化語) is the North Korean standard version of Korean language. The Pyongan dialect (평안도 사투리: p'yŏngando sat'uri), alternatively Northwestern Korean (서북 방언: sŏbuk pangŏn, 西北方言), is the Korean dialect of the northwestern Korean peninsula and neighboring parts of China. It has influenced the standard language of North Korea, but is not the basis of it, which remains Seoul dialect.
The Gyeonggi (경기 방언) or Seoul dialect (서울말) of Korean is the basis of the standard language of both North and South Korea. It is spoken in the Seoul National Capital Area in South Korea, which includes Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi, as well as in Kaesong in North Korea. The vowels for e and ae are merged for young speakers. Vowel length is not distinguished consistently, if at all. The Central Korean dialect is also popular and wide spread. Korean Street Slang is common in Busan (Pusan) and Seoul. Busan and Pyongyang also have a local accents.
English and Chinese are also spoken in the ROK and Russian and Maderin Chinese are also spoken in the DPRK.
Historical background[]
The name Korea (Korean: 조선반도 (Hanja: 朝鮮半島; MR: Chosŏn Pando) in North Korea, Korean: 한반도 (Hanja: 韓半島; RR: Han Bando) in South Korea) is derived from the Kingdom of Goguryeo, also spelled as Koryŏ.
The earliest Korean pottery finds date to ~8,000 BC, but this was probably a earlyer pre-Korean civilation. The Koreans arrived from present day Manchuria in about ~7,000 BC, with three Korean kingdoms flourishing at 1st century BC. One of them, Goguryeo, ruled Northeast China, parts of Russia and Mongolia under Gwanggaeto the Great. Since their unification into Silla and Balhae in the 7th century, Korea enjoyed over a millennium of relative tranquility under long lasting dynasties with innovations like Hangul, the unique alphabet created by Sejong the Great in 1446, enabling anyone to easily learn to read and write.
Its rich and vibrant culture left 17 UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity, the third largest in the world, along with 12 World Heritage Sites. Korea was annexed by Imperial Japan in 1910, after whose surrender in 1945, it was divided into North and South Korea. A North Korean invasion led to the Korean War (1950–53). Peace has since mostly continued with the two agreeing to work peacefully for reunification and the South solidifying peace as a regional power.
The Lower Paleolithic era in the Korean Peninsula began roughly half a million years ago.The earliest known Korean pottery dates to around ~8,000 BC, and the Neolithic period began after 6,000 BC, followed by the Bronze Age by 800 BC, and the Iron Age around 400 BC.
The history of Korea begins with the founding of Joseon (often known as "Gojoseon" to prevent confusion with another dynasty founded in the 13th century; the prefix Go- means 'older,' 'before,' or 'earlier') in 2,333 BC by Dangun, according to Korean foundation mythology.
Historians in Korea use the Three-age system to classify Korean prehistory. The three age system was applied during the post-Imperial Japanese colonization period as a way to refute the claims of Imperial Japanese colonial archaeologists who insisted that, unlike Japan, Korea had "no Bronze Age"
- Bissalmuneui or Jeulmun Pottery Period #("Neolithic") 8,000-1,500 BCE
- Incipient 8,000-6,000 BCE
- Early 6,000-3,500 BCE
- Middle 3,500-2,000 BCE
- Late 2,000-15,00/1,000 BCE
- Mumun Pottery Period ("Bronze Age") 1,500/1,000-300 BCE
- Samhan / Proto–Three Kingdoms Period ("Iron Age") 100 BCE to 300 CE
There are some problems with the three-age-system applied to the situation in Korea. This terminology was created for the situation in prehistoric Europe, where sedentism, pottery and agriculture go together to characterize the Neolithic stage. The periodization scheme used by Korean archaeologists proposes that the Neolithic began in 8,000 BCE and lasted until 1,500 BCE. This is despite the fact that palaeoethnobotanical studies indicate that the first bona fide cultivation did not begin until circa 3,500 BCE. The period of 8,000 to 35,00 BCE corresponds to the Mesolithic cultural stage, dominated by hunting and gathering of both terrestrial and marine resources.
Korean archaeologists traditionally (until the 1990s) used a date of 1,500 or 1,000 BCE as the beginning of the Bronze Age. This is in spite of Bronze technology not being adopted in the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula until circa 700 BCE, and the archaeological record indicates that bronze objects were not used in relatively large numbers until after 400 BCE. This does leave Korea with a proper Bronze Age, albeit a relatively short one, Bronze metallurgy beginning to be replaced by ferrous metallurgy soon after it had become widespread.
Korea had been an independent kingdom or Kingdoms in medieval times, but later had been de facto economically dominated by China since about 1800 and later Japan since about 1900. Invasions and battles of independence were the order of the day by about 1592, with the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598), Second Manchu invasion of Korea, French campaign against Korea (1866), United States expedition to Korea and Geomun Island Incident amongst others. After a short period of united isolationist de jure Independence; all be it with Chines, Japanese, British, Russian, French and American interference; the Korean Empire of 1897–1910 limped on untill it was annexed by Japan from 1910 to 1945, when it was finally devised between the USSR and the USA.
During World War II, Koreans at home were forced to support the Japanese war effort and 20% of the Japanese Empire's industries was in Korea by 1945. Tens of thousands of men were conscripted into Japan's military for cannon fodder, guard duty and (de facto slave) labour duties. Around 200,000 girls and women, many from Korea, were forced to engage in sexual services for the Japanese military, with the euphemism "comfort women".
Koreans were forced to adopt Japanese names. Worship at Japanese Shinto shrines was made compulsory. The school curriculum was radically modified to eliminate teaching in the Korean language and history. Numerous Korean cultural artefacts were destroyed or taken to Japan.
Resistance groups known as Dongnipgun (Liberation Army) operated along the Sino-Korean border, fighting guerrilla warfare against Japanese forces. Some of them took part in allied action in China and parts of South East Asia. One of the guerrilla leaders was the communist Kim Il-sung, who later became the leader of North Korea.
Japan's racial hatred warped Korea's attitude to the world for about the next 40 years.
The Cold War problem[]
The division of Korea between North and South Korea was the result of the Allied victory in World War II in 1945, ending the Empire of Japan's 35-year colonial rule of Korea by General Order No. 1. The United States and the Soviet Union agreed to temporarily occupy the country with the zone of control along the 38th parallel.
With the onset of the Cold War, negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union failed to lead to an independent, unified Korea.Politicaly dodgey UN-supervised elections were held in the US-occupied south only during 1948. The north became a Stalinist client state-come-dictatorship.
The combatant nations and factions[]
.
The leadership[]
Syngman Rhee awarding a medal to U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Ralph A. Ofstie during the Korean War in 1952.
History[]
The 1950–1953 Korean War was the first East-West armed clash. The earlier Berlin airlift was not a major armed clash, but just a armed blockade and counter-blockade air lift.
Both halves of Korea were beginning to become badly politically Juxtapositioned and were readying for a imminant poltical and milatery showdown! The Soviet-backed North invaded the South on June 25, 1950. so US and it's allies like the UK and the Philippines then came to the South’s aid. The UN then supported them against the North.
The Jeju Uprising[]
- Location- Jeju Island, South Korea.
- Date- April 3, 1948–May, 1949.
- Target- United States Army Military Government in Korea and later Government of South Korea.
- Deaths- ~14,000–30,000, or ~20% of population killed from all fighting.
- Perpetrators- Pak Hon-yong.
- Motive- A protest against oppression by national police employed by the US military government and the election that was held only in South Korea.
The Jeju Uprising was an attempted insurgency on the Korean province of Jeju Island followed by a brutal Anticommunist suppression campaign that lasted from April 3, 1948, until May 1949.
The main cause for the rebellion was elections scheduled for May 10, 1948, were a United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea (UNTCOK) election by then only planned for the south of the country, the half of the peninsula under UNTCOK control. So fearing the worst, guerrilla fighters for the South Korean Labour party (SKLP) reacted violently, attacking local police and rightist youth groups stationed on Jeju Island.
There were 2 notable cases, that is to say:
- American soldiers discovered the bodies of 97 men, women, and children, killed at the hand of S. Korean government forces.
- American soldiers caught S. Korean government police forces in the act of carrying out a gruesome and perverted execution of 76 villagers, including women and children.
In the end, about ~30,000 people died as a result of the rebellion, or 10% of the island’s total population and 40,000 others fled to Japan to escape the fighting.
N. Korea pushes south[]
The military of North Korea invaded the South on 25 June 1950 and swiftly overran most of the country, which some say the South was trying to provoke with some earlier black opps missions on the border..
The UN responds[]
"MiG Alley" forms[]
The event[]
"MiG Alley" is the name given by United Nations pilots to the northwestern portion of North Korea, where the Yalu River empties into the Yellow Sea in the Korean War.
During the Korean War, it was the site of numerous dogfights between UN fighter pilots and their opponents from North Korea (including some unofficially crewed by Soviet airmen) and the People's Republic of China. It was an attempt to reduce the effectiveness of UN air-power, guard the PRC\DPRK border and provide air cover for Chinese operations in the north of N. Korea.
Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 were the aircraft used during most of the conflict, and the area's nickname was derived from them. It was the site of the first large-scale jet-vs-jet air battles, with the North American F-86 Sabre.
The Americans even mooted bombing Vladivostock Airport and the near by airbases as a way of stopping the unoffical Soviet participation in MiG Alley.
Pilot aces[]
The top aces were Russian. Nikolay Sutyagin claimed 21 kills, including nine F-86s, one F-84 and one Gloster Meteor (operated by No. 77 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force) in less than seven months. His first kill was the F-86A of Robert H. Laier on 19 June 1951 (listed by the Americans as missing in action), and his last was on 11 January 1952, when he shot down and killed Thiel M. Reeves, who was flying an F-86E (Reeves is also listed as MIA). Other famous Soviet aces include Yevgeni G. Pepelyayev, who was credited with 19 kills, and Lev Kirilovich Shchukin, who was credited with 17 kills, despite being shot down twice himself.
The top UN ace of the war, Capt. Joseph C. McConnell, claimed 16 MiGs, including three on one day. His story featured in a film called The McConnell Story, starring Alan Ladd and June Allyson. The second-highest-scoring UN ace, Maj. James Jabara, was the first UN jet-vs.-jet ace. Another ace, Frederick C. "Boots" Blesse, claimed nine MiG-15s in his F-86 Sabre and later wrote No Guts, No Glory, a manual of air fighter combat that is still studied today. James P. Hagerstrom claimed 8.5 kills.
George Andrew Davis, Jr. became one of the first members of the new U.S. Air Force to receive the US Medal of Honor after being killed while leading his section of two F-86s against 12 MiG-15s when he was trying to shoot them all down.
The MiG Alley video game[]
Many games were spawned in honour of this conflict. MiG Alley is one of many combat flight simulator games developed by Rowan Software and published by Empire Interactive in 1999. It is a historical simulation which re-enacts the combat events.
The Pusan Perimeter[]
It was UN postion in and around the town of Pusan (now called Busan). The Battle of Pusan Perimeter was a large-scale battle between United Nations and North Korean forces lasting from August 4 to September 18, 1950. It was one of the first major engagements of the Korean War. An army of 140,000 UN troops, having been pushed to the brink of defeat, were rallied to make a final stand against the invading North Korean army, 98,000 men strong.
UN forces, having been repeatedly defeated by the advancing North Koreans, were forced back to the "Pusan Perimeter", a 140-mile (230 km) defensive line around an area on the southeastern tip of the Korean Peninsula that included the port of Pusan. The UN troops, consisting mostly of forces from the Republic of Korea (ROK), United States and United Kingdom, mounted a last stand around the perimeter, fighting off repeated North Korean attacks for six weeks as they were engaged around the cities of Taegu, Masan, and P'ohang, and the Naktong River. The massive North Korean assaults were unsuccessful in forcing the United Nations troops back further from the perimeter, despite two major pushes in August and September.
North Korean troops, hampered by supply shortages and massive losses, continually staged attacks on UN forces in an attempt to penetrate the perimeter and collapse the line. However, the UN used the port to amass an overwhelming advantage in troops, equipment, and logistics, and its navy and air forces remained unchallenged by the North Koreans during the fight. After six weeks, the North Korean force collapsed and retreated in defeat after the UN force launched a counterattack at Inchon on September 15. The battle would be the furthest the North Korean troops would advance in the war, as subsequent fighting ground the war into a stalemate.
The UN brought to bear hundreds of units from member countries South Korea, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Several other nations augmented the large naval task forces with ships of their own, including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and The Netherlands. Opposing the UN force was the entirety of the North Korean military.
UN forces proved superior to the North Koreans in organization and numbers, but UN forces also suffered from a lack of equipment and training, particularly in their ground forces. As the battles around Pusan Perimeter continued, UN forces and equipment continued to flood into Korea, giving them overwhelming advantages in their land, air, and sea components. Though many nations would eventually contribute forces to the Korean War, the majority of troops at the battle were American and South Korean only.
North Korean forces were inferior to the UN forces in number, but in several cases they were able to make up for this in superior training. North Korean air and naval forces were small and poorly trained and equipped, thus playing a negligible role in the battle. However North Korean ground troops were often well trained and well equipped with modern weapons. The protracted battle around the perimeter severely depleted these troops forcing the North Koreans to rely increasingly on conscripts and replacements, diminishing their advantage in the battle and leading them to an eventual defeat.
The Inchon Landings[]
An AD-4 Skyraider taking off from USS Princeton (CV-37) during the Korean War.
The Battle of Inchon (Hangul: 인천상륙작전; hanja: 仁川上陸作戰; RR: Incheon Sangnyuk Jakjeon, AKA- The Inchon Landings) was anamphibious invasion and battle of the Korean War that resulted in a decisive victory and strategic reversal in favor of the United Nations. The operation involved some 75,000 troops and 261 naval vessels, and led to therecapture of the South Korean capital of Seoul two weeks later. The code name for the operation was Operation Chromite.
The battle began on 15 September 1950 and ended on 19 September. Through a surprise amphibious assault far from the Pusan Perimeter that UN and South Korean forces were desperately defending, the largely undefended city of Inch’ŏn was secured after being bombed by UN forces. The battle ended a string of victories by the invading North Korean People's Army (NKPA). The subsequent UN recapture of Seoul partially severed the NKPA's supply lines in South Korea.
The United Nations and South Korean forces were commanded by General of the Army Douglas MacArthur of the United States Army. MacArthur was the driving force behind the operation, overcoming the strong misgivings of more cautious generals to a risky assault over extremely unfavorable terrain.
The battle was on 10–19 September 1950, 10–15 September – Bombardments of Wolmido and Inch’ŏn, 15–19 September – Inchon Landing and was a decisive United Nations victory. A force of 40,000 strong force from South Korea, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and France fough with circa ~6,500 North Korean troops in the Battle of Inchon.
The 2016 film Operation Chromite (Hangul: 인천상륙작전; hanja: 仁川上陸作戰; RR: Incheon Sangnyuk Jakjeon) is an upcoming war drama film directed by Lee Jae-han, based on the real-life events of the Battle of Inchon.
Crossing of the 38th Parallel[]
The UN Offensive, 1950 was
Approaching the Yalu River[]
The Yalu River, also called the Amnok River (Korean pronunciation: [amnok.k͈aŋ]), is a river on the border between North Korea and China. Together with the Tumen River to its east, and a small portion of Paektu Mountain, the Yalu forms the border between North Korea and China and is notable as a site involved in military conflicts in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War and the Korean War. The 790 km long river originates on Paektu Mountain. The Chines port of Dandong is on it's route.
It was the advance of UN forces during the Korean War toward the Yalu which prompted Chairman Mao Zedong to involve China in the war for fear of an American invasion, since toppling communism was one of America's stated goals and Douglas MacArthur had expressed his desire to expand the war into China. The river has frequently been crossed by North Koreans fleeing to China since the early 1990s.
China officially enters the war[]
A new push south[]
Renewed fighting around the 38th parallel[]
Stalemate[]
The war enters the closing stages[]
Hidden PRC, N.Korean, S. Korean and American massacres and warcrimes[]
There were commonplace since atrocities were committed by both sides on a regular basis.
N. Korea[]
The Seoul National University Hospital massacre (Korean: 서울대학교 부속병원 학살 사건 Hanja: 서울國立大學校附属病院虐殺事件) was a massacre committed by the North Korean Army on 28 June 1950 of 700 to 900 doctors, nurses, inpatient civilians and wounded soldiers at the Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul district of South Korea. During the First Battle of Seoul, the North Korean Army wiped out one platoon which guarded Seoul National University Hospital on 28 June 1950.
S. Korea[]
The Bodo League massacre (Hangul: 보도연맹 학살사건; hanja: 保導聯盟虐殺事件) was a massacre and war crime against communists and suspected sympathizers (many of whom were civilians who had no connection with communism or communists) that occurred in the summer of 1950 during the Korean War. Estimates of the death toll vary. According to Prof. Kim Dong-Choon, Commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, at least 100,000 people were executed on suspicion of supporting communism; others estimate 200,000 deaths. The massacre was wrongly blamed on the communists as part of a black opps campaign.
The Geochang massacre (Korean: 거창 양민학살 사건, Hanja: 居昌良民虐殺事件) was a massacre conducted by the third battalion of the 9th regiment of the 11th Division of the South Korean Army between 9 February 1951 and 11 February 1951 of 719 unarmed citizens in Geochang, South Gyeongsang district of South Korea. The victims included 385 children. The 11th Division also conducted the Sancheong-Hamyang massacre two days earlier. The general commanding the division was Choe Deok-sin.
USA[]
The No Gun Ri Massacre refers to an incident of mass killing of undetermined numbers of South Korean refugees conducted by U.S. soldiers of the 7th Cavalry Regiment (and in a U.S. air attack) between 26 July and 29 July 1950 at a railroad bridge near the village of No Gun Ri, 100 miles (160 km) southeast of Seoul. In 2005, the South Korean government certified the names of 163 dead or missing (mostly women, children, and old men) and 55 wounded. It said many other victims' names were not reported. Over the years survivors' estimates of the dead have ranged from 300 to 500. This episode early in the Korean War gained widespread attention when the Associated Press (AP) published a series of articles in 1999 that subsequently won a Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting.
China[]
Huge American bombs[]
The ASM-A-1 Tarzon, also known as VB-13, was a guided bomb developed by the United States Army Air Forces during the late 1940s. Mating the guidance system of the earlier Razon radio-controlled weapon with a British Tallboy 12,000-pound (5,400 kg) bomb, the ASM-A-1 saw brief operational service in the Korean War before being withdrawn from service in 1951. It had a 5,200 pound (2,400 kg) Torpex D1 warhead.
Aftermath[]
The damage and fiscal loss was horrendous.
Death toll[]
UN casualties and losses:[]
- Total: 178,426 dead and 32,925 missing.
- Total wounded: 566,434.
- South Korea:
- 137,899 dead
- 450,742 wounded
- 24,495 MIA
- 8,343 POW
- United States:
- 36,574 dead
- 103,284 wounded
- 7,926 MIA
- 4,714 POW
- United Kingdom:
- 1,109 dead
- 2,674 wounded
- 179 MIA
- 977 POW
- Turkey:
- 741 dead
- 2,068 wounded
- 163 MIA
- 244 POW
- Australia:
- 339 dead
- 1,216 wounded
- 43 MIA
- 26 POW
- Canada:
- 516 dead
- 1,042 wounded
- 1 MIA
- 33 POW
- France:
- 262 dead
- 1,008 wounded
- 7 MIA
- 12 POW
- Kingdom of Greece
- 192 dead
- 543 wounded
- 3 POW
- Colombia:
- 163 dead
- 448 wounded
- 28 POW
- Thailand:
- 129 dead
- 1,139 wounded
- 5 MIA
- Ethiopian Empire
- 121 dead
- 536 wounded
- Netherlands
- 120 dead
- 645 wounded
- 3 MIA
- Belgium
- 101 dead
- 478 Wounded
- 5 MIA
- 1 POW
- Philippines:
- 92 dead
- 299 wounded
- 97 MIA/POW
- South Africa:
- 34 dead
- 9 POW
- New Zealand:
- 34 dead
- 299 wounded
- 1 MIA/POW
- Norway:
- 3 dead
- Luxembourg:
- 2 dead
- 13 wounded
- India:
- 1 dead
Communist dead and casualties:[]
- Total dead: 367,283–750,282
- Total wounded: 686,500–789,000
- North Korea:
- 215,000–350,000 dead
- 303,000 wounded
- 120,000 MIA or POW
- China (Chinese sources):
- 152,000 dead
- 383,500 wounded
- 450,000 hospitalized
- 4,000 missing
- 7,110 captured
- 14,190 defected
China (American estimates):
- 400,000+ dead
- 486,000 wounded
- 21,000 POW
- Soviet Union:
- 282 dead
Total civilians killed/wounded:[]
- Several millions?
The grand total[]
- Grand total 2.5 million (est.)
- South Korea: 990,968
- 373,599 killed
- 229,625 wounded
- 387,744 abducted/missing
- North Korea: 1,550,000 (est.)
Refuges[]
It was reckoned about 1,000,000 were dehoused and 1,500,000 were also refugees.
POWs[]
UN and communist POWs were repatriated after the armistice. The UN POWs reported being interrogated by Koreans, Russians, and Chinese. For years after the Korean War ended in 1953, rumours persisted of pilots held captive by the Soviets.
Cold, damp, flesh rotting disorders, Ricketsia, dentistry and hemorrhagic fever[]
Korean hemorrhagic fever\epidemic hemorrhagic fever\nephropathis epidemica devastated any one who had it and infected many fighters on all sides. The species of Hantavirus virose that cause Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) include the horrific Hantaan River Feaver. Hantavirus is named for the Hantan River area in South Korea where an early outbreak was observed. The virus was isolated in the late 1970s by Karl M. Johnson and Ho-Wang Lee.
These are all Hantavirus- Asama virus Gou virus Hantaan River virus Dobrava-Belgrade virus Saaremaa virus Seoul virus Puumala virus Serang virus Thailand virus Thottapalayam virus Nova virus
Additionally, low moral, depression, Ricketsia, dentistry, frost bite, gas gangrene and trench foot also took there heavy toll.
A possible Soviet and a suggested American atomic war plan[]
With (reportedly 5) atomic weapons already on Okinawa, and it being suggested that General Curtis LeMay be put in charge of the actual drops. All ranking officials plus The President of the U.S. agreed to the plan, so the bombers were just waiting President Truman's official "word" to launch an attack. Truman refused to rule out atomic weapons, but gave up when General MacArther gobbing off about where he wanted nuked and how heavily they should be nuked. As the twit bragged off to his military and political peers the element of surprise was lost and the Chinese became concerned by what there spies were telling them.
The Brits, French and Aussies did not like the use of nukes. Adding to the problem was that the Soviet Primer had jokingly threatened to drop a nuke on US forces in Korea at a Moscow party conference. The USA had ~15 nuke, the USSR had ~5 and the UK had 1.
Famous veterans[]
The American spaceman Neil Armstrong was an airman during this war.
Legacy[]
It is somewhat politically ironic that after 70 years they are still legally at war and that the only stopping factor is the USA and China being less interested it killing each other than the Koreans are.
The Korean DMZ[]
The Korean Peninsula first divided along the 38th parallel, later along the demarcation line. Author: Rishabh: Tatiraju.
The Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ; Hangul: 한반도 비무장지대; hanja: 韓半島非武裝地帶) is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula. It was established at the end of the Korean War to serve as a buffer zone between North and South Korea. The DMZ is a de facto border barrier that divides the Korean Peninsula roughly in half. It was created by agreement between North Korea, China and the United Nations in 1953. The DMZ is 250 kilometres (160 miles) long, and about 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) wide.
The Korean Demilitarized Zone roughly follows the 38th parallel north, on an angle, with the west end of the DMZ lying south of the parallel and the east end lying north of it.
Within the DMZ is a meeting-point between the two nations in the small Joint Security Area near the western end of the zone, where negotiations take place. There have been various incidents in and around the DMZ, with military and civilian casualties on both sides. Several tunnels are claimed to have been built as an invasion route for the North Koreans.
Despite its name, is the most heavily militarised border in the world. The Northern Limit Line, or NLL, is the disputed maritime demarcation line between North and South Korea in the Yellow Sea, not agreed in the armistice. The coastline and islands on both sides of the NLL are also heavily militarised.
The Americans and South Korea continue to deter North Korean incursion, in 2014 the United States government exempted the Korean DMZ from its pledge to eliminate anti-personnel landmines.
The failure to win a lasting peace[]
Both Syngman Rhee and Kim Il-sung rabidly sought after the complete and almost certainly forcible unification of the Korea Peninsular, but the USA, USSR and China told them to singe an armistice and back off. Both the Koreas still hate each other!
Nation summery[]
- Also see- List of Korean Republics
The Southern economy boomed between 1980 and 2010. The Northern economy folded and declined sharply since 1995.
UK opinion in 2017[]
Sadly, most people in England and Scotland side with N. Korea, since they generally like the idea of violent rogue states and have long betrayed the special relationship the UK once had with the USA by 2017.
Also see[]
- North Korea's Kim family
- MASH Units
- The Cold War
- Korea
- USS Pueblo (AGER-2)
- DPRK
- Vietnam War
- Cuban Missile Crisis
- Malaya Emergency
- Berlin airlift
- Daewoo
- GDR
- USSR
- Winning a hot war
- A political diorama
- MASH units
- Cold War
- Cold War Timeline
- World War 2
- List of Korean Republics
- Czechoslovak coup d'état of 1948
- Peal Harbor Vs the Korean War~ An alternate history!
- Directory of all Indochinese wars in the Cold War
- Sep'o County POW Camp (Korean War era)
- Major Cold War wars that killed over 250,000 people
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