2. Background…
• Korea had been a unified
country since the 7th
century.
• During the 19th
century,
Imperial Japan began an
occupation of the Korean
Peninsula which lasted
until the end of WW II.
• At the close of World War
II, forces of both the
Soviet Union and the
United States occupied
the Korean peninsula.
DO NOW: What do you think
happened to Korea after WWII?
DO NOW: What do you think
happened to Korea after WWII?
3. Overview/Background:
In 1945, Korea was freed from
the Japanese.
US troops stayed in South Korea
and Soviet troops remained in
North Korea until 1946. The
country was split in half at the
38th
parallel:
North Korea (led by Kim II
Sung) was Communist.
South Korea (led by Syngman
Rhee) was capitalist.
The two countries hated
each other. (Grrrr.)
The two countries hated
each other. (Grrrr.)
4. “Asia is where the communist conspirators have decided to
make their play for global conquest. If we lose this war, the fall
of Europe is inevitable. There is no choice but victory.”
- U.S. General Douglas MacArthur, speaking in 1950.
5. Kim II Sung Gets Support
In 1949, he persuaded Stalin that he could conquer South Korea. Stalin did
not think that America would dare to get involved, so he gave his
agreement. Stalin saw a chance to continue the cold war and discomfort
America, but ‘at arm’s length’ – without directly confronting the
Americans. Kim II Sung also went to see Mao Zedong, the leader of China,
to get his agreement.
6. Spark of the War
In 1950, Syngman Rhee,
boasting of success in training
his army, stated outright, in an
interview given to an American
United Press correspondent,
that the South Korean Army
could capture Pyongyang in
the course of three days.
It was a good enough excuse
for Kim Il Sung!
June 25, 1950 the North
Koreans invaded South Korea.
…and so began the Korean War.
Chairman Syngman Rhee
addresses the National
Assembly in 1948.
7. • June, 1950 – North Korea
Invades South Korea;
Truman Commits US Forces.
• The North Koreans attacked.
They were very successful.
The North Korean People's
Army (NKPA) easily
defeated the Republic of
Korea's army (the ROKs)
• They captured most of South
Korea, including the capital of
Seoul.
Stage 1: North Korea
attacks
8. United Nations
Force• Gen. Douglas MacArthur was put in
charge of the U.N. Command, which
included combat and medical units
from 22 nations.
• The United States provided 50% of the
ground forces (South Korea provided
most of the remainder), 86% of the
naval power, and 93% of the air power.
UN Security Council has five Permanent Members that each have veto powers:
*United States *USSR *Great Britain *France *China
How come the Soviet Union did not veto UN Action in South Korea?
The Soviet Union was boycotting the UN because they recognized Jiang Jieshi
and Taiwan as the “Real” China, not Mao’s People’s Republic of China.
9. Stage 2: Americans pushed
to the Pusan Perimeter
• Unable to slow the
enemy advance, the
Americans and South
Koreans fought
desperate delaying
operations, buying time
with blood as more
American units were
rushed to Korea.
• By the end of July 1950,
the North Koreans had
pushed the U.N. forces to
the southeast corner of
the peninsula, where
they dug in around the
port of Pusan.
10. MacArthur’s Plan
MacArthur felt that the North Koreans would be
surprised and caught off-guard by the attack.
The approaches to Inchon were two restricted
passages, which could be easily blocked by
mines.
The current of the channels was dangerously
quick, the anchorage was small and the harbor
was surrounded by tall seawalls.
11. Stage 3: September 15. 1950:
Inchon
• MacArthur completely
changed the course of the
war overnight by ordering
an amphibious invasion at
the port of Inchon, near
Seoul.
• The Americans quickly
gained control of Inchon,
recaptured Seoul within
days, and cut the North
Korean supply lines.
125,000 NKPA prisoners
were taken.
• American and ROK forces
broke out of the Pusan
Perimeter and chased the
retreating enemy north.
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12. Task: Evaluate the UN decision to
cross into North Korea after
successfully recapturing South
Korea. List the potential positives
and negatives of this action?
Ultimate Goal of this action: to unify Korea under a non-communist government
Stage 4: Crossing the 38th
Parallel?
13. Stage 5: Approaching the
Yalu
• North Korea’s capital,
Pyongyang, fell to UN troops
on October 20th
.
• Despite warnings from the
Chinese that "American
intrusion into North Korea
would encounter Chinese
resistance," MacArthur's
forces continued to push
north.
• On October 25, 1950,
however, things turned
ominous. The Chinese army,
which had been massing
north of the Yalu River after
secretly slipping into North
Korea, struck with
considerable force.
14. Stage 6: Chinese Enter the
War
• 200,000 Chinese troops ('People's
Volunteers') attacked MacArthur.
They had modern weapons
supplied by Russia, and a
fanatical hatred of the Americans.
• In December, half a million more
Chinese troops entered the war.
• The Chinese troops shattered the
right flank of the US Eighth Army
in the west, while 120,000 others
threatened to destroy the X
Corps near the Chosin Reservoir.
• On November 28, a shaken
MacArthur informed the Joint
Chiefs, "We face an entirely new
war."
15. Approximately 90%
of the soldiers
fighting in Korea
suffered from
frostbite. In fact,
much of the war
was fought in
extreme cold as
Siberian winds
whipped across the
Asian peninsula.
16. Stage 7: Stalemate
• Beginning January 15, Ridgway
led the U.N. in a slow advance
northward, in what his troops
began to call the "meatgrinder."
• Inflicting heavy casualties on
the Chinese and North Koreans,
the U.N. re-recaptured Seoul in
March 1951.
• The Americans drove the
Chinese back, but lost 54,000
American soldiers doing so.
• In the meantime, General
MacArthur had been steadily
pushing Washington to remove
the restrictions on his forces.
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• Korea was to remain divided at the 38th
parallel.
• Tension still existed on either side of the demilitarized zone
(DMZ), a neutral area in which no warfare could be waged.
• Peace talks begin as both sides continue fighting.
• In July, 1953 an armistice, or truce, was agreed upon.
18. Results of the Korean War
• It cost the United States 54,000 dead and 103,000 wounded.
• Total UN casualties reached about 400,000 dead or wounded.
• South Korea suffered close to a million civilian casualties, with several million
made homeless.
• Nearly 1½ million North Korean and Chinese soldiers were dead or wounded.
With such high casualties, how could this possibly be nicknamed
“The Forgotten War?”
With such high casualties, how could this possibly be nicknamed
“The Forgotten War?”
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22. Korean War Memorial
• The Korean War Veterans Memorial
was authorized by the U.S.
Congress on October 28, 1986.
• President George H. W. Bush
conducted the groundbreaking for
the Memorial on June 14, 1992, Flag
Day.
• It was dedicated on July 27, 1995,
the 42nd anniversary of the
armistice that ended the war, by
President Bill Clinton and Kim
Young Sam, President of the
Republic of Korea, to the men and
women who served during the
conflict.
