Korea: The OutBreak

Korea: The Outbreak

The picture shown here is an example of Chinese human wave tactics. The tactic requires throwing tons of people at a position, hoping to overrun whoever was there. It created high casualties, but was very effective. 

The mortars shown here were large and powerful. However they were quite inaccurate and their range was a mile or two. Many mortar strikes were shooting in the general direction and hoping for the best. 

CAUSES

This is a poster from North Korea. It states:

 “Kick out the Americans and unite the Fatherland!”.

Posters like these justifies the Invasion of South Korea.

The Korean war began after WWII ended, and the country was split. The northern half was given to the U.S.S.R, and the southern part was given to the United States. As each parenting country began to rebuild, each portion of Korea grew in a different way. North Korea went Communist, while South Korea became Capitalist. North Korea wanted to reunite the two Korean countries and invaded South Korea. Using Russian weapons and tanks, North Korea pushed South Korean and U.S. forces down to the bottom of the peninsula. While this started the war between North and South Korea, it was just another portion of the Cold War.

US INVOLVEMENT IN THE WAR

The picture shows U.S. soldiers parachuting behind enemy
lines. The soldiers were planning to cut off the the North
Korean Army that were below the 38th parallel.

The United States had soldiers stationed in South Korea when the invasion began. these soldiers fought bravely to keep the foothold in south Korea, and succeeded in not
being overrun off of the Korean Peninsula. Truman, hearing of the invasion, called to reinforce the troops in Korea. If America lost South Korea, then Japan would fall to Communism too. General MacArthur had a plan to flank the North Korean Army by dropping troops in the port of Inch-On. The port had rough waters and highly varied tides, making the port the least safe place to drop troops, catching the North Korean Army off-guard.

This picture is a sign at the 38th parallel. This sign signals that you are crossing from North Korea into South Korea. The trucks shown are driving troops to the front line. 

SETTING

This picture shows the mountain The Seorak Dinosaur Range.
The Seorak Dinosaur Range is a perfect example of the treacherous
terrain. Many battles were fought in areas like these. 

The Korean peninsula is a very cold and mountainous region. The region has yearly monsoons, flooding the peninsula with tons of water. During the winter, the Temperatures can drop to 30 below zero. These harsh conditions caused problems with the American army, as they were not prepared for invading such an inhospitable place. North Korea shares a border with Russia and China, and trades with both countries. however, the U.S.S.R gave weapons and tanks to North Korea, in hopes of spreading Communism. The connections with such large countries gives North Korea an easy access to and military munitions they would need to fight America and the south Koreans.

This propaganda in South Korea symbolizes how the North Korea
split the country apart.On the right however, the UN is repairing
Korea. These types of propaganda were common. 

ON THE HOME-FRONT

This is a picture of General MacArthur. He was the general of
the American Army. He was famous for his actions in WWII,
an for planning the attack on inch-on.

Americans were split on the war with Korea. Some thought it was a mistake, others believes that it was the right thing to do. Many people wanted no part in this war. There was a massive draft; one point five million people were drafted, unlike the one point three million who volunteered. The draft was called The Selective Service System. It was a "peacetime draft" that was created after the last draft ended. Just like World War Two, many factories were turned to make military munitions, so the soldiers would be well supplied in the war. however, none of the soldiers were prepared for the harsh climate and environment of the Korean Peninsula. 

This newspaper is talking about how the Koreas signed a
peace treaty. After tensions dropped enough to stop war,
negotiations arose. The picture included is the signing of the
armistice

THE END OF THE WAR

The Korean war went back and forth. At first, it seemed as if North Korea would overrun the Americans. However, after a daring plan by general MacArthur, The north Koreans were pushed back near the Chinese border. After the Chinese got involved, the American soldiers were push back behind the 38th parallel. After one more offensive push by the Americans, the North and South Koreans agreed to an armistice. This was has technically never ended, and the two countries share the most secure border in the world. Truman believed we succeeded in stopping the spread of Communism, but MacArthur believed the soldiers died for nothing. 

This is a picture of the Korean war memorial in Washington D.C. This monument recognizes the lives lost in the war, and honors them. Construction began in 1986.