Korean War

The Korean War (Korean: 한국전쟁, Russian: Корейская Война, Chinese: 朝鲜战争) took place between 25 June 1950 and 27 July 1953. It was a civil war fought between the Republic of Korea (South Korea), and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). South Korea was supported by the militaries of several countries of the United Nations, commanded by the United States. North Korea was supported by the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union. The war began at 4:30 a.m. on 25 June 1950. The fighting stopped on 27 July 1953. More than two million Koreans had been killed, mostly in the North.

Korean War
Part of the Cold War and the Korean conflict
Clockwise from top left: The U.S. 1st Marine Division's infantry and armor during the breakout from the Chosin Reservoir Explosion during the Blockade of Wonsan The Seoul city gate Namdaemun A U.S. Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar flying near Chungju Korean refugees in front of a U.S. M46 Patton tank The United Nations landing at Inchon harbor. This was the place where the Battle of Inchon started.
Date 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (de facto) (3 years, 1 month and 2 days) 25 June 1950 – present (de jure) (75 years, 1 month, 1 week and 2 days) Location Korea Yellow Sea Sea of Japan Korea Strait China–North Korea border Result Inconclusive Territorial changes Korean Demilitarized Zone established North Korea gains the city of Kaesong, but loses a net total of 3,900 km2 (1,506 sq mi), including the city of Sokcho, to South Korea[1]
Belligerents
South Korea	North Korea
United Nations  United States  United Kingdom  Canada  Turkey  Australia  Philippines  New Zealand  Thailand  Ethiopia  Greece  France  Colombia  Belgium  South Africa  Netherlands  Luxembourg Medical support:[2]  Sweden  India  Denmark  Norway  Italy[3]  West Germany[4] Other support:  Israel[5]  Taiwan  Japan[6] Pakistan[7]  Uruguay[8]  Spain[9]	China  Soviet Union (unofficial) Supported by:  Albania  Bulgaria  Czechoslovakia[10]  East Germany[11]  Hungary[11][12]  Mongolia  Poland  Romania[13]
Commanders and leaders
Syngman Rhee Chung Il-kwon Paik Sun-yup Lee Hyung-geun Shin Sung-mo Trygve Lie Dag Hammarskjöld Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower George C. Marshall Robert A. Lovett Douglas MacArthur Matthew Ridgway Mark W. Clark Walton Walker James Van Fleet Clement Attlee Winston Churchill	Kim Il Sung Kim Tu-bong Pak Hon-yong Choe Yong-gon Kim Chaek † Mao Zedong Zhou Enlai Peng Dehuai Chen Geng Deng Hua Hong Xuezhi Song Shilun Han Xianchu Joseph Stalin Pavel Zhigarev
Strength
Peak strength (combat troops): 602,902[14] 326,863[15] 14,198[16][17] 8,123[18] 5,455[19] 2,282[16] 2,274[19] 1,496[16] 1,389[19] 1,271[20] 1,263[16][20] 1,185[20] 1,068 [19] 900[16] 826[16] 819[16] 52[19] Medical support and others: 346[21] 170[19] 120[6] 109[19] 100[19] 72[19] Together: 968,302 Total strength[22][23] (combat troops): 1,789,000[24] 1,300,000[25] 56,000 26,791 21,212 17,164 7,420 6,326 5,322 5,100 4,992 3,794 3,518 3,498 3,421 826 110 Medical support and others: 1,124 630 627 623 189 120 Together: 3,257,797	Peak strength (combat troops): 266,600[26] 1,450,000[27][28] 26,000[29] Together: 1,742,000 Total: 2,970,000[30] 72,000[29] Together: 3,042,000
Casualties and losses
Total civilian deaths: 2–3 million (est.)[31][32] South Koreans: 990,968 total casualties[19] North Koreans: 1,550,000 total casualties (est.)[19]

Both sides blame each other for starting the war. The North, led by the communist Kim Il-Sung, was helped mostly by China, led by Mao Zedong, and the Soviet Union, led by Joseph Stalin. There was medical support from East Germany, led by Walter Ulbricht); Hungary, led by Mátyás Rákosi; Romania, led by Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej; Czechoslovakia, led by Klement Gottwald; Poland, led by Bolesław Bierut; and Bulgaria. Other support came from Mongolia, led by Khorloogiin Choibalsan

The South, led by the nationalist Syngman Rhee, was helped by many countries in the United Nations, especially the United States. British troops were on the ground in smaller numbers. The U.S. forces included detachments from its Air Force and Navy.

The war ended on 27 July, 1953. The United States keeps troops in South Korea in case North Korea ever invades again. Both Koreas are divided by the Korean Demilitarized Zone, which crosses the 38th parallel.

Origins and causes

In 1910, fifteen years after the First Sino-Japanese War, Japan annexed Korea and was still ruling when World War II ended in 1945. After Japan had surrendered, the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to split Korea into two occupation zones for a short time, with the Soviets occupying the north and the Americans occupying the south.

At the Moscow Conference of the Council of Foreign Ministers in December 1945, the Americans and the Soviets agreed on Korea having a provisional government, which would not last long. That became difficult because of the rise of the Cold War.^[33]

The Cold War was an important cause in the Korean War. Relations between the two occupying powers were already bad, but when China became communist in October 1949, US President Harry Truman was very worried that other countries around China would go communist as well, such as Japan. The US Army was a twelfth the size that it had been of five years earlier.^[34]

Stalin had recently lost a Cold War dispute over the Berlin Blockade and the subsequent airlift. Both powers argued mainly over fair border lines and the spread of communism.

Events

Casualties near Busan

UN Forces landing at Inchon

25 June 1950

• North Korea invades South Korea across the 38th parallel and takes most of South Korea. The South Korean Army retreats to Busan.

July 1950

• The United Nations Army intervenes and lands at Incheon, a small port just about halfway down South Korea. From there, they fight North Korea, push it past the border, and separate the Koreas close to the Chinese border just south of the Yalu River.
• China starts to feel threatened since the war happens so close to it. It tells the UN and South Korea to return to the border and that they have no business to invade North Korea.

October 1950

• The warning given by the Chinese is ignored by the UN (led by US General Douglas MacArthur) and so the Chinese People's Liberation Army intervenes and lands in North Korea and fights the UN forces until they are pushed past the border.

December 1950

• Because MiG-15s are beating America's Lockheed P-80 Shooting Stars, the F-86 Sabre goes to Korea.

February 1951

• Fighting continues until order is restored and neither army is in each other's country, when peace talks begin.

11 April 1951

• MacArthur is relieved of his commands for making public statements that contradicted the administration's policies. He wants to invade North Korea again.

March 1951 – 27 July 1953

• Peace talks continue until 27 July 1953, when no peace is declared, but an armistice is signed by both countries, and the UN withdraws.

Results

Country	Positive	Negative
United States	The expansion of communism is stopped from entering South Korea. Greece and Turkey join NATO. The Truman Doctrine is upheld.	Found by other countries to be far too aggressive, which makes them nervous.
UN	Countries united and militarily tested for first time	Wins only by violence, not peace talks.
Both Koreas	North Korea stays communist and gets treaty with China. South Korea stays capitalist.	Many people die. Much property is wrecked. No reunification occurs.
People's Republic of China	A foreign war unites the country and improves its rulers' prestige.	Reputation damaged, political setback. Not allowed on UN Security Council until 1971.
Soviet Union	The expansion of capitalism is stopped from entering North Korea. The Soviet Air Force is tested against that of United States.	Loss of money, loses China's trust

Statistics

Total strength

• Approximate numbers

United Nations

• South Korea – 628,345 soldiers
• United States - 327,000 soldiers and 1 horse
• United Kingdom - 14,200 soldiers
• Canada – 8,100 soldiers
• Turkey – 5,500 soldiers
• Australia – 2,300 soldiers
• Philippines – 1,600 soldiers
• New Zealand – 1,400 soldiers
• Netherlands – 3,418 soldiers
• Ethiopia – 1,300 soldiers
• Greece – 1,250 soldiers
• Colombia – 1,300 soldiers
• Thailand – 1,200 soldiers
• Belgium – 891 soldiers
• South Africa – 873 soldiers
• France – 800 soldiers
• Luxembourg – 44 soldiers
• Tuvalu - 1 dog
  • Total – 972,022 soldiers

Communist

• North Korea – 260,600 soldiers
• China – 1,358,456 soldiers
• Soviet Union – 26,000 soldiers
  • Total – 1,642,600 soldiers

Losses

United Nations

• South Korea – 205,000 deaths – 905,800 wounded
• United States – 100,503 ? deaths – 92,073 wounded
• United Kingdom – 1,078 deaths – 2,674 wounded
• Turkey – 721 deaths – 2,109 wounded
• Canada – 507 deaths – 1,001 wounded
• Australia – 380 deaths – 1,192 wounded
• New Zealand – 34 deaths – 80 wounded
• Netherlands – 150 deaths – 3 wounded
• France – 69 deaths
• Luxembourg – 2 deaths – 2 wounded

Communists

• North Korea – 257,806 deaths
• China – about 25,000 deaths
• Soviet Union – about 300 deaths

Television

The popular television show M*A*S*H, about American doctors serving in the Korean War, lasted longer than the fighting.

Related pages

• Cold War