Korean+War

**__TIMELINE FOR KOREAN WAR__**
**June 25**: War breaks out when North Korea invades South Korea **June 27**: UN [United Nations] Security Council approves military aid to South Korea **June 30**: U.S. troops enter war **July 8**: Gen. Douglas MacArthur named U.N. commander in Korea **Mid-July**: Father Kapaun and the 8th Cavalry Regiment are ordered to Korean from Japan **Sept. 15**: MacArthur's forces land at Inchon and begin the liberation of South Korea **Oct. 1**: MacArthur drives North Koreans out of South Korea; American troops pursue North Korean army across the 38th parallel, the dividing line between the two Koreas **Oct. 24**: American forces approach the Yalu River on the Chinese border **Nov. 1**: People's Republic of China enters the Korean War on the side of North Korea **Nov. 2**: Father Kapaun taken captive at battle of Unsan **Nov. 25**: U.N. forces are forced to retreat from Yalu River under China onslaught **April 11**: Truman relieves MacArthur of his command for openly criticizing the administration's foreign policy strategy **May 23**: Father Kapaun dies in a POW camp in North Korea **June 21**: U.N. troops push the communist forces out of South Korea **July 10**: Truce talks start **Nov. 27**: Cease-fire line established at 38th parallel 1953 <span style="font-family: 바탕;">**July 27**: War ends with signing of armistice at Panmunjon calling for demilitarized zone and voluntary repatriation of prisoners. The 38th parallel is established as boundary between North and South Korea.
 * __<span style="font-family: 바탕;">1950 __**
 * __<span style="font-family: 바탕;">1951 __**

<span style="font-family: 바탕;">**__Important people during Korean War__** <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Mark W. Clark <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> <span style="font-family: 바탕;">-General Clark was commander of UN forces in Korea from 1952 to 1953. <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Kim Il-sung - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> <span style="font-family: 바탕;">The Communist leader of North Korea. Kim developed a massive personality cult around himself, and ruled until his death in 1994. <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Douglas C. MacArthur <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> <span style="font-family: 바탕;">- <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> <span style="font-family: 바탕;"> General who commanded the Allies in the Southwest Pacific during World War II, he oversaw the post-war occupation of Japan, and commanded the UN forces during the first phases of the Korean War. It was MacArthur who engineered the amphibious assault on Inchon. Becoming increasingly egotistical as he got older, MacArthur began countermanding Truman's orders in <span style="font-family: 바탕;"> Korea. With the backing of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Truman relieved MacArthur of his command on April 11, 1951. <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Syngman Rhee - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> ” <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Democratically elected" leader of South Korea. Actually something of a dictator, Syngman Rhee was a committed nationalist obsessed with the idea of ruling a unified, independent Korea. <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Peng Teh-haui - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ascii-font-family: 바탕;"> <span style="font-family: 바탕;">Commander of the Chinese Communist "volunteers" in Korea. __**Description of the Korean War**__ Korean War was a war fought between the North (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, DPRK) and South (Republic of Korea, ROK). The war not only involved North and South Korea, but also United Nations and Russia because the goal of the war wasn’t just to expand territory. The main goal of both sides was to expand and protect their own form of government: the North wanted to spread communism while the South wanted to stop the spread, and protect democracy.

Korea was split into two: North and South after World War II, 2 years before the war. North was under communism, ruled by Kim Il-sung, and the South was democratic, under the leadership of Lee Seung-man. On June 25th, 1950, North Korean communist army decided to attack the south, and so they crossed the 38th Parallel line – the division line between the North and the South. North was very successful, and pushed the South Korean army all the way to the end, Pusan, very quickly because South Korea was very unprepared. Soon, on September 1950, the situation changed when U.S. came to help. Rather than coming to Pusan and helping South Korean army push the North back, they landed in Inchon, near Seoul, cutting the North supply lines, which made the North retreat and protect their territory.

South Korea, with the help of U.S., pushed North Korea back to the 38th Parallel line, but they did not stop there. They were successful in pushing the North all the way back (October 1950). Some units were pushed back to Amnok (Yalu) River, the border between China and Korea. China, fearing U.N. would take all of North Korea, came to help. By January of 1951, North Korea has taken over Seoul again, but by February of 1951, U.N. launched the second attack, and regained Seoul. From then on, battles took place around the border; neither side gained any territory. China and U.N. launched many attacks, but were always stopped at the 38th Parallel line. Over the course of war, Seoul was under different control 4 times.

The armistice was signed on July 27th, 1953. Nobody had won, and nothing had changed. The division line stayed the same: the 38th Parallel line. Although there was no gain, there was an enormous amount of losses: 33,600 Americans,16,000 U.N. allied, 415,000 South Koreans, and 520,000 North Koreans.

Korean War was the first “armed” confrontation of the Cold War, which definitely heightened the tension of cold war. From this war, nothing was gained for both sides; however, it created clashes and even more friction between United States and the Soviet Union. In other words, Korean War did nothing except contribute to the Cold War. For them, this war wasn’t just about protecting / helping South and North Korea. Korean War was a matter of protecting democracy for U.N. and spreading communism for the Soviets, making countries strengthen their military powers even more. Also, the fact that China and the Soviets became even closer allies after the war heightened the tension even more.
 * __How did this influence the Cold War?__**

media type="youtube" key="WWqCCdULoys" height="344" width="425" media type="youtube" key="fsY1Q6gjXAI" height="344" width="425" __**What was it like to live through this event? What sort of emotions did people feel?**__ People in Korea had to live in constant fear because there was a high possibility of a war breaking out between the communist countries and the democratic countries.

My grandma, Soon-Ja Nam, was 12 years old (grade 5) when the war broke out. One morning, she heard guns firing, so when she looked outside, she saw North Korean planes flying over her head. By night, there were tanks everywhere. She was terrified. Her family decided to flee to the mountains first before they could get to safe building. On the way, when she was running through big fields, she saw dead bodies everywhere, and even a dead woman with a live baby in her hands. She was disgusted and horrified. She was hungry, thirsty, and tired, but she couldn't do anything but wait and run away. What scared her the most was when North Korean soldiers tried to hide among the South Korean civillians (she was one of them) because the soldiers knew that American planes wouldn't shoot if they were among South Koreans. After some time, she got to a house of her relative, and stayed there until the end of war. She didn't know much about what was going on since she was still a child. She went to school still, during the war. Schools were set up temporarily in empty buildings.

My grandparents say that the war is still not over; it is just a temporary pause until another war breaks out between the North and the South.