The Korean War (1950 - 1953) - a visual guide

[LeGenD]

BACKGROUND

North Korea and South Korea were split across the 38th parallel by USSR and USA after World War 2.

USSR helped transform North Korea into an organized communist state with well-equipped armed forces in the (1945 - 1950) period.

USA did not pay much attention to security needs of South Korea and reduced its footprint in the region to significant extent. In view of this development, Soviet Leader Joseph Stalin felt that South Korea can be taken by force and USA will not defend it.

American armed forces were also subject to downsizing back home:

Defense Technical Information Center

apps.dtic.mil

THE WAR

Broader perspective:

Tanker's perspective:

PHASE 1

Detailed (visual) information in following link: https://history.army.mil/reference/Korea/KW-P1.pdf

North Korea invade South Korea on June 25, 1950; much of South Korea is overrun in the span of some months.

North Korean army was in possession of T-34-85 main battle tank(s) in 1950 which was better than a number of American counterparts with the exception of M-26A1 Pershing at the time.

Tank Encyclopedia - The Online Tank Museum

All about the tactics, technologies, and evolution of the tank worldwide, from World War I to the Atomic and Digital Ages.

tanks-encyclopedia.com

North Korean army also fielded thousands of artillery pieces including katyusha rocket launchers to bombard enemy positions.

North Korean Air Force was equipped with battle-proven Yak-9 variants.

South Korean Pusan Perimeter was able to hold its ground nevertheless.

- YouTube

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youtu.be

PHASE 2

Detailed (visual) information in following link: https://history.army.mil/reference/Korea/KW-P2.pdf

US-led forces emerge in force and liberate South Korea under the command of General Douglas MacArthur; Operation Chromite is a masterstroke move on September 25, 1950 in relation.

How a surprise invasion deep behind enemy lines turned the tide in the US's first Cold War conflict

By September 1950, three months after North Korea invaded South Korea, Gen. Douglas MacArthur knew a bold plan was needed to relieve the pressure.

www.businessinsider.com

US-led forces rout North Korean military from South Korea, and invade North Korea after a gap of some days and approach Yalu River.

The role of heavy artillery in deployments of US-led forces for reference:

In response to deployment of the impressive F-86 variants by USAF in the region to defeat North Korean Air Force, USSR dispatched the impressive MiG-15 variants to the Korean front. This was the only war in history in which Soviet Air Force and USAF fought each other directly.

- YouTube

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youtu.be

PHASE 3

Detailed (visual) information in following link: https://history.army.mil/reference/Korea/KW-P3.pdf

China dispatch a massive army to liberate North Korea in a significant turn of events.

- YouTube

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www.youtube.com

US-led forces fall back to Pusan Perimeter and Seoul falls to China-led forces in the course.

PHASE 4

Detailed (visual) information in following links: https://history.army.mil/reference/Korea/KW-P4.pdf

US-led forces regroup in Pusan Perimeter and counter-attack to retake Seoul and additional areas along the 38th Parallel in a series of military operations under the command of General Mathew Ridgway (Operation Thunderbolt on January 25, 1951; Operation Killer on February 1, 1951; Operation Rugged on April 5, 1951; Operation Piledriver on May 18, 1951). China-led forces offer considerable resistance with counteroffensives of their own in the mix.

PHASE 5

Detailed information in the following link: https://history.army.mil/reference/Korea/KW-P5.pdf

Further clashes between belligerents continue along the 38th Parallel and an Armistice is reached on July 27, 1953 with re-adjusted Korean borders that are valid to this day.

SUMMARY

Battlefield Outcome # 1	US-led coalition liberated South Korea
Battlefield Outcome # 2	China and USSR prevented downfall of North Korea
Final Outcome:	American mission to save South Korea is accomplished with Armistice Agreement for the Restoration of the South Korean State

REFERENCES

https://fas.org/irp/world/dprk/army-hist.pdf

Accept Terms and Conditions on JSTOR

JSTOR is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources.

www.jstor.org

The North Korean Steamroller

NKPA T34-85 tanks on parade. For the invasion of South Korea seven NKPA divisions were gathered under General Kim Chaek and grouped into the 1st Army, consisting of the 1st, 3rd, 4th and 6th Divisi…

weaponsandwarfare.com

PPT - L11: The Korean War: 1950-1953 American Foreign Policy PowerPoint Presentation - ID:2565225

L11: The Korean War: 1950-1953 American Foreign Policy. Agenda Objective : To understand the events of the Korean War. To analyze the significance of the Korean War for US foreign policy. Schedule : Lecture Discussion. Homework : Consult Unit Schedule for Background Reading.

www.slideserve.com

Korean War Lsn ppt download

ID & SIG: Inchon, limited war, MacArthur, Pusan Perimeter, Seoul, Task Force Smith, United Nations, Chinese intervention

slideplayer.com

https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a237293.pdf

The Korean War Chronology | U.S. Army Center of Military History

The Korean War (1950-1953): Brief Overview | SparkNotes

The Korean War (1950-1953) quiz that tests what you know about important details and events in the book.

www.sparknotes.com

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/39/69/49/3969496d575136bf95ca80528b6e7dd6.jpg

 

[Mohamed Bin Tughlaq]

This is one hell'va informative thread

 

[FairAndUnbiased]

@LeGenD

I must object to your characterization of South Korea as a capitalist democracy and Syngman Rhee as a democratic leader. He was a military dictator imposed by foreign powers who seized power in a fake election where he earned 90%+ of the votes. He massacred anywhere from dozens to tens of thousands for their political beliefs, over and over again. He was one of the bloodiest dictators of the 20th century.

 

[vostok]

@LeGenD

I must object to your characterization of South Korea as a capitalist democracy and Syngman Rhee as a democratic leader. He was a military dictator imposed by foreign powers who seized power in a fake election where he earned 90%+ of the votes. He massacred anywhere from dozens to tens of thousands for their political beliefs, over and over again. He was one of the bloodiest dictators of the 20th century.

Americans always forget to mention almost all South Korean officials were collaborators of the Japanese imperialism - war criminals, who had to be executed in normal country. But those criminals, as most of Nazi criminals, were useful for the USA, so they had luxury life instead of execution.

 

[beijingwalker]

 

[Mujahid Memon]

 

[Titanium100]

It was miscalculation that put these forces against each other who initially didn't want to fight and that is the definition of miscalculation and that is why one must calculate the outcome on before hand and try to figure it out like a math. Because sometimes if you make a choice it can unraval an endless pandora box and a great example of miscalculation was Saddam Hussien in the Kuwait war It was a major plunder from calculation point of view..

The US initially didnt want to fight China or the USSR militarily but it happened with China they crossed the redline and they failed to calculate this on before hand. A smart general or expert will not fall into miscalculations that easily and specially one as big like this one.

Another great example of Miscalculation was Hitler when he decided to send the remaining of his forces into Russia. This was probably the biggest miscalculation of them all and that decision was made due to overconfidence and arrogance he was winning to much and decided to invade Russia while actively fighting the allies on one side

 

[vostok]

It was miscalculation that put these forces against each other who initially didn't want to fight and that is the

Another great example of Miscalculation was Hitler when he decided to send the remaining of his forces into Russia. This was probably the biggest miscalculation of them all and that decision was made due to overconfidence and arrogance he was winning to much and decided to invade Russia will actively fighting the allies on one side

I want to make some correction - not "remaining of his forces" but the entire German Army, the best of the whole Nazi forces. Only a few divisions fought on peripheral directions such as Africa. 80% of Germans, the best of their men, were killed on the Eastern front, 20% on the others.

 

[LeGenD]

I want to make some correction - not "remaining of his forces" but the entire German Army, the best of the whole Nazi forces. Only a few divisions fought on peripheral directions such as Africa. 80% of Germans, the best of their men, were killed on the Eastern front, 20% on the others.

Distribution statistics of the Wehrmacht are subject to much debate and unclear as a whole in large part.

The Wehrmacht was stretched across multiple countries in 3 continents by 1942. There were much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht infantry in the Eastern Front to match Soviet numbers but mechanized compositions of US-led forces necessitated much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht mechanized forces in Africa and Europe in 1942 (Sonderverbӓnde). US-led forces routed famous German commander (and battle tactician) Erwin Rommel from Africa in 1942 and invaded Italy in 1943. The Wehrmacht dispatched the SS Panzer Korps to the Eastern Front in 1943 but had to divert other mechanized divisions to counter US-led forces in Italy.

Visser (2010)

This development prevented the Wehrmacht to reinforce its forces in Kursk by extension.

"Sadly there is no surviving ten-day status or monthly chassis number reports for the three SS divisions for the rest of July, August or September. This is because the three SS divisions left the jurisdiction of the 4th Panzer Army within a week of the termination of the Citadel offensive in the south on 16 July (LSSAH eventually headed to Italy, DR and SS-T to the Mius front) any later reports would have been issued to alternative armies (8th, 6th and 1st Panzer Armies)." - Wheatley (2020)

After significant clashes in Italy, US-led forces regrouped and invaded France in 1944 and the Wehrmacht attempted to counter this development with (multiple) mechanized divisions in different situations but suffered significant (equipment) losses in resulting clashes and much of the conventional warfighting capacity of the Wehrmacht diminished by extension. US-led forces also had significant naval and airborne assets at their disposal which they could use to conduct strategic bombing runs in battlefields and inside Germany since 1943; these excesses eroded German Military Industrial Complex (MIC) eventually. These impacts are not appreciated in modern Russian discourses however.

Army Group Center of the Wehrmacht in the Eastern Front encompassed 38 infantry divisions and 2 Panzer divisions in 1944 and it suffered a loss of 35 infantry divisions to increasingly mobile Soviet military compositions of the time (cue large numbers of Lend-Lease Trucks in the mix). Infantry losses were far more pronounced in the Eastern Front due to much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht infantry in USSR and Soviet geography made this dynamic inevitable as well. Distribution statistics of the Wehrmacht give the impression of being heavily titled towards the Eastern Front and exaggerate its implications therefore.

While Soviet contributions to decline of the Wehrmacht are duly noted and appreciated, battlefield realities of the Eastern Front were much different from that of Africa and Europe, and US-led forces eroded both conventional warfighting capacity of the Wehrmacht and German Military Industrial Complex (MIC) to significant extent in the (1942 - 1944) period.

Now suppose that Hitler had not considered Operation Barbarossa and the Wehrmacht could be directed towards US-led forces in full strength, would this have made much difference? I do not think so because Americans would have used atomic bombs to win the war in the end. Americans were just as determined to fight and defeat enemies in World War II as USSR was (if not more).

Food for thought

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16161262.2020.1750841

The Strategic Bombing of Germany in World War II: Costs and Accomplishments on JSTOR

Kenneth P. Werrell, The Strategic Bombing of Germany in World War II: Costs and Accomplishments, The Journal of American History, Vol. 73, No. 3 (Dec., 1986), pp. 702-713

www.jstor.org

Horse-Drawn Transport in the German Army on JSTOR

R. L. DiNardo, Austin Bay, Horse-Drawn Transport in the German Army, Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 23, No. 1 (Jan., 1988), pp. 129-142

www.jstor.org

The Effects of Strategic Bombing in WWII on German Morale - AOAV

This report summarises the conclusions of the United States Strategic Bombing Survey in their research into the effects of air raids on the willingness and ability of the German population to support the war effort.

aoav.org.uk

 

[vostok]

Distribution statistics of the Wehrmacht are subject to much debate and unclear as a whole in large part.

The Wehrmacht was stretched across multiple countries in 3 continents by 1942. There were much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht infantry in the Eastern Front to match Soviet numbers but mechanized compositions of US-led forces necessitated much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht mechanized forces in Africa and Europe in 1942 (Sonderverbӓnde). US-led forces routed famous German commander (and battle tactician) Erwin Rommel from Africa in 1942 and invaded Italy in 1943. The Wehrmacht dispatched the SS Panzer Korps to the Eastern Front in 1943 but had to divert other mechanized divisions to counter US-led forces in Italy.

Visser (2010)

This development prevented the Wehrmacht to reinforce its forces in Kursk by extension.

"Sadly there is no surviving ten-day status or monthly chassis number reports for the three SS divisions for the rest of July, August or September. This is because the three SS divisions left the jurisdiction of the 4th Panzer Army within a week of the termination of the Citadel offensive in the south on 16 July (LSSAH eventually headed to Italy, DR and SS-T to the Mius front) any later reports would have been issued to alternative armies (8th, 6th and 1st Panzer Armies)." - Wheatley (2020)

After significant clashes in Italy, US-led forces regrouped and invaded France in 1944 and the Wehrmacht attempted to counter this development with (multiple) mechanized divisions in different situations but suffered significant (equipment) losses in resulting clashes and much of the conventional warfighting capacity of the Wehrmacht diminished by extension. US-led forces also had significant naval and airborne assets at their disposal which they could use to conduct strategic bombing runs in battlefields and inside Germany since 1943; these excesses eroded German Military Industrial Complex (MIC) eventually. These impacts are not appreciated in modern Russian discourses however.

Army Group Center of the Wehrmacht in the Eastern Front encompassed 38 infantry divisions and 2 Panzer divisions in 1944 and it suffered a loss of 35 infantry divisions to increasingly mobile Soviet military compositions of the time (cue large numbers of Lend-Lease Trucks in the mix). Infantry losses were far more pronounced in the Eastern Front due to much higher concentrations of the Wehrmacht infantry in USSR and Soviet geography made this dynamic inevitable as well. Distribution statistics of the Wehrmacht give the impression of being heavily titled towards the Eastern Front and exaggerate its implications therefore.

While Soviet contributions to decline of the Wehrmacht are duly noted and appreciated, battlefield realities of the Eastern Front were much different from that of Africa and Europe, and US-led forces eroded both conventional warfighting capacity of the Wehrmacht and German Military Industrial Complex (MIC) to significant extent in the (1942 - 1944) period.

Now suppose that Hitler had not considered Operation Barbarossa and the Wehrmacht could be directed towards US-led forces in full strength, would this have made much difference? I do not think so because Americans would have used atomic bombs to win the war in the end. Americans were just as determined to fight and defeat enemies in World War II as USSR was (if not more).

Food for thought

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16161262.2020.1750841

The Strategic Bombing of Germany in World War II: Costs and Accomplishments on JSTOR

Kenneth P. Werrell, The Strategic Bombing of Germany in World War II: Costs and Accomplishments, The Journal of American History, Vol. 73, No. 3 (Dec., 1986), pp. 702-713

www.jstor.org

Horse-Drawn Transport in the German Army on JSTOR

R. L. DiNardo, Austin Bay, Horse-Drawn Transport in the German Army, Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 23, No. 1 (Jan., 1988), pp. 129-142

www.jstor.org

The Effects of Strategic Bombing in WWII on German Morale - AOAV

This report summarises the conclusions of the United States Strategic Bombing Survey in their research into the effects of air raids on the willingness and ability of the German population to support the war effort.

aoav.org.uk

Soviet troops destroyed 607 Nazi divisions, while on the all other fronts combined other Allies destroyed 176 divisions. At a moment Germans held 190-270 divisions of the Eastern front - 75% of their army.
US and Britain made their contribution - they killed about 20% of German soldiers. But all the rest, the lion share - is Soviet.

 

[vostok]

By the way - according to unclassified data there were about 40000 Soviet militaries in Korea during the Korean War - pilots, advisors, technical specialists etc.
Unlike USA, USSR have withdrawn all occupation forces from Korea before 1950, as far as I know.