First To Fight

America's first military action in Korea was in 1871. The General Sherman, an American flagged vessel that sailed to Korea in 1866, was destroyed by Korean forces. With no diplomatic solution, an American naval squadron sailed to Korea and on June 10, 1871 landed a force of Marines that attacked and occupied several forts near the Han River. The American force withdrew and sailed away in July.

North Korea, equipped with Soviet arms and supported by the Soviet Union, crosses the 38th Parallel and invades South Korea on June 25, 1950. The North push through initial defenses and capture Seoul, the South Korean capital. US and UN forces were pushed south to Pusan where they dug in and held while more forces streamed in to the Pusan Perimeter, including The 1st Provisional Marine Brigade.

The arrival of the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade in August 1950 bolstered the U.S. and South Korean forces in the Pusan perimeter. The attacking North Korean army was stalled in their offensive attempts to overrun the perimeter and virtually end the war. The U.S. forces hold with the 5th Marines stand at the Naktong River and the battles for the Namji-ri Bridge and Obongni Ridge.

With U.S. and U.N. forces locked in the struggle to break out from the Pusan Perimeter, General MacArthur put in place what was perhaps the most remembered aspect of the Korean War: The amphibious landing at Inchon. The 5th Marine Regiment landed on Wolmi-do Island in Inchon Harbor on September 15, 1950 to begin the action. By the next day American forces took Seoul and were now on the offensive.

US led UN forces retake Seoul, crush the North Korean forces around the Pusan Perimeter and cross the 38th Parallel into North Korea and push toward Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, despite warnings from Communist China. U.S. Naval forces created what became the largest naval blockade in history and U.N. forces, including the 1st Marine Division, capture Pyongyang October 19, 1950.

U.N. forces continue their advance in North Korea closing to the Korean/China border. As winter moves in American forces, including the 5th Marines, encounter Chinese troops for the first time. The Marines advance to the Chosin Reservoir. The Chines Army mounts a massive attack in November and overruns the U.N. forces with eight Chinese divisions encircling the Marines at the Chosin reservoir.

The Marines breakout from the Chosin Reservoir breakout battle was fought in some of the most difficult and roughest terrain in Korea and in freezing winter weather conditions. The tenacity and fortitude of the Marines during the running battle kept the Chinese from pushing forward and overrunning the U.N. Corps south of Chosin. All who served in the campaign became known as the 'The Chosin Few'.

When the Korean War broke out many of the aircraft initially used by the U.S. military were World War II prop driven planes. The attacking North Korean forces had Soviet built MiG 15 jet fighters. The U.S. rapidly deployed the F-86 Sabre Jet. This led to many dogfights in the northwest part of North Korea dubbed 'MiG Alley' and was the birthplace of jet versus jet aerial combat.

When North Korea invaded South Korea in the summer of 1950 the United States military was not ready to rapidly deploy major and modern forces to the Korean Peninsula. The initial units sent used the same weapons from WW II; including the M-1 rifle, M2 .50 caliber heavy machine gun, the famous .45 caliber pistol, the 105mm and 155mm artillery, and the M4A3 'Sherman IV', the WWII battle tank.

U.S. historians call the evacuation from Hungnam in North Korea in December 1950 'The greatest evacuation movement by sea in U.S. military history'. 100,000 troops, 17,500 vehicles and 350,000 tons of cargo were successfully evacuated. The war would continue with the U.S. and U.N. determined to keep South Korea free and U.S. losses would reach over 128,000 killed and wounded and almost 5,000 MIA.

The South Korean capital of Seoul was a major battle ground during the Korean War. The fourth battle of Seoul began in March 1951. By mid-month the North's forces were forced to withdraw from Seoul and the city was retaken by the U.S. military. Meanwhile, controversy over policy issues were building between General MacArthur and President Truman. On April 11, 1951 Truman relived MacArthur.

The Battle of The Punchbowl was one of the last battles of the movement phase of the Korean War. Outpost Bunker Hill saw the Marines fighting off attacks by the Chinese forces. During the spring and summer of 1953 battles were fought over hills with no particular strategic importance except to influence the Panmunjom peace talks that produced an armistice on July 27th 1953 ending hostilities.