"South Korean Woman and Baby Brother"
Possible the most famous photo from the Korean War
Our greatest strength can be our most damaging weakness.
"There shall be no Dunkirk - here (in Pusan) we stand or die!" So pronounced General MacArthur at the Pusan perimeter where South Korean and US forces were cornered after a surprise attack by North Korea which captured Seoul in three days and which threatened a total takeover of the Korean peninsular by the Communists.
The Pusan Perimeter, "Stand Or Die"
The Korean War could've been won by the North in barely a month.
However, MacArthur then initiated one of the masterstrokes of 20th century war strategies: the daring landing behind enemy lines at Inchon, trapping the enemy at both ends.
Inchon Amphibious Landing
Very soon, the North Korean invaders were pushed back past the 38th parallel and Pyongyang was captured. MacArthur, addicted with his own triumphs and lusting for the conquest of northern China, surged his X Corps all the way to the Yalu river. He even proudly declared that should the Chinese help North Korea, "There would be the greatest slaughter".
MacArthur was right. But not the way he imagined.
With the surprise and all-out assault by China, with close to 300,000 troops attacking from two flanks, the Americans were forced into a systematic retreat, all the way back past the 38th parallel again, back into Seoul, eventually losing the city (for the second time).
MacArthur was fired and replaced. Good call by Truman, as the good general was contemplating the use of the Hiroshima's Fat Man. His substitute managed to push the Chinese back yet again past the North-South dividing line, after which peace talks began amidst continuous battling back and forth.
In July 1953, a stalemate was declared. Seoul had changed hands four times. Over 5 million lay dead, with more wounded. Territorially, nothing changed between June 1950 and July 1953.
Why couldn't MacArthur quit after retaking Seoul the first time?
Why did he have to go all gung-ho to the Yalu? Assuming he could take Manchuria, what next? Russia?
How many lives could've been saved if MacArthur hadn't stormed North Korea in the first place?
Blessed are the peacemakers.
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Korean War Memorial, Washington, D.C.
Posted at 09:18 pm by alwynlau
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Alex Tang
March 4, 2007 10:45 PM PST
Intel has not always provided the best information. Remember Desert Shiled and Desert Storm? Remember Vietnam? A lot of decisions has been made from faulty intel, poor analysis or bureaucracy.
Human beings has a killer lust inside them. The beast caged. That's why I like the incredible hulk. It is a fantastic metaphor. |
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Alwyn
March 4, 2007 09:55 PM PST
thanks v. much for the input, Alex - History teachers need all the help they can get! :)
It's amazing how Intel failed to notice the build-up of almost 300000 troops - one can't help but think was no small amount of self-deception involved.
maybe, also, the very pull/lust of war was in the air? men's kingdoms always come with this devious attraction to power - contra the kingdom of God? |
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Alex Tang
March 4, 2007 08:19 PM PST
Ah, another military history buff.
Personally I feel there are a few reasons why MacArthur did not stop in Seoul.
(1) He was overconfident. While his success at franking the enemy at Inchon, he underestimated the enemy and was drunk with his own success.
(2) His lost of the Phillipines still haunts him. Now he almost lost Korea. That's something he cannot accept.
(3) Faulty intel tells him that China will not be involved. Maybe if he did not aim beyond the Yalu River, China may not feel so threatened.
(4) Micro-management of the war from Washington.
Blessings
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