front line, and inflict damage on the enemy. Success in each of these enterprises would straighten, shorten and give greater security to the U.N. resumed the offensive in order to drive the enemy farther back from the Hwachon Reservoir (Seoul's source of water and electric power) and away from the Chorwon-Seoul railroad. But late in August 1951, after the truce negotiations had been suspended, the U.N. But occasionally battles for outposts such as Heartbreak Ridge, the Punchbowl, Capitol Hill and the Hook drew media attention, giving them propaganda value at the talks.” Bloody and Heartbreak RidgesĪrmistice negotiations began at Kaesong in July 1951. The constant patrolling and artillery duels seldom made headlines at home. Marino wrote in Military History magazine: “While the two sides engaged in tedious, often exasperating truce negotiations at Panmunjom, their soldiers huddled in trench systems resembling those of World War I. So many mines were laid that even today hikers occasionally get their legs blown off. The artillery fire at some of these places was so heavy that hills were reduced by 20 feet. ĭuring the stalemate period bloody battles were fought from entrenched positions for relatively small tactical objectives at places with names like Pork Chop Hill, Heartbreak Ridge and Bloody Ridge. countered with 250,000 troops on the line, backed by 450,000 reserves. In 1952, North Korea and China had 290,000 men on the front lines and another 600,000 in reserve. By July 1952 both sides had constructed such strong defensive lines that neither could undertake a major offensive without suffering World-War-I like losses. After a huge Chinese offensive from November 1950 to January 1951 and massive American counter-attack in early 1951, the war settled into a stalemate near the 38th Parallel. After Communist North Korean forces invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950, the early stages of the Korean War were marked by huge advances up and down the Korean peninsula in which United States, South Korean and the United Nations (U.N.) forces fought against North Korean and Communist Chinese forces there.
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