Invading the Seoul of the World

The Korean War was a civil war between warring factions of the same. In reality, it was much more of an international war. Several major nations became involved with either side; each giving them supplies and weapons to improve their chances of winning.
The origins of the Korean War lie in World War II. Japan captured the Korean peninsula before the war, and attempted to conform the Korean People to Japanese traditions. Korea’s national identity faltered, and its infrastructure and culture began to disappear. After the war, the southern half of Korea was put under American jurisdiction, while the North was put under Soviet control. Both powers were supposed to rebuild the country, and then unify the two halves. However, America installed a democratic government in the south, while the Soviet installed a communist puppet leader. Both nations armed their half of Korea. The U.S. gave the South defensive weapons. They wanted South Korea to defend them self against the North, but not be able to attack. They did not want the South to start a war they would surely get dragged into. Both Korea’s hated each other. The North believed that the South was an oppressive capitalist state that would trample the workingman, while the South felt the North would be a brutal dictatorship that suppressed rights, and took orders from Moscow. Both sides were ready for war, and fought several skirmishes, though no one wanted to make the first move. War was imminent.
The North made the first move, rushing across the border with a surprise attack. They claimed it was a response to a previous Southern attack, but this has been shown to be false. North Korea’s superior military power overwhelmed the weakened Southern forces. The poorly trained forces of the South were retreating, or defecting. There was no real organized resistance to the Northern offensive. Thousands of civilians were killed in the fighting, and both sides committed atrocities against the civilian populace. The North had hoped for a quick end to the “Reunification War”, but the entry of the American troops into the South destroyed any hope of a quick victory.
The U.S. Eighth Army entered the war for the South, but quickly showed its age. The bulk of American forced were inexperienced, and unprepared for the North Korean’s. They fought a loosing battle, and retreated around the city of Pusan. The American and South Korean forces held the city, and established a defensive perimeter. Allied air and sea power was coming into play, and massed air strikes prevented the North Koreans from breaking through. The US sent thousands of men and tanks into Pusan, to fortify the area so a counterattack could be made. They countered-attacked out of Pusan, and combined with a sea invasion at Incheon, the American’s overwhelmed the Korean’s, and began retaking lost territory. Over the course of the next two years, the Chinese would enter on the side of North Korea, and fight the Allied forces to a standstill on the 38th Parallel. The war would be a stalemate until the ceasefire in 1953. This ended open hostilities, but the two Korea’s today are as divided as they were during the fighting. An official state of war still exists between the countries.


By Jay and Jon