The next two episodes deal with the Chinese Second Offensive, below is a map of the attack upon the Eighth Army.
Mac Arthur’s decision
The failure of Mac Arthur’s headquarters at Tokyo to understand the scale of the Chinese forces in North Korea. Charles Willoughby the intelligence chief at his headquarters deliberately underestimates the number of Chinese troops in order to please General Mac Arthur. Mac Arthur orders the 10th Corp to advance towards the Chinese border in North Korea. The Chinese Army prepares for its second offensive. A biography of Charles Willoughby.
Available on Saturday 21st May
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The American defeat at Unsan
The American 1st Cavalry Division is defeated by the Chinese Army around the town of Unsan. However the Chinese First Offensive comes to an end due to a breakdown of supplies. The Chinese Army prepare for the next offensive. A biography of the commander of the Chinese Army in Korea, General Peng and his sad fate after the Korean War at the hands of Chairman Mao.
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General Peng is the greatest general of the 20th century, you have never heard of, he commanded the Chinese Army in Korea.
Peng signed the armistice agreement in July 1953 for China which ended the war. In 1954 he was appointed as the minster of defence, in this job he tried to modernise the army he knew that to do so China would need the help of the Soviet Union, This was at a time when Mao was beginning to become more distrustful of the Soviet Union. Peng was dismissed from office and placed under house arrest for three years.
Mao position weakened temporary in 1962 due to the disastrous failure of his ‘Great Leap Forward’ program. Peng was restored to a minor official role in South West China in promoting industry.
By 1966 Mao had regained total power and he launched his cultural revolution, Peng was one of the earliest victims he was imprisoned and was tortured for ten hours a day, his torturers when relived every two hours by another group. He would be strapped to the floor of the cell, forced to soil himself. At first he refused to confess to crimes of betraying his country but every man has his breaking point and he was forced to confess his crimes at a series of mass meetings.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment. The punishment he had suffered broke his health, Mao refused him proper medical care. His last wish was to see the trees and sun outside his cell, the windows had been covered with newspaper, even this last wish of one of China’s greatest general was denied. His guards were ordered to record his moment of his slow and painful death for Mao, it was 3.35PM, November 29th 1974.
The Chinese First Offensive
President Truman meets with General Douglas Mac Arthur on Wake Island. Mac Arthurs states that the Chinese will not intervene in the Korean War. In fact the Chinese Army is crossing the border into North Korea. The Chinese attack the South Korean 1st Division at Unsan. The Chinese Army defeats the Second South Korean Corp further to the east. A biography of General Xi Fang the chief of staff of the Chinese Army in Korea.
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We have reached half way in the Podcast series and will now began the telling of the Chinese First Offensive and the Battle of Unsan in episode 36 and 37. Below is a map to help explain the situation.
China decides on War
The North Korean Government facing total defeat asks for Soviet help but are denied, they are told to ask China for military support. The Chinese leader Mao decides to bring China into the Korean War to stop the American reaching the Chinese border. General Peng is appointed the commander of the Chinese Army in Korea. Chinese troops move across the border into North Korea.
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Crossing the 38th parallel
General Mac Arthur decides that the United Nations army should cross into North Korea, President Truman agrees. The resistance of the North Korean Army collapses. Pyongyang the capital of North Korean falls to the Eighth Army. An airborne landing is made north of Pyongyang. The South Korean Army captures Wonsan before an American Marine landing can be made. A biography of George Marshall the American Secretary of Defence.
https://koreanwarpodcast.com/2016/04/26/episode-34/
LST landing ship
Used by the American Marines at the landings at Inchon and Wonsan, it could be used to transport vehicles including tanks on onshore. It could also land equipment and large number of troops on the shore. They were armed with cannons and machine guns to provide support for the marines as they stormed ashore. The speed on water was 12 knots or 22 kilometres an hour.
As the Eight Army breaks out of the Pusan perimeter and marches across into North Korea, this map shows it progress.
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