Battle of White Horse
Part of Korean War
Date October 6-October 15, 1952 Location northwest of Chorwon, Korea Result United Nations victory
Combatants
United Nations United Nations:  South Korea [{South Korea]]  United States United States	People's Republic of China People's Republic of China
Commanders
Major General Kim Jong Oh	General Gang Ong-hwi
Strength
9th Infantry Division (South Korea) Tanks, Artillery and aircraft of the Fifth Air Force	38th Army (People's Republic of China)
Casualties
South Korea: almost 4,000	10,000 (estimated)

The Battle of White Horse (or Baengma-goji), was another in a series of bloody battles for dominant hilltop positions during the Korean War. Baengma-goji was a 395 meter hill in the Iron Triangle vicinity, formed by Pyonggang at its peak and Kumhwa and Chorwon at it's base, was a strategic transportation route in the central region of the Korean peninsula. Combatants United Nations:  Republic of Korea,  Australia,  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Canada,  Colombia,  Ethiopia,  France,  Greece,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Africa,  Thailand,  Turkey,  United Kingdom,  United States Medical staff:  Denmark,  Australia,  Italy,  Norway,  Sweden Communist states:  Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,  Peoples Republic of China,  Soviet Union Commanders... is the 279th day of the year (280th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... kun of the same name (formerly Anhyŏp), see Chorwon (North Korea). ... Korea (Korean: 한국 in South Korea or ì¡°ì„  in North Korea, see below) is a geographic area, civilization, and former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Nations. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Korea. ... Image File history File links US_flag_48_stars. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Peoples_Republic_of_China. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Korea. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Peoples_Republic_of_China. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Korea. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The Fifth Air Force (5AF), with headquarters currently located at Yokota Air Base,Japan, is one of very few numbered air forces of the United States Air Force never to have been based in the United States itself. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Peoples_Republic_of_China. ... Combatants United Nations:  Republic of Korea,  Australia,  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Canada,  Colombia,  Ethiopia,  France,  Greece,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Africa,  Thailand,  Turkey,  United Kingdom,  United States Medical staff:  Denmark,  Australia,  Italy,  Norway,  Sweden Communist states:  Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,  Peoples Republic of China,  Soviet Union Commanders... Combatants Task Force Smith(US) Korean Peoples Army 4th Division and 107th Tank Regiment Commanders LTC. Charles B. Smith Strength 406 1,100 Casualties 120 killed, 36 captured 42 killed, 85 wounded This battle was the first engagement between US and North Korean forces during the Korean War. ... The Battle of Pusan Perimeter was fought in August and September of 1950 between United Nations forces combined with South Korean forces and the forces of North Korea. ... // Combatants United Nations: United States  United Kingdom  Republic of Korea Canada  Australia  Netherlands  France Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Commanders Douglas MacArthur Arthur Dewey Struble Syngman Rhee Jeong Il-Gwon Kim Il-sung Choi Yong-Kun Strength 40,000[1]  ? Casualties 566 killed 2,713 wounded 14,000 casualties... Combatants United Nations * Australia * United Kingdom * United States * Democratic People’s Republic of Korea * People’s Republic of China Strength 27th Commonwealth Brigade *1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders *3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment *Middlesex Regiment Casualties Australia KIA: 14 WIA: 32 The Battle of Pakchon was a battle in... Combatants United Nations Great Britain United States Peoples Republic of China Commanders Oliver Smith Song Shi-Lun Strength 30,000 60,000 Casualties 2,500 dead, 192 missing, 5,000 wounded, 7,500 frostbite casualties 25,000 killed, 12,500 wounded, 30,000 frostbite casualties The Battle of Chosin... Task Force Faith, also sometimes referred to as Task Force Maclean (and by its official designation, RCT 31) was a U.S. Army unit destroyed in fighting at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir during the Korean War between November 27 and December 2, 1950. ... The Battle of the Twin Tunnels took place during the Korean War. ... Operation Ripper was a military operation which was planned to repel the Chinese and North Korean troops from Seoul and to bring UN troops to the 38th Parallel. ... Combatants US Democratic Peoples Republic of North Korea Operation Courageous was designed to trap large numbers of Chinese and North Korean troops between the Han River (Korea) and Imjin Rivers north of Seoul, opposite the South Korean I Corps. ... Operation Tomahawk was an airborne military operation by the 187th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) in March 1951 at Munsan-ni as part of Operation Courageous in the Korean War. ... The Battle of Yultong Bridge was a minor battle against the Great Spring Offensive fought in the Korean War, against the United Nations Command. ... Combatants Peoples Volunteer Army United Nations forces: - United States, - United Kingdom Commanders General Peng Dehuai General Matthew Ridgway [1] Strength 10,000 (+ Divisions in waiting) 700 of the British 29th Infantry Brigade Casualties ~20,00 Chinese; 63rd Army pulled out of action. ... Combatants United Nations Australia Canada China Casualties 43 killed 87 Wounded 3 Captured 1,000+ Killed The Battle of Kapyong was waged during the Korean War. ... The Battle of Bloody Ridge took place during the Korean War from August 18th to September 5th, 1951. ... The Battle of Heartbreak Ridge was a month long battle in the Korean War. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... The Battle of Hill Eerie refers to several Korean War engagements between the United Nations forces and the Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) in 1952 at the infamous of Hill Eerie. ... Combatants Korean Peoples Army Soviet Air Force United Nations Command Far East Air Forces Task Force 77 Commanders unknown Lt. ... Combatants U.S. 45th Infantry Division U.S. 2nd Infantry Division Chinese Peoples Volunteers The Battle of Old Baldy usually refers to a series of five engagements over a period of 10 months for Hill 266 in west-central Korea, though there was also vicous fighting both before and... The Hook During the 1951-1953 Korean War, elements of the United Nations Forces were engaged in fierce fighting to prevent Chinese forces from gaining ground, prior to a possible cease fire. ... The Battle of Pork Chop Hill refers to a pair of related Korean War engagements during the spring and summer of 1953. ... Combatants 15th Infantry Regiment, 3d Infantry Division Regimental Combat Team 5 Company P, Greek Expeditionary Forces Battalion Chinese Peoples Volunteers Outpost Harry was located in what was commonly referred to as the Iron Triangle in Korea. ... Combatants United Nations:  Republic of Korea,  Australia,  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Canada,  Colombia,  Ethiopia,  France,  Greece,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Africa,  Thailand,  Turkey,  United Kingdom,  United States Medical staff:  Denmark,  Australia,  Italy,  Norway,  Sweden Communist states:  Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,  Peoples Republic of China,  Soviet Union Commanders... Pyonggang is a kun, or county, in Kangwon province, North Korea. ... kun of the same name (formerly Anhyŏp), see Chorwon (North Korea). ...

White Horse was the crest of a forested hill mass that extended in a northwestsoutheast direction for about two miles (3 km), part of the area controlled by the U.S. IX Corps, and considered an important outpost hill with a good command over the Yokkok-chon Valley, dominating the western approaches to Chorwon. Loss of the hill would force the IX Corps to withdraw to the high ground south of the Yokkok-chon in the Chorwon area, would deny the IX Corps use of the Chorwon road net, and would open up the entire Chorwon area to enemy attack and penetration. The U.S. IX Corps was a corps of the United States Army which served in World War II and throughout the Cold War. ...

During ten days of battle, the hill would change hands 24 times after repeated attacks and counterattacks for its possession. It was one of the most intense position-grasping battle for a small hill during the course of the Korean War. Afterwards, Baengma-goji looked like a threadbare white horse, thence its name of Baengma, meaning a white horse.^[1]

Background

On October 3, 1950, a defecting Lieutenant Colonel from the 340th Regiment (114th Division People's Volunteer Army, under interrogation revealed that an attack on White Horse was imminent.^[2] is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... In the U.S. Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a commissioned officer superior to a major and inferior to a colonel. ... The Chinese Peoples Volunteer Army (PVA) (Simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ) was a volunteer army deployed by the Chinese government during the Korean War. ...

Being corroborated by other intelligence, the IX Corps reinforced the ROK 9th Division with 22 tanks from the 53rd Tank Squadron and the U.S. 73rd Tank Battalion's C Company, artillery, rocket launchers, and antiaircraft weapons to be used in a ground role. Major General Kim Jong Oh (Division Commander), stationed the 30th Regiment under Regimental Commander Im Ik-sun in charge of the left forefront and the 29th Regiment under Commander Kim Bongcheol in charge of the right fore-front on the threatened hill and held the 28th Regiment under Commander Lee Ju-il in reserve. On the flanks of White Horse he positioned the tanks and antiaircraft guns to cover the valley approaches. Searchlights and flares were distributed to provide illumination at night, and a flare plane was made available to supply additional light on call during the hours of darkness. From the Fifth Air Force came extra air strikes against enemy artillery positions adjacent to White Horse. Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ... BM-13 Katyusha RM-70 of the Polish Army A multiple rocket launcher is a type of unguided rocket artillery system, in use since the Second World War. ... American troops mount an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft warfare, or air defence, is any method of engaging military aircraft in combat from the ground. ... Commander is a military rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. ... The Fifth Air Force (5AF), with headquarters currently located at Yokota Air Base,Japan, is one of very few numbered air forces of the United States Air Force never to have been based in the United States itself. ...

Battle

On October 6, an intensive air raid was carried out on several places around Baengma-goji where the Chinese were anticipated to assemble. The Chinese responded by opening the floodgates of the Pongnae-Ho Reservoir, which was located about seven miles (11 km) north of the hill, evidently in the hope that the Yokkokchon which ran between the ROK 9th and the U.S. 2nd Division would rise sufficiently to block reinforcements during the critical period. Simultaneously, they threw a battalion-sized force at Hill 281 (Arrowhead), two miles (3 km) southeast of White Horse across the valley, to pin down the French Battalion astride the hill and to keep the 2nd Division occupied. Before the night was over six additional companies joined in the action. The French held firm and inflicted heavy casualties upon the attackers. As a diversion to the main attack, it proved effective but expensive. is the 279th day of the year (280th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The 2nd Infantry Division (Heavy) is a formation of the United States Army. ... The French Battalion in the Korean War (Bataillon français de lONU, BF-ONU) was a battalion of volunteers made up of active and reserve French military personnel sent to the Korean Peninsula as part of the UN force fighting in the Korean War. ...

At 19:15, the 340th Regiment sent two battalions up to the northwest end of the White Horse Hill complex to engage the 10th company and its supporting forces in an attempt to secure a break-through. At 02:00 the following morning, four B-29 fighter bombers dropped 1,000 pound bombs on Hajinmyeong-dong, and an assortment of 81 artillery guns (32 155-milimeter guns, 32 105-milimeter guns, 7 4.2-inch heavy mortars and 10 tank guns) dealt intensive heavy fire; nevertheless, the Chinese breakthrough widened further, though suffering an estimated 1,500 casualties the first night. Disregarding the heavy losses, the Chinese committed the remnants of the original two battalions and reinforced them with two fresh battalions from the same division the following day. Cutting off a ROK company outpost, the Chinese pressed on and forced the elements of the ROK 10th Company to withdraw from the crest. Less than two hours after the loss of the peak, two battalions (the 2nd and 3rd) of the ROK 28th Regiment mounted a night attack that swept the Chinese out of the old ROK positions by 23:05. Again the Chinese losses were heavy and a Chinese prisoner later related that many of the companies committed to the attack were reduced to less than twenty men after the second day of fighting. The Boeing B-29 Superfortress was a four-engine heavy bomber propeller aircraft flown by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and other military organizations afterwards. ... In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ...

With such serious losses, the Chinese switched its attack forces from the 340th Regiment to the 334th Regiment, reserving the 342nd Regiment for the assault on October 9. Elements of the 342nd fought their way to the crest during the afternoon of October 9, only to lose it to a ROK 28th Regiment counterattack that night. On October 10, the still fresh 29th Regiment made a counterattack and seized White Horse, and the 28th Regiment was immediately assigned to defend the right flank of the hill. The same day at 0430, the Chinese 342nd Regiment recaptured the hill in an attack on the ROK 29th Regiment that had been defending the main peak; in two hours, though, the hill was seized back in an instant counterattack, only to be lost again at 0815. In the tiresome war of attrition, the UN forces relied on their overwhelming advantage in artillery support and close-range air support. The UN forces apparently were fortunate, for a Chinese prisoner later related that Fifth Air Force planes had caught elements of the 335th Regiment, 112th Division, in an assembly area north of Hill 395, inflicting heavy casualties upon the regiment, and had delayed its commitment to the attack.

Regardless of casualties, the Chinese continued to send masses of infantry to take the objective. On White Horse, the Chinese kept funneling their combat troops into the northern attack approaches where Eighth Army artillery, tanks, and air power would wreak havoc. The Chinese determination to win White Horse made sitting ducks out of their infantry as the IX Corps defenders saturated the all-out assaults with massed firepower of every caliber.

By October 12 there was a break in the bitter struggle. The 1st Battalion of the 30th Regiment struck out from the attack line. The 29th Regiment, which had mounted a counterattack four hours before the attack by the battalion, was stalled just 40 meters from the enemy position. When no progress was made in the two-hour attack, the 2nd Battalion was sent in on the right flank for a pincer movement. The 3rd company which was in the vanguard of the 1st Battalion was not making sufficient advances because of Chinese resistance, so the commander of the 1st company, close behind the 3rd company, was ordered to launch an overriding attack and succeeded in approaching the attack line. White Horse was recaptured at 13:20, after five-hours of intense battle. is the 285th day of the year (286th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A pincer movement whereby the blue force doubly envelops the red force. ...

On October 13, under close-range air cover by 141 warplanes, the 28th Regiment was committed to Nakta-neungaseon, but the strong Chinese resistance forced it to withdraw to White Horse six hours after the attack on the ridge had begun. On October 14, the 29th Regiment executed another attack, and at 10:40, the 22nd Battalion of the Regiment routed the Chinese troops from Nakta-neungseon, thus seizing full control of White Horse.^[3] October 13 is the 286th day of the year (287th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 287th day of the year (288th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Aftermath

The 38th Army committed seven regiments out of its total of nine regiments and sustained a total of 14,332 casualties (8,234 identified deaths, 5,097 presumed deaths, 1,001 wounded, and 57 prisoners, while the 9th Division of South Korea suffered a total of 3,422 casualties (505 dead, 2,562 injured and 391 missing), plus over 400 more casualties in the 1st Battalion of the 30th Regiment. The American Fifth Air Force made a total of 745 sorties and poured more than 2,700 bombs of various kinds, together with over 358 napalm bombs, onto the hill. Chinese forces rained no less than 55,000 shells during the nine-day battle period, and the South Korean forces fired over 185,000 shells. The 38th Army, after having been replaced by the 23rd Army, had to withdraw to the rear.^[4] The Fifth Air Force (5AF), with headquarters currently located at Yokota Air Base,Japan, is one of very few numbered air forces of the United States Air Force never to have been based in the United States itself. ...

References