Conflict and tension in Asia, 1950-1975, Part one: Conflict in Korea Flashcards

1
Q

What was the Cold War?

A

The conflict between the USA and the USSR. Not fought face to face but through proxy wars.

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2
Q

When did the Chinese civil war start and finish?

A

1944-49

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3
Q

What day did the Korean War start?

A

25th of June 1950

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4
Q

What side of Korea did the USA support?

A

The South

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5
Q

What side of Korea did the USSR support?

A

The North

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6
Q

Who was the ruler of North Korea in 1950?

A

Kim Il Sung

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7
Q

Who was the ruler of South Korea in 1950?

A

Syngman Rhee

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8
Q

In what way was the Korean War a proxy war?

A

Both superpowers - the US and USSR - could fight without direct confrontation.

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9
Q

Whose support did Kim Il Sung want to have before invading?

A

He wanted Stalin’s permission and support.

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10
Q

On what line was Korea divided on at the end of WW2?

A

38th Parallel

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11
Q

How was Korea supposed to be unified?

A

Through an election. The winner would be ruler of the North and the South.

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12
Q

How was the division of Korea supposed to be temporary?

A

Elections were to be held to unify the country.

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13
Q

Why was it not possible to have elections to unify Korea?

A

No side could agree on how the country should be run. No compromise was achieved.

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14
Q

What political ideology did the USA follow?

A

Capitalism

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15
Q

What political ideology did the USSR follow?

A

Communism

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16
Q

What was the Truman Doctrine?

A

The USA’s policy to try to ‘contain’ communism.

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17
Q

In what year did China become a communist country?

A

1949

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18
Q

Who was fighting for a capitalist China?

A

Chiang Kai-shek

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19
Q

How much money did the USA give to Chiang Kai-shek’s campaign?

A

$2 billion

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20
Q

Why did Kim Il Sung invade the South?

A
  • Korean nationalism - unity wanted
  • Cold war - USSR wanted to spread communism
  • China - now new North Korean ally
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21
Q

What was the Marshall Plan?

A

The US aid program that helped rebuild European countries.

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22
Q

Was Syngman Rhee elected?

A

Yes. Elections took place in 1948.

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23
Q

Was Kim Il Sung elected?

A

No. He took control of North Korea

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24
Q

What was the USA’s immediate response to the invasion?

A
  • Ordered US Navy Fleet to Korea (7th Fleet)
  • Ordered General MacArthur to organise troops and supplies
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25
Q

What was the UN’s immediate response to the invasion?

A
  • Ordered Kim Il Sung to withdraw his troops across the 38th parallel
  • Called for a ceasefire
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26
Q

Why was the USSR absent from the UN Security Council Meeting?

A

It was refusing to take part because it wanted China to join it.

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27
Q

When did the UN Security Council meet?

A

27th May 1950

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28
Q

What was the UN Security Council’s decision on the 27th of June?

A

To send in UN troops to defend South Korea.

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29
Q

How much of the UN troops were American?

A
  • 50% of troops
  • 90% of navy and air forces
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30
Q

How many troops does ROK and NKPA have in 1950?

A

ROK: 98,000 troops
NKPA: 135,000 troops

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31
Q

Who was in charge of the UN and ROK troops?

A

General MacArthur

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32
Q

Why was the USA so adamant on defending South Korea?

A
  • Containment
  • Reputation - containment had not worked in China
33
Q

What was the Pusan perimeter?

A

The small area of land left to South Korea in September 1950.

34
Q

On what day did North Korea take Seoul?

A

28th June 1950

35
Q

When did the first UN troops arrive?

A

September 1950

36
Q

How big was the Pusan perimeter?

A

100 square miles

37
Q

What was the NKPA’s experience?

A

They had Soviet weapons and had fought with the Red Army during China’s civil war. They were experienced.

38
Q

What was the ROK and the UN’s army’s expericence?

A

They had WW2 weapons and had mostly new recruits. They had little experience.

39
Q

What day was the attack at Inchon?

A

15th September 1950

40
Q

How many troops landed at Inchon?

A

300 ships, 70,000 new men

41
Q

What did the UN have to secure at Inchon.

A

The nearby airfield. It acted as a base for attacking Seoul.

42
Q

What day was Seoul freed in September 1950?

A

29th September 1950

43
Q

At the same time as the Inchon landings, where did the UN attack?

A

It attacked the NKPA troops outside the perimeter.

44
Q

What was the effect of having both attacks - Inchon and the exterior of the Pusan perimeter - at the same time?

A

It trapped the North Korean troops between two fronts.

45
Q

How many North Korean troops were killed or captured as the UN liberated South Korea?

A

40,000 NKPA troops were captured or killed

46
Q

What day did the first UN forces advance into North Korea?

A

1st October 1950

47
Q

What day did the UN forces capture Pyongyang?

A

20th October 1950

48
Q

Why did the UN advance into North Korea?

A
  • Fear of a second North Korean attack
  • USA wanted an impressive victory
  • MacArthur certain China and USSR would not join the war
49
Q

What was the significance of the US air superiority in October 1950?

A
  • US planes had total control of the skies as North Korea had very few air defences
  • Any Chinese troops could be easily identified
50
Q

What day did China intervene?

A

25th October 1950

51
Q

When did China warn they would intervene?

A

China warned on the 3rd of October they would intervene if US or UN troops crossed the 38th parallel.

52
Q

How did China prepare its attack?

A

300,000 troops hid in the mountains, camouflaged. They could not be spotted from the air. This enabled them to launch a surprise attack.

53
Q

Why can it be argued that the UN troops advanced ‘too quickly’?

A

Because the Chinese attacked them from behind, cutting them off.

54
Q

What happened on the 28th of November?

A

MacArthur launched a ‘home by Christmas offensive’.

55
Q

What was the result of MacArthur’s ‘Home by Christmas Offensive’?

A

It failed. China launched a devastating couter-attack leading UN troops to retreat.

56
Q

What day did the Chinese capture Seoul?

A

7th of January 1951

57
Q

What was the second time the UN liberated Seoul?

A

May 1951

58
Q

When was MacArthur sacked?

A

11th April 1951

59
Q

Why was MacArthur sacked?

A
  • Refused to obey President Truman.
  • Argued for attacking China and using atomic bombs.
  • Was sacked to protect the USA’s integrity.
60
Q

What was the Soviet fighter jet?

A

MiG-15

61
Q

How did the USSR counter the USA’s air superiority?

A

Soviet pilots fought in MiG-15s. Pretended to be North Korean or Chinese.

62
Q

What is a stalemate?

A

When neither side is strong enough to overpower the other.

63
Q

When was a stalemate reached?

A

By mid-1951.

64
Q

When do peace talks begin?

A

July 1951

65
Q

What were the peace talks about?

A
  • Where the new border would be.
  • Returning prisoners of war (16,000 Chinese prisoners did not want to go back)
  • What would happen to the troops (USA wanted to keep its forces in S.Korea)
66
Q

What did the USA do to push N.Korea to accept its peace terms?

A

It bombed the North.

67
Q

How many North Koreans were killed under the US bombing campaign?

A

One million. The Americans used naplam. (Check source)

68
Q

How many aeroplanes did the US lose because of the Soviet MiG-15s?

A

The USA lost 3500 aeroplanes.

69
Q

What were the reasons for ending the war?

A
  • Stalin had died - China and N.Korea were unsure if Soviet help would continue.
  • N.Korea was struggling to feed its people because of US bombing.
  • China wanted to cut military spending to industrialise itself.
70
Q

When was the armistice signed?

A

27th of July 1953

71
Q

How many deaths, civilian and military, were there in S.Korea?

A

One million civilians
200,000 soldiers (check source)

72
Q

How many deaths, civilian and military, were there in N.Korea?

A

600,000 civilians
400,000 soldiers

73
Q

What was the outcome of the Korean war for the UN?

A

It showed that the UN was a powerful organisation for tackling world peace.

74
Q

What was the relationship between USA and China like after the Korean War?

A

It got worse. USA stopped trading with China. USA supported a rival Chinese government in Taiwan.

75
Q

How many US troops died in the Korean War?

A

36,500 troops

76
Q

How many tons of bombs were dropped on N.Korea?

A

Over 635,000 tons of bombs were dropped.

77
Q

What is a Demilitarised Zone?

A

A zone where no military can be stationed in.

78
Q

What does DMZ stand for?

A

Demilitarised Zone

79
Q

What was the DMZ for between North and South Korea?

A

To keep the sides from entering into conflict. It was 3km wide.