Korean War Lessons

Now that the war in Korea has effectively been ended, there are several lessons that we can take from it and apply to the future. In the following report, which will detail several aspects of the war, these lessons will be illuminated.

The US went into Korea in order to stop the spread of Communism. Stalin had already taken control of the satellite nations; shortly after that, China became Communist as well. It appeared that the Soviet's control was growing rapidly across the globe; the US felt that it was its duty to uphold democracy wherever possible. When Korea became threatened, America of course involved itself in order to further its goal of containment.

The UN was incredibly useful in the Korean War. Eighteen members of the United Nations contributed soldiers to the forces sent to Korea; the majority of these troops were still American, but the efforts of the other countries were still greatly needed. Without the support of the UN, the US would very likely not have been able to push back the North Korean forces at all.

The US did achieve its aims to a certain extent, but not to the extent that they had hoped. While North Korean forces (and, by that logic, Communist ideas as well) were purged fully form South Korea, Communism remains in the country to this day. The campaign in North Korea was unsuccessful, and had to be stopped before more danger arose; the danger of Communism was not removed from the country, and so Korea cannot be fully counted as a victory for democracy (or containment).

In regards to the North Korean invasion, it is apparent that MacArthur should not have been allowed to invade the North in the first place. He severely underestimated the fighting power of the Chinese - their technology was just as advanced as ours, and they had been trained to hate Americans deeply and passionately. The North Korean campaign did not accomplish much; a stalemate was reached, yes, but it was not worth the deaths caused and the angering of the Chinese.

The North Korean campaign is a good example of why MacArthur was removed: he was too ready to charge ahead into battle, without calculating the costs. After the campaign in the North, MacArthur was convinced that continuing the war (by invading China with the use of nuclear weapons) was the best option. Truman and the UN did not condone this action, but MacArthur ignored these orders: he openly threatened war against the Chinese, and was promptly removed from the situation and sent back to the US.

The Korean War ended with horrific costs, both to soldiers and civilians. The American and US forces lost 34,500 soldiers; the South Koreans lost 70,000 soldiers and 500,000 civilians; the North Koreans and the Chinese lost 780,00 soldiers and civilians. The death tolls, especially those of the civilians, are disturbing and shocking.

Overall, the Korean War was only a small victory. Millions of troop and civilians died, for little purpose - the wra caused tensions in Korea to skyrocket, and the policy of containment was not forwarded a significant amount. In the future, the US should be careful not to repeat the mistakes made in the Korean War: underestimating the enemy, and rushing in unawares.

Dropping the Atomic Bomb

Additionally, you are to read War in Pacific. It is .pdf file I've shared with you in your WWII file folder. After reading the three pages and studying the sources, answer the following questions and post them to your blog.

1. What factors have affected viewpoints on Truman's decision?
There are two main viewpoints on Truman's decision: the bombing was not justified, and the bombing was completely justified.
Those who believe that the bombing was not justified cite the thousands of Japanese deaths that occurred - not only from the bombs themselves, but also from the effects of radiation that occurred after the fact. They think that the war was already won; the bomb was not necessary for success. They also reason that the army was simply looking to test out its new "toy" and to scare the USSR.
Those who believe that the bomb was completely justified cite the fact that the bomb saved millions of U.S. lives, since a land invasion would have been extremely bloody. They also feel that Truman simply dropped the bomb to save U.S. lives - other allegations of ulterior motives are false.

2. Do you think he made the right decision? Give your reasons.
I believe that Truman made the wrong decision. Yes, the bomb may have saved millions of U.S. lives, but it murdered thousands of Japanese civilians in the process. One cannot condone the saving of lives that came from the deaths of others; it cancels itself out. Also, the bombing set a precedent. Because it worked so effectively, bombs quickly became the go-to solution in military situations. After WWII, bombs were major military tools - the consequences are overlooked, because the end result is so final and immediate.

War In the Pacific

1. What was the importance of the Battle of Midway?
The Battle of Midway had horrible results for the Japanese - they lost 250 planes and four aircraft carriers, not to mention a cruiser though. Many saw the Battle of Midway was "revenge for Pearl Harbor". The real importance of the Battle of Midway, though, is that it allowed the Allies to begin taking over one island after another; each island brought them a little closer to Japan.

2. What strategy did the United States adopt in fighting Japan?
In fighting Japan, the Allies went on the offensive. They would not sit around and wait for the Japanese to attack; they decided to be completely forthright.

3. Why did the Japanese fight so hard on Iwo Jima?
The Japanese were aware that Iwo Jima would be incredibly useful to the U.S., because they could use it to send off heavily armed bomber planes from. The Japanese also knew that if the Allies took Iwo Jima, Okinawa would be the only thing left to stop them from invading Japan.

4. Why did the Allies believe Okinawa was a foretaste of an invasion of Japan?
The Allies predicted that an invasion of Japan would cost millions and millions of British and American lives. So many casualties took place simply in trying to take Okinawa that it seemed to foreshadow what it would be like during the invasion of Japan.

5. What was the Manhattan Project?
The Manhattan Project was the code name for the U.S. program to design an atomic bomb. Over 600,000 people were involved, and yet it was kept highly secret.

6. Ultimately, why did President Truman decide to drop atomic bombs on Japan?
Truman had, according to himself, never had any doubts about using the bomb. He saw no other way to end the war against Japan; he did not want to waste millions of American lives in trying to invade the country by force. He had always seen the bomb as a "miltary weapon", and military weapons get used when necessary.

War for Europe & North Africa - Part II

6. What was D-Day?
D-Day was the first day of the Allies' invasion of Normandy. On D-Day, hundreds of American troops parachuted into German lines; they were joined hours later, in the early morning, by thousands of soldiers who had gotten there by naval transport.

7. What happened at the Battle of the Bulge?
The Battle of the Bulge occurred on December 16, 1944. German tanks broke through the American lines. The tanks pushed miles into the American lines, causing the troops to bulge back - this is where the name of the battle came from. The Germans captured 120 Americans early on in the battle; these soldiers were shot to death in an open field after being taken. The Battle of the Bulge went on for a month; though the Germans had lost little ground, they had lost massive amounts of men and supplies. After this battle, the war took a decidedly downward turn for Germany.

8. What did Allied troops find in Germany?
When the troops pushed through into Germany, they came upon the proof of the Holocaust. They soon stumbled upon the Nazi death camps - they found millions of starving people, emaciated beyond belief, as well as inconcievable amounts of dead bodies, and the methods that were used to kill them - gas chambers, crematoria, and other murderous devices too horrible to imagine.

9. What happened to Hitler? What happened to F.D. Roosevelt? Who became U.S. President?
Hitler shot himself in a bunker on April 30, 1945, the day after marrying Eva Braun. His body, as well as his wife's, was burned in the streets. FDR suffered a stroke on April 12; he did not live to see the official end of the war. His Vice-President, Harry S. Truman, became president.