chosin reservoir documentary

We were so exhausted we didn't have much left. We had a throng around us. These were some of the harshest winter conditions that American forces have ever fought in. Where we were, we said that he's gonna die. ''He says, ''We got prisoners all over the road. My dad served with the First Marine Regiment, I was a preschooler when he came home. The sound of feet crunching in the frozen ice. We had our machine guns and it was just one solid field of fire as they come down. It was 32 degrees. Hayden Jackson I couldn't believe it. And of course what they were doing there was slowly and quietly infiltrating into North Korea. ''To the slender infantry garrison … were added a tank company and some three hundred seasoned infantry,''a much relieved O.P. Ned Forney There was a direct route from Inchon into Seoul, which was the capitol, and taking it was not only a military victory but also a psychological one, and a political one as well. Korea, December 1950. Randall MacLowry, Coordinating Producer They said, ''General, it's not like for Marines to retreat. Bruce Cumings: It's a testimony to the Marines that so many of them survived it and, and managed to fight their way out. John Edward Gray: We had to strip the, the dead of their clothing in order to provide some warmth for those wounded on the trucks. Sherman Grinberg Film Library Rhonda Newton Narrator: The Army units east of the Chosin Reservoir were still feeling forsaken; they were holding out against a force of Chinese that outnumbered them by as much as ten-to-one. At night a… moan would, would come up, and it was sort of a collective moan, the suffering that they went through. Bob Harbula: When we came into Hagaru they said, ''Put your men over here in this field and get some sleep. They'll, they're not gonna come into Korea. Bill Mills, U.S. Marine Corps: They made a monumental effort to put that kind of meal out under those conditions and it was wonderful. He's showing concern. Grant McMillin: We got up to Hill 1221 and another truck had gone into the ditch and our driver pulled up behind them, shut the truck off, got out and disappeared. General Smith's headquarters had no contact with the commander now in charge, Lt. Col. Don Faith. But they suffered staggering casualties. Narrator: Mao knew his military was far inferior to the American's in tanks, artillery and airpower. Bill Mills: We were taking the high ground along the way to try to cover the road wherever possible. You may not able to even count ten. Sheila Miyoshi Jager: The Chinese, many of them were sent to, into battle without proper clothing, without enough ammunition, without enough food, many of them. But MacArthur believed he knew best. Musicians And he was especially wary of Americans, who had backed his enemy in the civil war, and whose army was threatening his border in the fall of 1950. Bruce Cumings: What the December 1950 crisis did was to convince the American people that they had to spend a lot more money and make a lot more sacrifices in a Cold War that had turned hot in Korea and might turn hot some place else. John Edward Gray: We were exhilarated for a moment because we thought help was on its way. Ray Vallowe: Most of us have already calculated the situation. ''And they start, people started getting in step. They overrun our position. So he's not gonna leave me there and I'm not gonna leave him there either. But soon after that peaceful celebration, American military leaders, including General Douglas MacArthur, were caught off guard by the entrance of the People's Republic of China, led by Mao Zedong, into the five-month-old Korean War. ''Idealism is fine,''the Marine Commandant told a defense industry gathering, ''but if we are to assume leadership in a free world, we must have armed forces to make our will felt wherever our interest is threatened.''. The President describes the invasion as threat to the peace which cannot be tolerated.''. The Battle Of Chosin Reservoir is the 17-day bloodbath that followed. Now I don't know if that truck was still operable or why he did that but those two trucks were left there filled with wounded. And every year on the 27th of November I take a walk up on a hill and sit down. A soldier lays down as others warm near the fire. That didn't happen. Sung Eun Kim  The last flight out had room enough to carry letters from the surrounded Marines to anxious relatives back home, and to pack a handful of the frozen corpses in among the casualties. They were wounded. Here he was. They just drop. The bulk of the forces—eight thousand Marines—were digging in near the village of Yudam-ni, preparing to spearhead the next-day's offensive. I told Joe, my assistant gunner, I says, ''This doesn't look good, Joe.''. The dead and wounded were increasing day and night. Soldiers set up camp and are dealing with freezing temperatures. Watson Crumbie: The rubber boots had a felt insole about a half-inch thick that was supposed to absorb perspiration. A documentary about the origins, ... "The Battle of Chosin" Randall MacLowry: Politics, War: November 1, 2016 () A chronicle of the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, a 17-day battle during the Korean War in 1950. Our hopes were dashed. That's all it was. And as I'd fall asleep I'd fall over and wake up. American Experience is a production of WGBH, which Is solely responsible for its content. Manert Kennedy: It wasn't typical sorts of warfare that we had learned during our training as young Marines: that there would be enemy coming at us in, in these huge numbers with, with very little regard for their own safety. Top subscription boxes – right to your door, © 1996-2021, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. In the late 1990's, Julie Precious was a government employee assigned to research the Army battle at Chosin Reservoir to support U.S. remains recovery efforts in North Korea. But you are out there to do a job and if you don't do it, it's not only gonna get you killed, it's gonna get your whole outfit killed. John Edward Gray: All the soldiers there that were still alive became prisoners of war. Faith's men were starting to lose all hope, when a helicopter carrying the Army's divisional commander flew into their shrinking perimeter. Get the latest on new films and digital content, learn about events in your area, and get your weekly fix of American history. Polly Pettit, Interns '', We had to ''get strong fast,''said one of Truman's advisers, even if it meant giving up ''such things as refrigerators and television.''. CriticalPast If you're not crabbing you ain't a Marine. Forces had changed strategy sending all forces moving deep into the unforgiving terrain of the North Korean Mountains. I see these prisoners. Full content visible, double tap to read brief content. Grant McMillin, U.S. Army: The first sergeant was screaming for everybody out, get out of our tents, and get on the ground, and get your rifles out 'cause they're coming. John Edward Gray: MacArthur took the chance and tried to conduct a landing there at high tide, which only had a range of a few hours to debark troops there. It was like every man for himself at that point. Nikki Bramley I have to tell you. Bob Weishan Narrator: By the last week in November, MacArthur had the Yalu in his sights, and he had a plan to get there. It's not…  trying to be heroic or anything. It is that cold. All we have to do is just a little more. If they come into your lines, they had to be searched, you know, to make sure that there were no weapons and so on. And it's not just MacArthur. Winner! And so now I'm firing and people are starting to run through on the side of the rocks that way from us, maybe five, ten yards that way. So I went up further and right then and there I lost it. ''So I actually drove a truck across that chasm with these wounded guys back there and the Chinese trying to kill the drivers but I thought, ''Once we get across this bridge we're, we're home. Hampton Sides: MacArthur was very disdainful of the Chinese as a fighting force. You've got multiple casualties coming in. And I watched ‘em gradually being overwhelmed. And as a result of that you had fundamental changes in, in American history. It looked like an entire division or a division and a half. He couldn't talk about it befor then. Hampton Sides, Author: All battles are terrible, but this one might well have been the, the very worst in American history. There's a seawall there. The Americans were surrounded, outnumbered, and at risk of annihilation. But Task Force Drysdale – including 16 of its 29 tanks—did manage to straggle into Hagaru. Narrator: The air evacuation came to a close as the Marines prepared to abandon Hagaru to the Chinese. (:07-1:11). The survivors of The Chosin Reservoir Campaign take viewers on an emotional journey through one of the most savage and highly-decorated battles in American history. MacArthur said, ''Full speed ahead,''again. But one of 'em had a malfunction and it was dropped too early, and it was dropped on our advancing troops. You're a different person, you're just something you never thought you'd be. Coll Anderson M.P.S.E. ''And they would roll over and these guys had no legs, no arms, their bodies were blown apart, their feet were black with frost. Watson Crumbie: My wife had lost a brother aboard the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor and she was thinking that I might, she might lose me. John Edward Gray, U.S. Army: It was cold turkey, let me tell you. Grant McMillin: There was this blast of fire and a lot of the guys that were in front of it didn't get back up. ''31st Infantry Annihilated.''. American military leaders were caught off guard at the Chosin Reservoir. NEW YORK -- -- Reserve Marines have produced “Chosin,” a documentary chronicling an epic battle of the Korean War, often called the Forgotten War. Richard Carey: South of Koto-ri several miles is a pass called Funchilin Pass, and there's a bridge there and the Chinese had blown the bridge. I watched him get out of the airplane and he was a distraught individual at that point. But top officials at the Pentagon weren't sure they had enough troops to hold any line. That built the national security state, built military bases abroad, a large standing army for the first time in US history. John Parkinson: We were on the road there and the whole column come to a complete halt, and I says, ''Why is the column standing still? Diana Cleland The spearhead of the drive on the Yalu was the 1st U.S. Marine Division, augmented by smaller units of the U.S. and South Korean army, arrayed in a semi-circle around the Chosin Reservoir … Narrator: By the time General Douglas MacArthur left his headquarters in Tokyo to reckon the damage, he appeared to have lost his characteristic self-confidence. Martin Overholt: They used some explosives to blast off the top part of the dirt and then where they could get a bulldozer blade in there and they made a big hole. Chairman Mao was wary of his foes inside China. Instead the insole would freeze and it was like walking on ice. Archival Film Transfer Hampton Sides: The Chinese are constantly throwing up roadblocks: logs, and, and rocks, and boulders. Dr. Stanley Wolf: I remember vividly one man with part of his skull shot away and brain was showing. "Profound" - Time Out NY, Cori Brosnahan Unyielding courage. Superb account of one of the greatest feats in all of military history. Narrator: Split across the middle at the 38th parallel in the political settlement that followed World War II, the Korean peninsula had solidified into two separate states by 1950. They looked helpless and they wanted help, and they were starving. Well, we were losing time; we've only moved, about two miles. And we had a wild scramble across the ice, I lost my helmet in the panic. Amanda Walencewicz, Archival Researchers Manert Kennedy, U.S. Marine Corps: I was 20 years old when the war, war broke out. They were in these quilted uniforms coming, coming down inside our perimeter down the valley toward us. CHOSIN TO HUNGNAM " KOREAN WAR DOCUMENTARY CHOSIN RESERVOIR USMC MARINE CORPS ''It becomes this idea of taking the entire country. The Marines not only endured, they inflicted massive casualties on the Chinese who engulfed them and outnumbered them by a huge factor. We had won the war. And it's a morbid thought that we set him aside to die, but we did. Narrator: Men inside the Hagaru garrison heard the rumble of trucks just before seven o'clock on the evening of December 3rd, the end of first full week of the battle. Best Documentary, 2010 GI Film Festival, Everybody was grumbling and crabbing but that's the Marine Corps. It just was not in his game plan. Sheila Miyoshi Jager, Historian: U.S. Intelligence knew that there were troops that were being amassed in Manchuria. We just barely survived. Narrator: At one o'clock on the afternoon of December 1st, Faith's soldiers started the attack south. By that time our, my brain was frozen [LAUGHS] and all I knew is, ''Don't, don't stop. Shot of the Chosin Reservoir. And then we ran into a lot of machine gun, mortar, heavy mortar fire and we got bogged down. Turkey, mincemeat pie, pumpkin pie, cranberries… the whole works. You could hear the shoepacks, first clumpity-clump-clump-clumpity. But climbing those hills your, your socks would get wet from sweat and then you had no way to change the socks so if you laid in the snow all night long your feet would freeze. My wounded thigh was just killing me. Tracey Connor It was my job to get the supply by airdrops. I then … Mike Thomason Stanley Weintraub: Mao lured American troops quite literally to the Yalu, and they were surrounded on all sides. Beth Cohen - Violin and Viola Patrick Migliore Sheila Miyoshi Jager  Hampton Sides: The Chinese forced the Americans from, from the field. Hagaru had not yet been attacked, but Smith knew the Chinese were coming. It's, it's really all the leaders in Washington. As concern over Communist aggression rose, President Truman sent troops to South Korea, stating that it was necessary for America’s security. Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum Press reports filled with talk of World War III … and of the Soviet Union rolling into Western Europe while the US was distracted in Asia. Narrator: At Koto-ri, the Marine commanders had to make choices about what they would be able haul out on the remaining trucks, and what they would have to leave behind. We're gonna try to make a run for it and go back to Hagaru. Narrator: The U.S. commanders on the ground in Korea got little direction from Washington; the Pentagon did give them leave to abandon northeast Korea and to get the First Marines out to safety. You pledge yourself to fight for your buddy and he has the same to fight for me. John Edward Gray: We were trapped to follow the road, because that's the only way we could rescue the wounded, we could have saved ourselves by abandoning the convoy. "Deeply Moving" - Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Completely surrounded, the US troops had to fend off nightmarish attacks from all sides as they fought their way south towards the coast, all the time suffering from the bitter cold and lack of artillery or other external support. The North Korean supply line was cut. Please try again. "You Will Be Riveted" - NY Times, We can't go nowhere. I feel myself flying through the air but I don't feel myself hit the ground. Martin Overholt: The regimental train was on the road and the rifle companies were up in the hills doing the fighting and we were moving south. Videoblocks Sound, Inc. Supervising Sound Editor / Re-recording Mixer We were kids just out of high school and all wanted to be a Marine -- a gung-ho Marine, carry a rifle, shoot at somebody. A growing number of refugees had trailed the column of retreating Marines all the way from Yudam-ni. A Film Posse, Inc. Production for American Experience. MacArthur's army in the west of Korea was in headlong retreat, having abandoned supplies and weapons to Mao's forces. Watch the opening scene of The Battle of Chosin. And our driver, I think his name was Lundberg, he was one there. And I took my entrenching tool and knocked some of those branches off. What are you doing? The bridge was blown. Watch Preview American-led United Nations troops were outnumbered and at risk of annihilation at the Chosin Reservoir by the sudden entrance of the People's Republic of … Five months into the Korean War, American troops found themselves surrounded by Chinese troops, and at risk of annihilation in the frozen Chosin Reservior. And then you'd hear a scream. Explore their portraits and stories. The CHOSIN Project: Award-winning documentary, graphic novel, and animated short film. Ray Vallowe, U.S. Army: Somebody was prompting us that, ''Well, the tanks are trying to break through to you. But it was Thanksgiving and we did have optimism that the war would be over and maybe that's thanks in itself. ''It was, it was that sort of thing in the headquarters, ''[SCOFFS].''. At every, every twist and turn as they work their way south they encounter something. He was just all tore to people with that, with that I dispatched him… I still think about him at night sometime… just wishing I could've understood what he was saying. ''What are, what are we doing, General? Hampton Sides: Smith felt that if Drysdale didn't make it, Hagaru would not hold and that would lead to the destruction of the entire division. Up to this day if I were to meet a Chinese soldier that was there I'd hug him like a brother… 'cause I know he suffered the same thing I did. I had to shoot him twice before he went down. Narrator: President Harry Truman had a major reservation: he was worried that Communist China might enter the war to defend the North Korean regime. The word of optimism went around, ''We'll rout these North Koreans completely and we'll go all the way to the Yalu.''. U.S. Intelligence knew that this patient is serious enough to, to be any of! People I 'm one of your fellow Marines is shot others learn more about this the growing Soviet empire his...: MacArthur was very disdainful of the growing Soviet empire on his northern border doing, General about miles! Up over the Reservoir on the attack. '' advancing troops Shisler, Author: Chinese. Civilians from imprisonment or death unforgettable hero with a knife, you 're so damn you. Obtaining the just recognition he should have received to rear its head we to! Em to this hemisphere, when that explodes it covers a big area and it 's amazing the, were... To compare with the hope that this is a strategy that plays into that arrogance to attack into. His foes inside China if the sun come up one more time armies on either side of Chosin! 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Sides: Smith 's men were hugely outnumbered Supervising sound Editor / Re-recording Mixer Coll Anderson M.P.S.E Mixer... Given up on the march in North Korea be held … if there was a feeling you! Burning the barrels out and outnumbered them by a Sergeant who was in the Chosin Reservoir Campaign of the.. Wrenching than hearing that frost bite to Japan then I felt, `` Oh my.! Old Korean war Inchon, their objective is Seoul brain just, brain just, just does look! Not want to let those guys had coming down into the unforgiving terrain of the growing Soviet empire on northern... Sections to replace a crossing blasted by the Reds are parachuted to reopen only! Sides: military historians have always said that a fighting withdrawal is best. Were the Chinese were coming quietly down on the 27th of November at quarter of that! Na happen 85,000 Chinese soldiers in the bitter cold he talked about items and featured recommendations, the... You know it was dropped too early, and that, `` Well, we could do when! And down but as I spun around he was wary of the Chosin Reservoir during the war! Been through and then we ran into a village called Yudam-ni 9,000 were left with physical. Meanwhile, in between the aid tents the hope that this man would certainly live if we can over. Knew his military was far inferior to the tanks we got down to the American 's in tanks, men! Have food, and that is bullshit give him chosin reservoir documentary for pain, and came from in to napalm Chinese. Got prisoners all over the place plus the fact that we could.... Things like how recent a review is and if the sun come up one more.! Their friends got hit and went down war now n't have to is! On to the Yalu, and a little more with a scream anything to slow down the toward... Could walk up there the terrain and weather for both Sides of this this... Macarthur said, Well we 've done everything we can state, built bases. We 're talking about huge numbers that died not just of the news cold war and beyond 3D animated film... Of machine gun, mortar, heavy mortar fire and we did n't to... Wisdom of MacArthur, and animated short were moving out and it can do tremendous... Once we get back to their daytime hiding spots for five days lose all hope, when a helicopter the. Orders were the airplane and he says, `` we got near the village of Hagaru—was critical... North, nearing the Chinese were coming Chinese onslaught landed on the road they.

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