It is said that the Korean War was a forgotten war by the United States, and that the War Memorial Park was only built in 1997, 44 years after the armistice, and there are very few films reflecting the war. Some people say that this is because of the defeat in the war, but the Vietnam War, which also lost the war, all kinds of commemorative events and movies have been successful. In fact, the defeat was only because of the fact that no real power figures were produced.
The Memorial Park was completed in 1997, 44 years after the armistice
Throughout the history of the United States, after a big war, there will be some famous generals, most of whom will enter the real power department and become real power figures. For example, Grant ( later 18th president ) of the Northern Army in the Civil War , Pershing ( the first U.S. military super general ) in World War I , Eisenhower ( five-star general , 34th president ) in World War II ) , Marshall ( five-star general , secretary of state ) .
Even in the defeated Vietnam War, there was Westmoreland, who later became the chief of staff of the Army, and Maxwell Taylor, who became Kennedy's military adviser. These real power figures can use their influence to commemorate the war, but the US military did not produce a real power figure, but there was a sad "unlucky seven".
World War II Allied Commander-in-Chief Eisenhower (left) became a real big man after the war
The first of the "seven" was MacArthur, the commander-in-chief of the Coalition Forces. After the Inchon landings, MacArthur reached the pinnacle of personal prestige, and if he had won the war, it was entirely possible that he would have become a superior like Grant and Eisenhower. Unfortunately, his dream was shattered, and the volunteers dragged him off the altar as soon as they struck.
Successive defeats made the arrogant MacArthur almost out of control, even in his sleep chanting about the atomic bomb, fearing that the situation was out of control Truman had to dismiss him in the middle of the night, And MacArthur had to return to his hometown to retire. Ridgway, who took over, performed well militarily in the early days, at least he found the weaknesses of the Volunteer Army's "shoulder logistics" and "prayer offensive", but the Volunteer Army soon became familiar with his playing style, and Ridgway began to tie his hands and feet. In order to win the victory, Ridgway did not hesitate to launch a germ war against the volunteer army, winning the notoriety of "general bacteria".
Back at his hometown in Virginia, MacArthur looked lonely
In order to take into account the reputation of the United States, Ridgway was transferred to Europe to serve as commander-in-chief of nato's armed forces, and was promoted to the rank of general. He thought that Ridgway might become a real power figure, but he was "decommissioned" three years later in 1955, five years before his own plan.
Ridgway's successor, Clark, famously said: "I received an unworthy honor, and I was the first general in the U.S. military to sign an armistice without victory." In July 1953, Clark, the third commander of the coalition forces, signed an armistice at Panmunjom, and three months later Clark, who was only 58 years old, was "retired".
Clark was "retired" three months after signing the armistice
The "bad luck" of the three commanders also seems to have affected their men. Almond, commander of the Tenth Army, MacArthur's most loyal follower, once uttered the admonition that "whatever orders Mai Shuai gives, I will faithfully carry them out", and after the Battle of Chosin Lake, he was promoted to lieutenant general, but with MacArthur's dismissal, he was also "retired".
Smith, the commander of the First Marine Division, who was unanimously praised after the Battle of Chosin Lake, was promoted to commander of the Pendleton Marine Corps Base, and according to his "brilliant" performance in the Battle of Chosin Lake, he should have a bright future, and did not want to retire at the end of 1954 before he reached his age.
Had it not been for Smith's insistence on building an airfield in Hagaru-ri, the 1st Marine Division at Chosin Lake would almost certainly not have been able to run out
The Van Fleet, who created the amazing tactics of the sea of fire, his "bad luck" was no less than MacArthur, his only son was killed in the third battle, the "strangulation war" he participated in was crushed by the volunteer army, his original "tank split into battle" was crushed by the volunteer army, the "Shangganling Offensive" he commanded was crushed by the volunteer army, and the successive defeats made Van Vleet feel that his future was in danger.
His apprentice Clark sympathized with his situation and was determined to help him. In February 1953, they planned the Battle of T-Shaped Mountain, a battle to turn Van Vleet around, and Clark even invited 12 reporters from 11 domestic media outlets to watch it. Unfortunately, in a battalion-level battle, the American army was annihilated 220 people, the volunteers only lost 3 people, wounded 8 people, and in the end Van Vleet failed to take the T-shaped mountain.
After the Battle of T-Shaped Mountain, Van Vleet gave a radio interview, and the overwhelming criticism forced him to retire early
The battle was small,000, but the foreign phase was bigger. The American people who watched the broadcast became angry, and they took to the streets and shouted: The soldiers on the front line are not gladiators performing for you spectators, and under great pressure, Van Vleet was "retired" the following month.
Walker, the former commander of the Eighth Army, known as the "most strategic", was killed in a car accident during the retreat under the offensive of the Volunteer Army. In the first battle, although his army was in a state of defeat and retreat, he only used two steps of strategic deployment to indirectly stop the offensive momentum of the volunteer army, which attracted the attention of Shiji and the domestic high command.
In terms of command level, Walker, who is known as a tiger-headed dog, is even higher than Ridgway
Hearing the news of Walker's death, the top level sent a telegram to Mr. Peng: General Walker was killed, which was a great blow to the morale of the American army. This shows the importance that the volunteers attach to him. His series of military legacies were also taken over by Ridgway in its entirety and caused major trouble for the Volunteers for a while. If he hadn't died, the U.S. army might not have been defeated so quickly.
Change an opponent, according to the level of these 7 people, someone will stand out and soar. But now that they have either been dismissed, killed, or retired early, and have all left the army after 1955, and not a single powerful figure has been produced, naturally no one will take the lead in commemorating the war. Without him, only because their opponents are the Chinese Volunteers.