On October 1, 1951, when the people of the whole country were immersed in the joy of national day, a fierce battle on the battlefield of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was quietly beginning, and the 7th Cavalry Regiment (reinforcing a Greek battalion), the 8th Cavalry Regiment and the 15th Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division launched an attack on the Tiandeshan position held by a company of the Volunteer Army. The 4-day battle was later called "the bleakest day in history" by the First Cavalry Division.
The 1st Cavalry Division was one of the first U.S. troops to land and was also the ace of the U.S. Army
Tiande Mountain is located west of Chewon, just 20 km from Kaesong. In the armistice negotiations just held in Kaesong, U.S. representative Joey ignored Truman's request to "be bounded by the 38th Line" and opened his mouth to our lions, demanding 12,000 square kilometers of land north of the 38th Parallel. This unreasonable request was categorically rejected by our side.
Annoyed, Joey said the famous saying: Let the aircraft cannon argue. You don't give it today, we'll take it ourselves. Our negotiator, General Xie Fang, coldly stated: Then you can try it, what you can't get on the negotiating table can also be expected on the battlefield. As a result, Tiande Mountain, which is only 20 kilometers away from Kaesong, has become the focus of contention between the two sides. Whoever wins this war will gain the initiative in the negotiations.
In July 1951, the two sides held negotiations in Kaesong
Stationed at TiandeShan was the 5th Company of the 442nd Regiment of the 141st Division of the 40th Army, which was a reinforced company with a total of 248 men. There are many heroes in the company, including the special heroes of the Montenegro Blockade War, the sharpshooters who have no false hair within 400 meters, and the sharpshooters named with 60 guns. Company Commander Yang Baoshan expressed his determination to the regiment: The people are in the position, they cannot defend Tiande Mountain, and there is no need to see each other in the future. Instructor Yan Cheng'en mobilized before the battle: present a gift to the National Day and kill more enemies!
On October 1, the U.S. military swung wildly. At dawn in the morning, more than a dozen planes roared past the positions of the 5th Company, with incendiary bombs on the positions on fire and heavy artillery ploughing over the surface of the positions. After the fire preparation, two battalions of the 7th Regiment of the FIRST Cavalry Division of the UNITED States Cavalry approached the position under the cover of dozens of tanks.
Tanks of the 1st Cavalry Division assembled at the starting point
Shang Yuzhi, the leader of the 8th Squad of the 1st Platoon, could see clearly that these AMERICAN troops were walking idly one by one, and it was estimated that they thought that there were no living people on the position under such firepower. Shang Yuzhi put the enemy close to 30 meters and then gave an order, grenades and bullets greeted the enemy at the same time, the enemy was caught off guard, and dozens of corpses were thrown down at once and then fled. On this day, the volunteer army and the enemy fought fiercely for 8 hours, repelled 11 enemy attacks, and annihilated more than 200 enemy people.
On October 2, the U.S. Army man-sea tactics. At 6:00 a.m., the U.S. army concentrated hundreds of large-caliber artillery shells to bombard the volunteer positions, and the aviation troops dispatched hundreds of aircraft to bomb the volunteer positions.
American artillery bombarded volunteer positions
Today, the U.S. military has increased significantly. The 7th Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division attacked from the west towards Hill 418, and the 15th Regiment of the 3rd Division attacked From the southwest to Height 313. The Greek battalion with the 7th Regiment was placed in front. The 3 platoons stationed on Hill 418 fought a bloody battle with the Greek battalion, and at the last minute, only the platoon leader Liu Wanjin and two soldiers were left in the 3 platoons, and 3 people drove the enemy down with bayonets, and all the bayonets were bent.
Due to the heavy casualties of the American troops, the 8th Cavalry Regiment, as a reserve, had to enter the battle in advance. The history of the war records: ... Progress was rather slow, with the 8th Regiment reinforcing the right wing of the 7th Regiment and attacking the ridges of The 418 Heights. ...... Each company was hit by a rain of grenades, and suffered heavy casualties in close combat.
American soldiers were on the verge of collapse
On the second day of the battle, the American army successively threw in 3 regiments, not only failed to seize the position, but also killed more than 300 people and destroyed two tanks. The Greek battalion later refused to carry out the offensive order, believing it to be a senseless death. Ridgway wrote in his memoirs that only one of them was also holding his position, and there were short battles on all sides.
On October 3, U.S. forces used poison gas. The failure of the first two days made the US military completely crazy. The U.S. army added 1 203 howitzer company and 3 155 howitzer battalions. Starting at 4 a.m., tens of thousands of shells were fired at the 418 and 313 positions in less than two hours. The fortifications of the 5 companies were all destroyed, and the floating soil on the ground was up to 1 meter deep. The soldiers had to fill the craters with the corpses of American troops and build improvised fortifications.
U.S. troops fired poison gas bombs at volunteer positions
In the afternoon, the U.S. military flagrantly violated international conventions and gassed the volunteer positions. Under the influence of poison gas, the 418 highland was once lost. At the critical moment, the volunteer artillery played an important role, and the AMERICAN troops who poured in like a tide were beaten like a tide, the US troops suffered heavy casualties, and the 418 heights were called "Blood Stained Ridge" by the US army.
On October 4, the U.S. military was poorly skilled. In the first three days of fighting, the American army touched a little doorway, and today they are ready to play a two-wing detour. The 15th Infantry Regiment, the 7th Cavalry Regiment and the 8th Regiment, under the cover of 70 tanks and 5 heavy artillery groups, attacked the 5th Company from both flanks. The 5 companies and 7 squads that held the flank repelled the enemy 8 times in a row based on the ground type. For the last time, the 7th squad threw the remaining 3 explosive canisters into the enemy group, and the unprepared American troops were blown down by more than 80 people. The Americans abandoned the flanking attack.
After that, the American army changed to a frontal attack, and at this time, only 12 people were left in the 5 companies, and all the ammunition was exhausted. Company commander Yang Baoshan burned documents, smashed pistols, watches and pens, picked up a boulder and jumped from a 6-meter-high rock into the Crowd of American Troops, sacrificing himself heroically. Squad leader Shang Yuzhi and the U.S. army engaged in hand-to-hand combat, and died after smashing the two with the butt of their guns. The soldier Zhang Zuozhong, blind in both eyes, still bit the throat of a U.S. soldier and was finally shot and killed. Soldier Zhang Zuoyi died after hand-to-hand combat with the enemy, and his hands clutched the hair of the American army, and he could not open it.
Group photo of the soldiers of the five companies
There were only 8 people left on the position, including instructor Yan Cheng'en, each of whom picked up a stone and prepared for the final bloody battle, and at this time, the American army retreated. After 4 days of bloody fighting, the 5th Company fulfilled the promise of the people in the position with practical actions. More than 900 bodies were left behind by the U.S. troops on the positions. The battle history of the First Cavalry Division records that the boys paid an unbearable price of casualties, and they (the volunteers) were left with only one person and could not retreat, just like eating medicine that was not afraid of death.