（1）
On the night of December 5, 1950, Jiang Qingyun, commander of the 7th Company of the Third Battalion, 240th Regiment, 8th Division, 27th Army, Chinese Volunteer Army, took advantage of the cover of night to lead a commando team composed of an infantry platoon and a machine gun platoon to the Watergate Bridge.
Their mission was to blow up the Pratunam Bridge, completely cut off the retreat of the US First Marine Division, and bring the Ninth Corps to a perfect end to the Battle of Chosin Lake.
Because the bridge has been blown up twice in front of it, the US military has built a complete fortification here, coupled with the geographical advantage, combined with the strong firepower of the US army, this is basically an impossible task.
Later, Jiang Qingyun recalled: "When the enemy fired a shuttle of machine guns, 7 people fell here, of which 4 were killed and three were injured. ”
However, under the leadership of Jiang Qingyun, the fighters successfully avoided the enemy's fire point, interspersed to the Watergate Bridge, allowing the machine gun platoon to cover the fire, and the other platoon began the third blast of the Watergate Bridge.
Because the first two explosions made it easy for the US military to complete the reconstruction of the bridge, this time using a large number of explosive packs, directly blew out a large gap of nearly 9 meters in the Watergate Bridge, and also completely damaged the bridge foundation.
At that time, the volunteers predicted that if the U.S. military wanted to completely repair the bridge, it would take at least half a year. As long as the U.S. 1st Marine Division did not grow wings, it was destined to be trapped by the Watergate Bridge.
But what people never expected was that on December 7, US military engineers circled back and forth over the Pratunam Bridge in an airplane, in fact, to observe the damage to the bridge, to study how to quickly restore the bridge, and to ensure that the US First Marine Division could safely withdraw to South Korea.
At noon on December 7, at the suggestion of bridge experts, the US military used the C119 transport aircraft to airdrop 8 groups of prefabricated pontoon bridge components in Gutuli. Among them, 6 groups were successfully recovered by the US military, which has exceeded the requirements of the components required to repair the Watergate Bridge (4 groups), and the key is that the strong material production and supply capabilities of the United States are supported by it.
The other two groups, one of which landed on the positions of the Resource Army, were badly damaged and unusable. The U.S. operation aroused the vigilance of volunteer soldiers, who were quickly reported to the headquarters of the Ninth Corps.
On 8 December, the Ninth Corps gave the order to pursue the U.S. Lu Zhan 1st Division. Zhang Yixiang, commander of the Twentieth Army at the front. Keenly aware that the U.S. military would repair the Watergate Bridge at all costs, he asked the 180th Regiment to make a full-scale attack to blow up other transportation arteries and disrupt the process of repairing the bridge.
On December 9, more than 1,000 men from the vanguard of the U.S. First Marine Division followed the tanks and, under the cover of aircraft artillery, launched an onslaught on the positions of the 180th Regiment. Under the attack of the superior firepower of the US army, the 180th Regiment suffered heavy casualties, and the regimental commander Zhao Hongji died heroically.
On the afternoon of the same day, the A Company of the 1st Battalion of the 1st Marine Regiment of the Lei Army occupied the 1081 heights and cleared the fire from the periphery of the 180 team's Watergate Bridge repair work. By six o'clock in the afternoon, the U.S. military had completed the final repair of the bridge.
（2）
The Battle of Pratunam Bridge was a small part of the Chosin Lake Campaign, but it was also the most critical step in the later stages of the campaign, as it was crucial to whether the US First Marine Division could be completely annihilated in the area.
The Ninth Corps participated in the Battle of Chosin Lake, which, although it had long been notified to participate in the Korean War, was in a hurry to go to the Korean battlefield. At that time, the soldiers were still wearing summer military uniforms, originally in Shenyang to complete the task of changing clothes, but for the concealment of the campaign launched, coupled with the time requirements are too tight, the train stayed in Shenyang for a short time, and only part of the winter cotton clothes were thrown on the car.
When it comes to the Korean battlefield, the same is true. They faced a low temperature of minus twenty or thirty degrees, and a large number of American reconnaissance planes and bombers were still in the sky to harass them. In such a situation, the troops could only rest during the day and advance at night.
The Ninth Corps consisted of the Twentieth Army, the Twenty-sixth Army and the 27th Army, totaling 150,000 men. More than 19,000 people were killed in the Battle of Chosin Lake, more than 28,000 were frostbitten, and more than 4,000 were frozen to death. Chi Haotian, later vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, said in his recollection that he was a battalion instructor of the Twenty-seventh Army at that time, and was the only one in his battalion who did not suffer frostbite.
The Battle of Chosin Lake began on November 27, and although Oliver Smith, commander of the U.S. First Marine Division, also expected to be ambushed by volunteers in this area, the entire army was slow to advance, requiring defensive preparations at the time of camping, and the various units could form a strategic coordination, but they were still divided and surrounded by volunteer soldiers.
By 30 November, all sorts of bad news had come to the division headquarters, and Smith had understood that the Volunteers were going to annihilate them in the area. The U.S. First Marine Division was an Ace unit of the United States and once shined on the battlefields of World War II.
The only thing that can be done now is to retreat, to ensure that this army can be safely withdrawn, in order to maintain the dignity and glory of this army, otherwise it will be an unprecedented Waterloo in the history of the US military, and it will be the greatest shame of Smith himself.
Smith soon drew up a plan for a retreat from The Lower Osumi, Gutuli, and Jinxingli, but the army had been completely divided and encircled, and it was impossible to retreat with all its strength.
In the process of retreat, the meaning of the US army is basically the opening of the tank cannon, the overhead of the air force artillery resources, and the army behind the quick follow-up. Nevertheless, the 31st Regiment of the 7th Infantry Division, known as the "Polar Bear Regiment", was completely annihilated, and the regiment's combat number was canceled.
The bad weather, coupled with the powerful firepower of the US military's mechanized equipment, constituted a very big problem for the annihilation of the 9th Corps, and objectively caused limited favorable conditions for the US army.
The two sides launched a bloody battle in this area, the US army knocked down the position during the day, and the volunteer soldiers rushed back at night, under such circumstances, the US army advanced less than 1 kilometer a day at the most difficult time.
Despite this, the footsteps of the US First Marine Division still approached the Watergate Bridge step by step. As long as they crossed the Watergate Bridge, the task of total annihilation was basically lost.
（3）
Located 6 km south of Gutuli and 8.8 meters wide, the Pratunam Bridge is an overhanging bridge with no other roads to use around it, and it was likely to be part of the local hydroelectric power station at the time, which became a major transportation route during the war years.
The importance of the Pratunam Bridge is self-evident, the two sides have launched a deadly contest in this area, the movie "Chosin Lake Watergate Bridge" revolves around this bridge, although the two sides invested a lot of troops, but the intensity can still be imagined.
Initially, the volunteers' plan was to trap the Americans near the Watergate Bridge, but it was soon discovered that this was not possible. The equipment advantage of the US military allows them to easily occupy the bridge during the day and ensure the smooth flow of the army.
The volunteers were not supported by air forces and artillery tanks, and the only way to do so was to blow up the bridge. Song Shilun, commander of the Ninth Corps, demanded that the 180th Regiment of the 58th Division of the 20th Army blow up the Watergate Bridge at all costs.
On the night of November 30, 1950, sappers from the 180th Regiment quietly appeared at the Watergate Bridge. At that time, the U.S. troops in the vicinity were not prepared at all, coupled with the cold weather, the soldiers were also tired, and the first blow up of the bridge was completed very smoothly.
According to the recollection of Tan Youming, deputy political commissar of the Twentieth Army, the troops sent at the same time also caused a large number of casualties to the US bridge repair troops, the purpose of which was to destroy the enemy's rhythm of bridge repair.
（4）
The Ninth Corps, which was fighting the Americans for the first time, lacked a correct understanding of the Combat Effectiveness and Logistical Support Capabilities of the Americans, and made the same mistake in destroying the Watergate Bridge.
According to their experience in fighting with the Kuomintang army in the past, if they were able to blow up the bridge, the task was basically completed, and the next task was to encircle and annihilate.
But the surrounding U.S. forces began repairing the bridge on December 1, cutting down nearby trees, quickly breaking them into planks, and connecting them with steel bolts, and the bridge was quickly repaired.
On December 2, volunteer soldiers on Hill 1801 near Pratunam Bridge soon discovered the problem and reported it to the command. Considering that the U.S. military has strengthened its military defenses in the vicinity, it is no longer possible to blow up the bridge as easily as the second time, and the attack plan has been reformulated.
On the night of December 3, our army sent a battalion of troops to harass the U.S. forces in this area. At the same time, a company was dispatched to carry out the second blasting mission of the Watergate Bridge, determined to complete the destruction of the Watergate Bridge.
Given the level of rapid repair of the U.S. Army, the 1st Battalion of the 180th Regiment also carried out a large-scale destruction of the surrounding bridge repair materials in the case of the completion of the second mission, ensuring that the Americans had no way to use the nearby woods and timber.
On December 4, the U.S. military soon understood that the Watergate Bridge had been blown up again. This time, suitable wood could not be found in the surrounding area, and the degree of damage was more serious.
The U.S. military sent the 73rd Engineer Battalion directly under the Tenth Army to directly erect the M2 steel girder rut bridge at the broken bridge of the Watergate Bridge, and both sides have reached the most critical moment of life and death.
（5）
On December 5, the U.S. 1st Marine Division entered the final preparations for the retreat. At the same time, the Twenty-sixth Army of the 9th Corps had also arrived in Hagaru-ri to prevent the American troops from fleeing south.
Under such circumstances, the third operation of the bridge bombing began. This time, both sides attached great importance to the Watergate Bridge, the US military strengthened the vigilance of the area, and the volunteer army increased the damage.
On the night of December 5, the volunteers carried out the first sabotage, because of the constant resistance of American troops, only to blow up the bridge.
The next night, the volunteers again went out to destroy the bridge foundation. The same was true on the 3rd and 4th days that followed, with damage to local repairs by U.S. forces on the one hand, and damage to bridge foundations and surrounding facilities on the other.
By the evening of December 7, the main force of the American Army 14 had withdrawn to the vicinity of the Watergate Bridge. After several days of fierce fighting, both sides were very attritional, and the volunteers faced more difficulties relatively speaking.
Especially on December 8, a rare low temperature fell, the temperature dropped to minus thirty or forty degrees, a large number of volunteer soldiers were frostbitten, and some people were frozen to death.
At this time, a company of volunteers had actually crossed the Watergate Bridge, and their task was that if the American army repaired the bridge, they would desperately block the First Marine Division in the south of the Watergate Bridge and wait for the arrival of the large troops. But the most respectable and lovely company all froze to death on the position on the south bank of the Watergate Bridge, and when the US First Marine Division later rushed through in a panic, it found that all the soldiers had maintained their hidden bodies and were frozen to death on the position, and they understood that this was an invincible force.
The strength of the Ninth Corps quickly moved closer to the Watergate Bridge, and the situation had reached a very critical time. There was not much time left for the U.S. First Marine Division, and they sent a distress call to the U.S. military's top brass.
The top management of the US military quickly contacted the Japanese company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and asked them to build the M2 steel beam in a short time. The Japanese quickly assembled thousands of people to participate in the project, and by December 6, all production was completed.
As early as December 5, the U.S. military began using an air base in South Korea for airborne tests. Since the steel beam was very heavy, using a parachute airdrop, a serious deformation occurred. Finally, two parachute packs were used to parachute a set of M2 steel beams, which solved the problem perfectly.
Beginning on the night of December 6, the U.S. military sent more than a hundred technicians to complete all the preparations before the airdrop, including aircraft, parachute bags, tractors, and so on.
On December 7, the airdrop was completed. On December 9, U.S. sappers completed the repair of the bridge. When the news reached the headquarters of the Volunteer Army, including Peng Dehuai, they were stunned, and they could not imagine that the Americans could airlift a heavy 1.1-ton steel beam to the battlefield.
In fact, there is very little information about the Battle of Pratunam Bridge, although the battle did exist. The relevant records can hardly be found in the historical materials of our army, and some clues can only be found in the memories of some veterans.
For example, Mr. Zhou Wenrong, deputy instructor of the first battalion of the 180th Regiment, recalled that in the battle of the 1081 Highland on the edge of the Watergate Bridge, only sixteen people in the battalion survived in the end, and about 110 people were captured, which shows that the battle at that time was still relatively fierce.
In the historical data of the Americans, there are only two days of watergate bridge battle data on December 8 and 9, and it is also sporadic.
However, through the comprehensive analysis of these data, it is not difficult to find that the battle of The Watergate Bridge lasted for a total of 9 days from December 1 to December 9, 1950. It went through three bombings and three repairs, and the two sides fought an ongoing battle for the area.
Of course, the Battle of Watergate Bridge was not satisfied with both sides, and it was a wretched retreat for the U.S. military, which was not so glorious to say, so it was not willing to talk too much. For the volunteers, the task of blowing up the Pratunam Bridge could not be completed, allowing the main force of the US First Marine Division to escape from this area, the goal of completely annihilating the enemy at Chosin Lake was not completed, and the participating units were also criticized by the volunteer command. Many of the soldiers who fought in this area were killed, and it is difficult to find very detailed information.
But the significance of this battle is indisputable, the soldiers of the Ninth Corps were suppressed by the bad weather and the superior firepower of the Us army, they were able to show tenacious will, fearless sacrifice spirit, and stoic spirit of hunger and hunger, and dealt a heavy blow to the arrogance of the US army.
Maybe that's what the Battle of Watergate Bridge is all about! On the occasion of the release of the movie, I would like to use this document to the most lovely people who fought the Korean battlefield in those years!