Over 6 million personnel served in the Korean War, with 3 million communist forces from North Korea, China and the Soviet Union opposing 3 million from South Korea and 21 United Nations members. Troop numbers grew from 300,000 initially to over 2 million along the front line, causing a late-war stalemate. Ongoing rotations meant only a fraction deployed at once, including a maximum of 4,000 of Australia's 17,000 total personnel. Led by United States (US) command, the United Nations (UN) forces supported an expanding South Korean military that eventually held most of the front line.
United Nations forces
Following the invasion of South Korea by North Korea, twenty-one member nations of the United Nations (UN) committed themselves to support South Korea which was not yet a member nation...
Sixteen UN nations supplied fighting units and 5 sent military hospitals and field ambulances. Australia was among the first to contribute military personnel from all 3 services.
The single largest UN contributor was the US, which at one stage had 140,000 personnel deployed in direct combat roles in Korea.
The United Kingdom (UK), Canada, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Colombia, Ethiopia, South Africa, New Zealand, Türkiye, Greece, Thailand, the Philippines and Luxembourg sent combat units. Norway, Sweden, Denmark, India and Italy contributed military hospitals and field ambulances to the cause.
The United Nations Command (UNC) provided the core military and strategic direction for the anti-communist war effort in Korea.
The US provided the high command for the UNC, as well as the vast majority of the logistics, air and naval power, artillery and military infrastructure that made the continuation of the war possible despite repeated reverses caused by an aggressive, determined and proficient foe.
The British Commonwealth sent the next-largest UN contingent. Along with Commonwealth air and naval units, the 1st British Commonwealth Division, in which Australian infantry battalions served, took part in some of the war's hardest-fought battles.
In 1950, the armed forces of the Republic of Korea (ROK) numbered 95,000. They were poorly equipped, and there was no air force. The army had no combat experience against regular land forces. The ROK army was overwhelmed by the North Korean invasion and retreated as quickly as it could to the safety of the Pusan defensive perimeter.
Recovering there, ROK units participated in the UN counterattacks following Inchon and suffered heavily in the retreat after the Chinese intervention. The South Koreans modelled their organisation, equipment, training and tactical doctrine on the US military. By August 1951, the ROK Army had grown to 357,430 personnel, the largest single contingent in the UNC. By the end of 1952, it held three-quarters of the front line.
In 3 years of war, the ROK army recovered from catastrophic defeat and became a formidable, stalwart opponent of its communist enemies.
General Van Fleet, General Officer Commanding, 8th US Army (far left) inspects members of the 3rd Battalion (3RAR) when bestowing the Presidential citation in recognition of the Unit’s action at Kapyong. US Major General John W O’Daniel is to Van Fleet’s left. Kapyong, Korea, 4 December 1952. AWM 083857
Troop numbers on each side
Over six million soldiers, sailors and airmen fought on both sides in the Korean War...
More than 3 million of these were communists from North Korea, China and Russia. Opposing them were almost 3 million from South Korea and from 21 UN countries, including Australia.
Not all of the 6 million were present at one time.
The war began with only 200,000 North Koreans fighting 100,000 South Korean personnel. With the arrival of the UN, and later the Chinese armies, one million combatants were present one year after the war began.
By the war's end, more than 2 million troops were positioned along the ceasefire line. There were 1.1 million UN and South Korean troops facing 1.2 million North Korean and Chinese troops.
The Soviet Union's contribution was always small and included medical units from the Soviets' allies Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Bulgaria and Romania.
Personnel constantly flowed in and out of the armed forces. Newly trained arrivals are needed to replace losses from battle and sickness. Personnel also often serve a period in the theatre of war, then return home to rest and are replaced by new troops.
The Chinese army, for instance, was never stronger than 900,000 at any one time, yet 2.2 million Chinese served in Korea.
UN army and air units usually served for one year and were then replaced. This does not mean the unit itself always left the country.
No 77 Squadron RAAF served in Korea throughout the war, but its members were replaced several times during the conflict.
Royal Australian Navy (RAN) ships served in Korean waters for 6 months to one year before returning to Australia. In this way, 9 RAN ships served there, but not more than 2 at a time.
Of the 17,000 Australians who fought in the Korean War, no more than 4,000 were present at any time.
The very increase in the size of the armed forces contributed to the stalemate of the last 2 years of the war. In the early manoeuvre phase, the armies were too small to hold a strong line across the 250-km-wide peninsula, so an enemy attack could often lead to a breakthrough. Later, armies of more than one million on each side found they could hold the line along its length, and a breakthrough became impossible or too costly in lives.
Educational activity
Royal Australian Navy HMAS Murchinson shelling North Korean positions on the Han River Estuary, near the mouth of the Yesong River, Korea 1951. Artist Ken McFadyen, 1970, oil on canvas,137.3 x 228.9cm, (AWM ART40820)
Royal Australian Navy in the Korean War
- Several things are happening at once in Ken McFadyen's painting. Look at the painting for exactly a minute and try to remember everything you can see there. Then turn the painting over and, numbering each point, quickly write down a list of all that you can recall. Compare your lists to see who has remembered the most.
- Listen to veteran Maxwell Veale's story about the same incident. How does Veale add to your knowledge of the painting?
- Look at the painting again and answer these questions in one or two sentences each.
- Can you see any message in the painting that the artist wants to convey to the viewer?
- Decide what feature of the painting stands out more than the rest. Why do you think it stands out most?
- The artist was not in the Korean War, but he was in the Vietnam War. He painted this soon after he returned from Vietnam. Does this tell you anything more about the painting?
- The painting's title is HMAS Murchison shelling North Korean positions on the Han River Estuary, near the mouth of the Yesong River, Korea. Think of a new title for the painting and explain why yours is better.