Korea’s country side is littered with a number of memorials dedicated to the various units from both Korea, the US, and United Nations forces that participated in the Korean War. For the soldiers of the British Commonwealth there is no memorial more important then the Commonwealth Memorial located in the middle of the rural Gyeongi-do province, city of Kapyong:
The memorial was constructed to honor all the veterans from the British Commonwealth that fought in the Korean War, which included of course Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand:
Here is what the inscription on the memorial states:
Dedicated to all the ranks of the armed forces from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom who fought on this soil for the defence of freedom and world peace during the Korean War.
September 30, 1967
Erected by the Korean War Allies Association & Kapyeong-gun Citizens
Soldiers from the British Commonwealth fought for nearly three years during the Korean War in a variety of battles to include along the Imjim River, but this memorial was built in Kapyong because no battle the British Commonwealth fought in during the Korean War was more important then their victory at the Battle of the Kapyong:
The Battle of the Kapyong was a heroic stand by mainly the Australian and Canadian soldiers of the British Commonwealth Division backed by American tanks that defeated a much larger Chinese force that outnumbered the Commonwealth force 5 to 1. Despite such a large force the Chinese had about 1,000 men killed along the slopes of the Kapyong Valley while the Commonwealth force had only 43 men killed in the battle. The defeat of the Chinese in the Kapyong Valley would be a turning point of the war.
Overall, during the Korean War the British Commonwealth forces had 1,797 soldiers killed and 5,238 soldiers wounded fighting for the freedom of South Korea during the Korean War:
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6:18 pm on October 9th, 2008 1
Hi! I’m an English teacher here, so I don’t know a lot about all the War memorials. My grandfather fought here and earned a purple heart. I know he lost a lot of brothers here, but he doesn’t talk about it to this day.
Does anyone know where the U.S. memorials are in/around Gyeongi/Incheon. I want to pay my respects.
Thanks.
7:35 am on October 10th, 2008 2
In Incheon on Wolmi Island they have a small memorial recognizing the landing of MacArthur’s forces there and you can walk around on the island’s hill top to get some great views on what the land fleet must have looked like.
Also in Incheon it is well worth checking out the Incheon Landing Memorial Hall. It is a museum filled with information and artifacts from the landing.