Battle of Wawon

39°43′N 126°3′E / 39.717°N 126.050°E / 39.717; 126.050 (Wawon)

Battle of Wawon
Part of Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River, Korean War

Map of the Chinese counterattack, November 28 – December 1, 1950.
DateNovember 27–29, 1950
Location
Wawon, east of Kunu-ri, North Korea
Result Chinese victory;
Turkish delay action[1]
Belligerents

 United Nations

  China
Commanders and leaders
Turkey Tahsin Yazıcı
Turkey Lütfi Bilgin †[2]		 China Zhai Zhongyu
Units involved
Turkey Turkish Brigade
United States 2nd Infantry Division		 China 114th Division
Casualties and losses
218 killed
455 wounded
94 missing[3]
Chinese estimation: ~1,000[4]		 3,000~ killed and wounded [5]

The Battle of Wawon(Korean: 군우리 전투; hanja: 軍隅里戰鬪; rr: Gunuri Jeontu; Turkish: Kunu-ri Muharebesi), also known as the Battle of Wayuan (Chinese: 瓦院战斗; pinyin: Wǎ Yuàn Zhàn Dòu), was a series of delay actions of the Korean War that took place from 27–29 November 1950 near Wawon in present-day North Korea. After the collapse of the US Eighth Army's right flank during the Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA) 38th Corps[nb 1] advanced rapidly towards the critical road junction at Kunu-ri in an effort to cut off United Nations forces' retreat route. In what was considered to be Turkey's first real combat action since the aftermath of World War I,[6] the Turkish Brigade attempted to delay the Chinese advances at Wawon. Although during the battle the Turkish Brigade was crippled after being encircled by Chinese forces with superior numbers,[7] they were still able to breach the Chinese trap and rejoin the US 2nd Infantry Division.[8] Delay of the PVA advance after meeting with heavy Turkish resistance helped the other United Nations forces to withdraw without suffering many casualties and reassemble later in December.[8]

  1. ^ Alexander 1986, p. 314.
  2. ^ "Korean War: 1st Turkish Brigade's Baptism of Fire". History.net. 12 June 2006. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  3. ^ "Korean War (Kore Savaşi)" (in Turkish). Turkish War Veterans Association. Archived from the original on 2012-05-23. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
  4. ^ Chinese Military Science Academy 2000, pp. 102, 104.
  5. ^ Fanning, Anne Katherine (August 1993). "Turkish Military in the Korean War" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-11-25.
  6. ^ Starbuck, A.K. (December 1997). "Korean War: 1st Turkish Brigade's Baptism of Fire". Leesburg, VA: Weider History Group. Archived from the original on 2009-07-29. Retrieved 2009-11-27.
  7. ^ Appleman 1989, pp. 91, 200.
  8. ^ a b Bozkurt, Abdullah (October 3, 2010). "Turkish veterans recall Korean War memories". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-06-08.


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