Latest / Marine Operations in Korea The Chosin Reservoir Campaign / 013 - Chapter 6 Part 2 - The Battle of Sudong

Transcript

013 - Chapter 6 Part 2 - The Battle of Sudong · Marine Operations in Korea The Chosin Reservoir Campaign

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Chapter six, Part two of US Marine Operations in Korea
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: nineteen fifty to nineteen fifty three, Volume three, The Chosen
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Reservoir Campaign by Lynn Montrosse and Nicholas Canzona. This LibriVox
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: recording is in the public domain. The Battle of Sudong
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: end of NKPA Tank Regiment. The coming of darkness on
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: three November marked the finish of the first phase. Litzenberg's
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: perimeter remained essentially the same as on the previous day,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: the only changes being Compani d's occupation of the high
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: ground east of the road Bend, Recount Company's assumption of
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: local security at the regimental CP, and three eleven's tighter
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: concentration within the zone of three seven. What few light
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: contacts occurred during the night were decided quickly by marine
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: artillery and mortars. Later intelligence evaluations proved that these contacts
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: could have involved only CCF patrols or stragglers, for it
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: was in this same period that the three hundred seventieth
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: and three hundred seventy first CCF regiments withdrew some three
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: miles from Sudang to a defense line established by elements
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: of the three hundred seventy second Regiment North of chinhung Ni.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: The two assault units had paid a high price for failure.
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: During the two to four November fighting, the three hundred
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: seventy first Regiment lost the equivalent of five companies out
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: of its first and third battalions, with the total dead
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: estimated at seven hundred ninety three, and the third battalion
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: three hundred seventieth Regiment was reduced by the destruction of
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: two companies. It was a wobbly one hundred twenty fourth
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: CCF division then that dug in with heavy machine guns
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: and mortars on two massive hills nine eighty seven and
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: eight ninety one, flanking the MSR about two miles north
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: of chinhung Ni. The depleted three hundred forty fourth NKPA
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: Tank Regiment could not avail itself of such defensible terrain,
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: for until marine engineers widened the tortuous cliff road through
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: Funchulin Pass, it would not accommodate armour. Apparently, the Chinese
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: Communists had left their North Korean comrades of the three
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: hundred and forty fourth to fend for themselves. The NKPA
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: unit had already dwindled considerably from its original organization of
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: three armored and three infantry companies on two November, it
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: comprised only five T thirty fours in their crews. One
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: of these machines, after being damaged during the single handed
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: raid on the seventh Marin's perimeter that night, was abandoned.
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: The next day, the NKPA crews put the remaining four
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: vehicles into camouflage positions next to the MSR at Chinhung Nie,
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: where they waited resignedly at a tactical dead end. Colonel
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: Litzenberg was aware of the probability of further resistance along
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: the road, since on three November Marine air had reported
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: approximately three hundred enemy trucks in groups of fifteen or
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: twenty on the move south of the Chosen reservoir. At
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: dawn of four November, after a night of relative calm
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: around the old perimeter, he ordered his subordinates to conduct
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: vigorous patrolling preparatory to continuing the advance. Troops of one
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: to seven moved forward in the early light and scouted
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: the valley as far north as the edge of Sudong.
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: They met no opposition and returned to the perimeter. Litzenburg
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: then formed the seventh Marines in column with the reconnaissance
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: company in the lead, followed by one seven and three
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: seven in that order. He left the second battalion position
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: on hills six ninety eight and seven to twenty seven
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: to protect the regimental flanks. Ricon Company moved out in
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: jeeps at zero eight hundred, first Lieutenant Ernest C. Hargate's
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: first platoon in the point, entering Sudong. A short time later,
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: the vanguard rounded a bend in the middle of town
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: and surprised the group of CCF soldiers In a thirty
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: minute fight. Harget's men killed three and captured about twenty.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: The second and third platoons of the Reconnaissance Company meanwhile
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: inspected the high ground above Sudan without opposition. Lieutenant Crossman
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: reorganized his company in column on the road and set
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: out for Chinhung Knee with Second Lieutenant Donald W. Sharon's
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: second platoon in the lead. About the same time ten hundred,
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: the first Battalion moved out of the seventh Marines perimeter
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: south of Sudong and traced Crossman's route through the low
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: ground At Chinhung Knee, the highway runs along the east
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: side of the river, while the railroad traces the west side.
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: The narrow gates track enters the village over a bridge
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: spanning a branch stream, just beyond a Samgo station, which
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: served as a trailhead for the cable car system of
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: Funchelin Pass. As the reconnaissance company approached Chinhung Knee on
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: four November, a small group of Chinese soldiers milled around
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: the train cars and buildings of Samgo Station. They probably
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: had some tactical connection with the four T thirty four
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: tanks camouflaged opposite them across the river and road, but
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: the two forces seemed oblivious not only of each other,
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: but also of the Marines bearing down on them. Lieutenant
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: Sharon's platoon advanced rapidly from Sudong at fourteen hundred, followed
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: closely by the rest of the reconnaissance company and a
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: section of seventy five millimeters recoilist rifles. About two thousand
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: yards south of Chinhung Nie, they halted on sighting fresh
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: tank tracks, but quickly moved out again on orders of
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: Lieutenant Colonel Davis. At the highway entrance to Chinhung Nie,
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: Sharon's troops unknowingly passed the first T thirty four hidden
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: on the right of the road, coming abreast of the
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: second Communist tank, which also remained undetected for the moment.
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: The marine spotted the Chinese soldiers across the river at
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: Samgo State and opened fire. The CCF infantrymen scattered under
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: the hail of small arms fire, and many of them
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: were cut down. This was fortunate for Company C of
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: one to seven, which was marching along the railroad tracks
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: and just then nearing the bridge south of the station,
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: where it could have been taken under enfilade fire by
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: the enemy soldiers and tanks. It was during the exchange
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: with the Chinese that Sharon and his men spotted the
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: second North Korean tank under a pile of brush on
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: the right of the road. The platoon leader, accompanied by
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: staff Sergeant Richard B. Toohey and Corporal Joseph E. McDermott,
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: climbed upon the dormant vehicle. Suddenly, the periscope began to revolve.
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: McDermott smashed the glass and two he dropped into grenade.
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: With Sharon, they jumped to the ground just as the
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: grenade exploded inside the machine. The tank engine roared and
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: the vehicle lurched toward the three marines. Two he jumped
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: on it again and dropped another grenade down the periscope.
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: After the dull thump of the second explosion, the T
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: thirty four stopped dead and began smoking. By this time,
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: Staff Sergeant William L. Vick's seventy five millimeters recoilis gun
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: section and three point five inch rocket crews of Company
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: C had moved up together. They gave the coup de
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: grass to the damage T thirty four. Simultaneously, Sharon's men
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: saw a thatched hut farther down the road disintegrate as
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: tank number three emerged, its eighty five millimeters rifle swinging,
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: menacingly toward the valley crowded with marines and vehicles. First
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: Lieutenant Raymond J. Eledge fired his seventy fives from their carts,
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: and Company sees rocket launchers opened up. The T thirty
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: four took hits but rumbled on. Seconds earlier, First Lieutenant
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: Dan C. Holland, forward air controller for one seven, had
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: radioed overhead corsairs for assistance. Some of the gold wing
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: planes plummeted out of the formation and unleashed a pair
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: of five inch rockets. They were direct hits. The T
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: thirty four blew up and died on the road. Sharon
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: and his men moved forward cautiously. While passing the blazing hulk,
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: they spotted enemy tank number four camouflaged against a hillside
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: just ahead. At almost the same moment, marines passing Chin
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: Hung Knees stumbled upon docile tank number one in the
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: midst of their formation. Recoilists, rifles and rocket launchers blasted
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: the machine, and its crew climbed out and surrendered. Sharon
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: then led the anti tank crews through the riverbed toward
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: the fourteen thirty four. The Communist tankmen entrenched on the
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: slopes behind their empty vehicle gave up without a fight.
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: The tank itself was knocked out by three point five
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: inch rockets and seventy five millimeters shells, and the three
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: hundred forty fourth Nkpa tank Regiment ceased to exist the
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: fight for Howe Hill. After the destruction of enemy armour,
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: Colonel Litzenburg began deploying the seventh Marines in perimeter around
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: the valley junction at Chinhung Knee. The advance had netted
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: about six thousand yards by mid afternoon, and the remaining
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: daylight was needed to bring all elements forward and consolidate
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: the newly won ground, aware that the Chinese were at
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: the top of Funcchialin Pass, but not that he was
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: directly under their guns. The regimental commander at sixteen hundred
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: ordered Reconnaissance Company to patrol some two thousand yards into
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: Funchialin Pass and outpost the southern tip of Hill eight
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: ninety one. The high ground selected for the outposts coincided
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: with the eastern half of the Chinese forward line, and
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: it would later be remembered as Howe Hill in honor
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: of Company h of three seven as one seven dug
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: in on the heights flanking Chinhung Knee recon Company with
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: Second Lieutenant Charles R. Puckett's third platoon leading advanced in
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: motor rice column about a mile into the pass. At
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: this point, Hill nine eighty seven looms up on the
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: west and the highway veers sharply to the east for
• 10:09
  Speaker 1: approximately one thousand yards. After a hairpin turn, the road
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: climbs on a parallel line almost to its starting point,
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: then resumes its northerly course, clinging to the rocky wall
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: of Hill eight ninety one, which rises abruptly from the
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: chasm that separates it from Hill nine eighty seven. Bucket's
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: platoon had approached the road, been warily for a sizeable
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: enemy group had been spotted earlier near the base of
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: Hill nine eighty seven across the gorge. At sixteen thirty,
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: the first two jeeps of the column eased around the
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: curve and immediately came under fire from Hill nine eighty
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: seven to the left, eight ninety one to the front,
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: and from a CCF patrol to the right on the
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: road itself. For forty five minutes, Bucket and his men
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: were pinned to the road and hillside, and only darkness
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: and a strike by marine air finally enabled the whole
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: column to withdraw to the seventh Marines lines. The clash
• 11:04
  Speaker 1: costs recon two killed and five wounded, and heavy machine
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: gun fire had destroyed the two jeeps. During the relatively
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: quiet night of four to five November, Colonel Litzenberg issued
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: his order for the next day's advance. The first battalion
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: was to hold the flanks at Chinhung Knee, while three
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: seven followed at a distance of five hundred to one
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: thousand yards. By two seven passed through and attacked into
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: Functionalin Pass. Major Perries three eleven and the four point
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: two Mortar Company were to support the infantry by high
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: angle fire from positions south of Sudong. Resistance could be
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: expected for Even as the seventh Marines peacefully sat out
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: the hours of darkness, the night fires of VMFN five
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: thirteen were bombing and strafing enemy convoys around the southern
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: tip of the Chosen Reservoir. At zero seven hundred, Lieutenant
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: Hargott's first platoon of Recon Company departed Chinhung Knee along
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: the MSR to patrol on the right flank. Reaching the
• 12:03
  Speaker 1: hairpin curve, the platoon was pinned down by enemy fire
• 12:06
  Speaker 1: at exactly the same place where Pucket's unit had come
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: to grief. VMF three to twelve and three eleven promptly
• 12:13
  Speaker 1: went into action, and Hargett ultimately withdrew his patrol under
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: the shield of their supporting fire. Marine casualties were four wounded.
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: Major Roach's third Battalion moved out for the attack at
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: zero eight hundred. Passing through the high ground positions of
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: one seven on either side of Chinhung Knee, Company I
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: advanced toward Hill nine eighty seven and G toward eight
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: ninety one. Both units were hit hard by small arms
• 12:40
  Speaker 1: and machine gun fire as they came abreast of the
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: road bend, and for the remainder of the day the
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: advance was negligible. From ten hundred onward. The second phase
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: of the battle roared to a climax as a duel
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: between supporting arms in twenty six missions during five November,
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: the batteries of three eleven threw nine hundred and forty
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: three shells into the enemy positions. The Chinese answered with
• 13:06
  Speaker 1: counter battery fire from their one hundred twenty two millimeter mortars,
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: but toward the end of the day these weapons were
• 13:12
  Speaker 1: silenced by marine howitzer barrages. A forward observer with Company
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: G reported an enemy ammunition dump destroyed. This information was
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: later verified by a POW who mentioned the following additional
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: losses in CCF mortars ten crewmen killed and seventeen wounded,
• 13:31
  Speaker 1: one mortar destroyed, two mortars put out of action, and
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: the dispersal of most of the remaining personnel. VMF three
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: to twelve flew thirty seven sorties in ninety hours of
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: close support combat. On the fifth between Chinhung Knee and
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: the Chosen reservoir, twenty one enemy trucks were destroyed. Pilots
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: reported that the surrounding ridges were filled with enemy troops,
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: and that their strikes against these Chinese were extremely effective.
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: Led by Major Cochrane and Captain Otis W. S. Corman,
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: flights from VMFN five thirteen blasted troops, buildings, supply vehicles,
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: and gun emplacements scattered from coto Ree at the top
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: of Functionalin Pass to Hagaroo at the reservoir. General Smith,
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: during a helicopter visit to Litzenburg, CP remarked that a
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: considerable number of planes really worked the place over on
• 14:28
  Speaker 1: the ground. The fight ended at dusk, with the Chinese
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: retaining their firm grip on these well camouflaged positions, studying
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: Hills eight ninety one and nine eighty seven. Despite heavy losses,
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: Marine casualties were light, for it was the torturous terrain
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: in the conjunction with enemy bullets, not enemy fire alone,
• 14:47
  Speaker 1: that obstructed the attackers. Since General Smith earlier in the
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: day had named coto Ree as the seventh Marine's immediate objective,
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: Colonel Litzenberg ordered the third Battalion to resume the advance
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: at zero Ei the next morning. The night of five
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: to six November witnessed only minor contacts around the regimental perimeter.
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: Some two hundred Korean laborers accounted for most of the
• 15:11
  Speaker 1: activity during darkness, as they carried supplies to forward marine
• 15:14
  Speaker 1: positions and evacuated casualties to the rear. Major roaches planned
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: for six November called for HOW Company, supported by the
• 15:23
  Speaker 1: fire of George, to envelop the southeast slope of Hill
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: eight ninety one while ITEM continued its attack on Hill
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: nine eighty seven. At about zero eight hundred, First Lieutenant
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: Howard H. Harris led HOW Company out of its reserve position.
• 15:38
  Speaker 1: It took him until nearly fifteen hundred to traverse the
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: rugged landscape and get into position. Meanwhile, ITEM Company, under
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: First Lieutenant William E. Johnson, had beaten off one counter
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: attack and edged out three hundred yards closer to Hill
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: nine eighty seven, with its most effective opposition coming from
• 15:55
  Speaker 1: bunkers on a spur overlooking the MSR. When Thomas E.
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: Cooney had been wounded twice the previous day while leading
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: Company g against the trenches and foxholes on the southern
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: tip of Hill eight ninety one. Except for a feint
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: by one platoon along the MSR into the hairpin turn,
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: his company spent the day in a long range fight
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: with the Chinese defenders. Lieutenant Harris led his men over
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: the high ground behind g into position to the east.
• 16:25
  Speaker 1: Cooney's experience showed that the only possible approach to Hill
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: eight ninety one was to flank it from the southeast.
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: Although the fresh company arrived sometime after fourteen hundred, its
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: attack was held up until about sixteen hundred to await air.
• 16:41
  Speaker 1: Following a strike by two Corsairs, the howitzers of three
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: to eleven and the regimental four point two mortars began
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: pounding the Chinese positions. How company jumped off. At about
• 16:52
  Speaker 1: sixteen fifteen. Two assault platoons, led by second Lieutenants Robert D.
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: Reim and Menard P. Newton, descended into the intervening gully
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: at the tip of the Hairpin curve. During a quick
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: reorganization in the low ground, machine guns were posted to
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: cover the ascent. Then the platoon started up towards the
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: enemy held summit through companion draws, Harris accompanying Newton's outfit
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: on the left. The powdery soil of the steep slope
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: made climbing difficult and exhausting. About one hundred yards up,
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: Newton's platoon began receiving light fire, followed a few yards
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: farther by a hail of grenades and machine gun slugs.
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: The Marines inched forward and were stopped by the Chinese
• 17:37
  Speaker 1: fire on the right. Meanwhile, Reid climbed against no opposition,
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: so it appeared that the envelopment was working. Unexpectedly, the
• 17:47
  Speaker 1: two draws converged near the top of the hill, with
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: the result that the platoons met. Lieutenant Harris revised his
• 17:54
  Speaker 1: plans by directing Newton, with his left squad supporting by
• 17:58
  Speaker 1: bar fire, to lead Ring to the top of the hill.
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: Once there, Newton was to swing right and Reim left
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: to envelop the Chinese positions. Newton worked a squad up
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: onto a nose extending out from the summit. The Chinese
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: replied with a renewed barrage of grenades and counterattacked Newton's left.
• 18:19
  Speaker 1: Sergeant Charlie Foster, seeing apparent victory turning into defeat, lunched
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: forward to break up the attack. He reached the top
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: and died, but the men behind him repulsed the Reds
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: During the close fighting on the left, Lieutenant Reim had
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: gathered his squad leaders for instructions preparatory to the final
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: assault on the right, an enemy grenade fell into the
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: midst of the group, and Reim was killed as he
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: smothered the explosion with his body. Staff Sergeant Anthony J.
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: Riccardi took over the platoon. At about eighteen hundred, Harris
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: radioed roached that his troops were exhausted, although it was
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: already dusk. He was bringing up his reserved platoon, he said,
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: for the Chinese still held the crest in strength. Company
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: H had taken only eight casualties, but ammunition was low
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: and the approaching darkness prevented the dispatching of more fresh troops.
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: The battalion commander relayed the report to Colonel Litzenburg, who
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: immediately ordered the company to disengage and withdraw. The fighting
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: descent under the cover of a four point two mortar
• 19:25
  Speaker 1: and artillery bombardment, brought Company H back within the lines
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: of three seven by twenty hundred, with its six wounded
• 19:31
  Speaker 1: and the body of Lieutenant Rehem. Disappearance of CCF remnants,
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: darkness on the night of six November descended like a
• 19:42
  Speaker 1: cloak over the one hundred and twenty fourth CCF Division.
• 19:46
  Speaker 1: In the morning, the Chinese had vanished The third Battalion
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: seventh Marines encountered no opposition whatever as it occupied the
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: southern tips of Hill eight ninety one and nine eighty seven.
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: The mysterious disappearance of this unit follow while the equally
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: strains withdraw of the Chinese Reds, who made the first
• 20:03
  Speaker 1: CCF contacts in the USAC zone, aroused no end of speculation.
• 20:09
  Speaker 1: Officers of the seventh Marines believed that enemy losses had
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: been heavy enough for a disabling effect. This opinion was
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: confirmed the following year, when a Marine Corps board visited
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: Korea for a special analytical study of marine operations of
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: nineteen fifty. Based on all army and marine records available
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: at that time, as well as interviews and interrogations, the
• 20:31
  Speaker 1: board concluded that the one hundred twenty fourth CCF Division
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: was estimated to have been rendered militarily non effective. Following
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: the enemy's disappearance. On the night of sixty seven November,
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: the seventh Marines occupied the southern reaches of Hills eight
• 20:46
  Speaker 1: ninety one and nine eighty seven, while reconnoitering to the
• 20:49
  Speaker 1: top of eight ninety one. The rest of the day
• 20:53
  Speaker 1: and all the next was devoted to consolidating positions along
• 20:56
  Speaker 1: the MSR and sending out patrols in a vain search
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: for the vanished one hundred twenty fourth CCF Division. On
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: a November, General Almond visited the seventh Marines. Upon hearing
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: of the valor of Captain Cooney at Howe Hill, he
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: awarded that officer the Silver Star Medal on the spot.
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: There being neither pendant nor citation available, the Core Commander
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: pinned a slip of paper to Cooney's jacket in the
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: brief ceremony. Scrawled on the fragment was the inscription Silver
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: Star Medal for Gallantry in Action Almond. While the seventh
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: Marines advanced astride the MSR, a volunteer patrol of fifteen
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: men led by First Lieutenant William F. Gaggin of two
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: seven traced a lonely circuitous route in the mountains to
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: the west. Having left Chinhung Knee at twelve hundred on
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: eight November, the scouting party covered some twenty five miles
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: through perpendicular wilds during the following twenty six hours. This
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: journey brought it to the Chosen Reservoir Plateau, at a
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: point just southwest of Coto Ree. Lieutenant Gaggin, his slight wound,
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: the only scar of the patrol. Single clash with Chinese
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: radioed Colonel Litzenburg that koto Rie was clear of the enemy.
• 22:13
  Speaker 1: He then let his party southward and in the evening
• 22:16
  Speaker 1: of the ninth return through the lines of three seven.
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: The Marines had been told that big game animals were
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: hunted before the war and the mountains of Northeast Korea,
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: but not until the otherwise calm night of nine to
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: ten November did a four legged enemy invade the positions
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: of RCT seven near the cable car trestle midway through
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: Funchelin Pass. An unfriendly bear, no doubt a Russian bear
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: paid a nocturnal visit to the first platoon of George Company.
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: An unnamed Marine PFC awakened in his sleeping bag, swore
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: afterwards that the animal was wearing a hammer and sickle emblem.
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: However this may be. The intruder was routed by his
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: startled yell and disappeared into the night. Koto Ree occupied
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: by seventh Marines at zero eight thirty on ten November,
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: the Marine Corps birthday. The first Battalion passed through the
• 23:12
  Speaker 1: third and emerged from Functionlin pass onto the open plateau
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: koto Ree, designated as Objective one, was occupied without opposition.
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: An hour and a half later, Litzenberg halted his column
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: and drew up a perimeter around the mountain village. Upon
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: reaching the coto Ree plateau, the seventh Marines was first
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: to meet a new enemy who would take a heavier
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: toll in casualties than the Chinese. This was General Winter,
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: who has won many a historic campaign. When the first
• 23:44
  Speaker 1: cold blasts struck, our men were not conditioned for it,
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: commented Litzenberg. The doctors reported numerous cases where the men
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: came down to the sick base suffering from what appeared
• 23:55
  Speaker 1: to be shock. Some of them would come in crying,
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: Some of them were extremely nervous, and the doctor said
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: it was simply the sudden shock of the terrific cold
• 24:05
  Speaker 1: when they were not ready for it. The Marines recovered
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: quickly after thawing out, and platoon warming tents heated by
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: camp stoves burning fuel oil were set up at coto Rie.
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: Buckets of steaming water were provided for the warming of
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: sea rations. Hot weather, however uncomfortable it may be, is
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: fighting weather as compared to subzero cold, which seems to
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: numb the spirit as well. As flesh. Cold weather clothing
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: is a handicap to movement and the use of firearms,
• 24:36
  Speaker 1: and some weapons, particularly the car being, are not dependable
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: at low temperatures. It was probably as well from morale
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: that the Marines of coto Rie could not foresee that
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: this was only the beginning of a prolonged operation in
• 24:50
  Speaker 1: subzero weather without a parallel in the nation's history. Until
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: thirteen November, when the seventh Marines advanced toward Hagaroo, Patrols
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: from Co toto Re repeatedly cited bands of Chinese in
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: the distance. Except for a fight on eleven November, in
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: which c Company claimed to have inflicted forty casualties on
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: the enemy and lost four killed and four wounded, there
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: was little action. With a little pressure on the ground
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: or from the air, the enemy vanished, and thus the
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: uneasy calm continued. While the seventh Regiment had been fighting,
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: marching and climbing toward the chosen reservoir. In early November,
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: the fifth Marines peacefully combed the approaches to the Fusion
• 25:32
  Speaker 1: Reservoir to the east. After detaching one five to division
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: control on four November and stationing three to five near Orore.
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: Lieutenant Colonel Murray sent the second Battalion into Sinhung Valley
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: to relieve the eighteenth Rock Regiment. The relief took place
• 25:48
  Speaker 1: at eleven forty five on the fourth and Lieutenant Colonel
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: Harold S. Royce deployed two five around a valley junction
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: five miles north and fifteen miles east of the then
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: then battled seventh Marine. Royce's mission was twofold to block
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: the Sinhung corridor while determining the strength and disposition of
• 26:07
  Speaker 1: the enemy, if any, and to check certain northerly routes
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: shown on maps as possibly leading to either the fusion
• 26:14
  Speaker 1: or chosen reservoirs or both. Reconnaissance patrols in squad strength
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: and combat patrols of reinforced platoons and company size fanned
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: out in a broad arc during five to nine November.
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: They determined that no usable route led to either reservoir
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: from the south, but that the highway continuing northeast from
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: the town of Sinhung, leading to the seventh Infantry Division
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: Zone and the Manchurian border would carry military traffic. From
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: seven November, Royce's troops made daily contact with Army patrols
• 26:47
  Speaker 1: coming down the highway, but no units tried to penetrate
• 26:50
  Speaker 1: the apparent screen of enemy defenses close to the Fuson Reservoir.
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: Major Merlin R. Olsen, one to five's executive officer, led
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: companies as on seven November and a reconnaissance en force
• 27:03
  Speaker 1: to Husu Ree, that annoying road junction west of Aurore.
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: On the eighth Olson's force had a running fight with
• 27:11
  Speaker 1: North Koreans before being recalled while still short of its objective.
• 27:15
  Speaker 1: Olson's recall resulted from reports of two thousand North Koreans
• 27:19
  Speaker 1: moving towards the MSR. On eight November, Company D reinforced
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: made an overnight trek deep into a branch valley northwest
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: of Sinhung, reaching a point about ten miles due east
• 27:32
  Speaker 1: of coto Ree. One CCF soldier was captured while asleep
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: in a house. He said he belonged to the one
• 27:40
  Speaker 1: hundred and twenty sixth Division and that Red China would
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: commit a total of twenty four divisions against the UN
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: forces in Korea. On nine November, Colonel Murray received orders
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: to concentrate his regiment along the MSR leading to the
• 27:53
  Speaker 1: Chosen Reservoir. During the next two days, he deployed the
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: first and third battalions at Majan Dong and Chinhung Knie, respectively.
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: The ambush of a Charlie Company patrol on the tenth
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: delayed the departure of one five from the Chigyong area.
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: The patrol had to be rescued by a battalion attack
• 28:13
  Speaker 1: the next day before the force could move to Majan Dong.
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: On the thirteenth, while operating out of Majan Dong, a
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: one to five patrol ran into fifty to one hundred
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: and fifty enemy who inflicted seven kia and three wia
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: before withdrawing. The second battalion moved out of the Sinhung
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: Valley on thirteen and fourteen November to relieve the seventh
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: Marines of the responsibility for defending Codo Ree and thus
• 28:38
  Speaker 1: free Colonel Litzenberg's regiment for the advance to Hagarou and
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: the North. Lieutenant Colonel Royce's battalion had completed its mission
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: without firing more than a few shots and with a
• 28:49
  Speaker 1: total prisoner bag of twelve North Koreans and one Chinese.
• 28:53
  Speaker 1: Although the new enemy had seemingly evaporated from the path
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: of the first Marine Division, there was good reason to
• 28:59
  Speaker 1: believe that he was not forsaking his aggressive designs in
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: North Korea. For in addition to the ominous but questionable
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: predictions of Chinese POWs, eyewitness accounts of pilots from VMFN
• 29:11
  Speaker 1: five forty two provided G two officers with information of
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: the gravest portent. In early November, the Marine airmen made
• 29:20
  Speaker 1: nightly strikes from the first to the ninth against Sinwi
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: Jew at the mouth of the Yalu, and they repeatedly
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: reported a steady stream of trucks moving into Northwest Korea
• 29:29
  Speaker 1: from Antungue, Manchuria. Time after time, they blasted Sinwi Jew
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: with bombs, rockets, and twenty millimeters shells, and though parts
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: of the city were continuously aflame, it still seethed with activity.
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: They described southward bound traffic as heavy, very heavy, and
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: even tremendous, and at least one convoy was reported to
• 29:52
  Speaker 1: be gigantic. End of Chapter six, Part two read by
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: Aaron Bennett STI