|
Although originally intending on holding until the Australians could be relieved by the US 5th Cavalry Regiment, Burke had decided during the morning to withdraw 3 RAR, and this had prompted the cancellation of B Company's assault.[74][82] With the Australians facing encirclement, and mindful of the fate that had befallen the Glosters, Burke had ordered a fighting withdrawal back to the Middlesex area to new defensive positions in rear of the brigade.[83] Indeed despite holding Chinese at bay throughout the morning and afternoon, the increasing difficulty of resupply and casualty evacuation made it clear that the Australians would be unable to hold Hill 504 for another night in its exposed and isolated positions.[83] Planning for the withdrawal had begun as the Chinese renewed their assault on D Company around 11:30, while Ferguson and O'Dowd discussed the withdrawal by radio at 12:30.[84] With the Chinese dominating the road south Ferguson ordered his companies to withdraw along a ridge running 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south-west from Hill 504, just east of the Kapyong River. The Middlesex position lay a further 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) south-west of the foot of the ridge and could be reached by the ford secured earlier by Gerke, which would act as the battalion check point for the withdrawal. O'Dowd, as the senior company commander, was subsequently appointed to plan and command the withdrawal.[74] Ferguson saw his role as ensuring that O'Dowd received the support he need to achieve a clean break, and had as such decided not to move forward to lead the withdrawal himself.[85] Command of A Company was temporarily handed over to the second-in-command, Captain Bob Murdoch. Present at Pakchon in November 1950, O'Dowd understood first-hand the dangers of withdrawing while in contact. The challenge was to protect the forward platoons as they withdrew from being followed up by the Chinese occupying the old B Company positions and from D Company's position after they broke contact. The Australians would also have to clear the withdrawal route of any blocking forces, while at the same time the evacuation of a large number of wounded and Chinese prisoners would hamper their movement.[86] As such the timing of the withdrawal would be critical to its success. Consequently the lead company would not move until mid-afternoon so that the rearguard would be able to use the protection of darkness to break contact, while at the same time offering good observation and fields of fire during the daylight to support the initial moves.[74][86] Orders were delivered at 14:30. B Company would lead the withdrawal down the ridge line, carrying any wounded that still required evacuation, as well as clearing the route and securing the ford near the Middlesex position. C Company would wait for the artillery to neutralise the Chinese on the old B Company position, before moving to establish a blocking position behind D Company. A Company would then withdraw to a blocking position behind C Company, in order to allow Gravener and Saunders to establish a clean break. Finally, D Company would withdraw through both C and A Company and set up a blocking position to delay any follow up and allow those companies to withdraw.[87] A propeller-driven fighter aircraft in level flight, with the word 'Marines' written on the side US Marine Corps Vought Corsairs over Korea, 1953. After 15:00 an airstrike was called in to dislodge the surviving Chinese in front of D Company. However, the attack by two US Marine Corps F4U Corsairs was mistakenly directed at the Australians themselves after their positions were wrongly marked by the spotter plane. Two men were killed and several badly burnt by napalm before the attack was broken off after the company second-in-command—Captain Michael Ryan—ran out under Chinese fire waving a marker panel.[65] The company medical orderly—Private Ronald Dunque—was subsequently awarded the Military Medal for his efforts assisting the wounded despite his own injuries.[52][88] The Chinese quickly attempted to exploit the chaos, moving against D Company's long exposed eastern flank. 11 Platoon on the main ridge forward of the summit was subjected to a frontal assault; however, unaffected by the napalm they broke up the Chinese attack and inflicted heavy casualties on them. Regardless, further Chinese attempts to infiltrate the Australian positions continued into the afternoon.[89][note 5] The withdrawal was scheduled to begin shortly following the misdirected airstrike, and was to be preceded by an artillery bombardment with high explosive and smoke at 16:00.[note 6] The American tanks were subsequently moved forward to provide cover, and when the New Zealand artillery failed to fire at the appointed hour, they provided the direct fire support. Still in contact, the Australians began to pull back, fighting a number of well-disciplined, rearguard actions as the companies leapfrogged each other. Meanwhile the New Zealand artillery kept the Chinese at bay, after it finally commenced firing.[86] B Company had taken 39 Chinese prisoners during the earlier fighting, and unable to leave these behind they were used to carry many of the Australian wounded, and much of their equipment as well. O'Dowd's fear that the Chinese might have blocked the withdrawal route were not realised, and B Company moved back along the ridge and down to the ford without incident, reaching the Middlesex area after dark. C Company was the next to withdraw, departing at 16:30, just after suffering another casualty from sniper fire. Saunders led his company up the spur and then south down the main ridge without incident, followed by A Company during the next hour with the Chinese in close pursuit.[90] Murdoch had been concerned lest he and his men should be engaged when they reached the Kapyong River in an exhausted condition and with little ammunition. Luck was with the Australians, and due to difficulties of communication and navigation along the ridge line in the dark, elements of A Company had become separated and the last two platoons descended to the river too early to strike the ford. However, reaching a deserted part of the bank they realised their mistake and immediately turned west again, following the river-bank to the ford. The Chinese did not follow this sudden final turn and plunged on into the river, giving A Company an unexpected opportunity to break free. The Chinese were subsequently detected by the Canadians on Hill 677 and were fired on, although fortunately for them the Canadian fire did not hit the Australians. This possibility had been foreseen earlier; however, problems with the radio relay between the Canadians and Australians meant that there had been no guarantee that the withdrawing force would not be mistaken for Chinese as they crossed the river.[91] Only D Company—which had been holding the summit and had withdrawn last—was heavily engaged and was unable to move at the scheduled time. The Chinese launched a determined assault, preceding it with heavy machine-gun and mortar fire, before attempting to overrun the forward pits. Once again the Australians repelled the Chinese assault and Gravener decided to begin to thin out his position before the situation deteriorated further. With one platoon covering their movement, D Company subsequently withdrew, closely pursued by the Chinese. During the rapid withdrawal after the final Chinese attack, Private Keith Gwyther was accidentally left behind after being knocked unconscious and buried in a forward pit by a mortar round. He regained consciousness some hours later and was subsequently captured by the Chinese who had by then occupied Hill 504 and were digging-in.[92] Finally, the Australians succeeded in achieving a clean break after dark, and D Company was able to safely withdraw.[83][93] By 23:30 the battalion was clear, completing its withdrawal in good order and intact, and suffering only minimal casualties.[93] Regardless, the previous 24 hours of fighting had been costly for the Australians, resulting in 32 killed, 59 wounded and three captured; the bulk of them in A Company and Battalion Headquarters. Yet their stout defence had halted the assault on the brigade's right flank, and had inflicted far heavier casualties on the Chinese before being withdrawn. Significantly for the Australians 25 April was Anzac Day; however, following their successful withdrawal the Chinese turned their attention to the Canadians on the left flank.[83] Defence of Hill 677, 24–25 April 1951 Despite the withdrawal from Hill 504 that evening, 27th Brigade had been reinforced on the afternoon of 24 April by the arrival of the 5th US Cavalry Regiment. The Americans had been dispatched earlier in the day to ensure that Kapyong remained in UN hands, and one of the battalions was subsequently deployed to the southwest of the D Company, 2 PPCLI on the summit of Hill 677 in order to cover the left flank. A second American battalion occupied a position across the river, southeast of the Middlesex. Likewise, despite heavy casualties in one of the Australian companies and battalion headquarters 3 RAR had emerged from the intense battle largely intact and had successfully withdrawn in an orderly fashion. Meanwhile, one of the replacement British battalions, the 1st Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers, had also arrived during the 24th and it took up positions with the Australians around Brigade Headquarters. With six UN battalions now holding the valley the Chinese faced a difficult task continuing the advance.[81] Having dislodged the defenders from Hill 504, the 354th Regiment of the Chinese 118th Division would attempt to capture the dominating heights of Hill 677 held by the Canadians.[94] Although unaware of the arrival of American reinforcements, the Chinese had detected the redeployment of B Company, 2 PPCLI however, and at 22:00 that evening they commenced an assault on the Canadian right flank.[95] Although the initial moves were easily beaten back by automatic fire and mortars, a second Chinese assault an hour later succeeded in overrunning the right forward platoon. The Canadians successfully withdrew in small groups back to the company main defensive position, where they eventually halted the Chinese advance.[96] During the fighting the Canadians' 60-millimetre (2.4 in) mortars had proven vital, their stability allowing for rapid fire out to 1,800 metres (2,000 yd) and an ability to accurately hit narrow ridgelines at maximum range.[81] The next morning 51 Chinese dead were counted around the B Company perimeter.[96] Shortly following the second assault on B Company was repelled, another large Chinese assault force was detected fording the river in the bright moonlight. Laying down heavy and accurate artillery fire, the New Zealand gunners forced the Chinese to withdraw, killing more than 70.[97] A half track vehicle sits in the foreground in a grassy open area, with a large calibre machine-gun mounted on top. Soldiers using binoculars are sitting on the vehicle, while in the background smoke obscures a number of artillery guns which are firing Canadian M3 Half-tracks during the Korean War. Meanwhile, a large Chinese force of perhaps company strength was detected in the re-entrant south of B Company, moving toward Battalion Headquarters, and Lilley warned Stone of the impending assault. Six M3 Half-tracks from Mortar Platoon had been positioned there before the battle, each armed with a .50 calibre and a .30 calibre machine-gun. Stone held fire until the Chinese broke through the tree-line just 180 metres (200 yd) from their front. Opening fire with machine-guns and mortar fire at their minimum engagement distance, the Chinese suffered severe casualties and the assault was easily beaten off.[96] The Chinese had telegraphed their intentions prior to the assault by using tracer fire for direction, and had used bugles to co-ordinate troops in their forming up positions. Such inflexibility had allowed the Canadians to co-ordinate indirect fires and took heavy toll on the attackers in the forming up positions.[98] The Chinese had been unable to successfully pin-point the Canadian defensive positions, having failed to carry out a thorough reconnaissance prior to the attack. The severe terrain had also prevented the assaulting troops from adopting a low profile during their final assault, however in the darkness the Canadian rifle fire was ineffective, forcing them to resort to using grenades and rocket launchers.[98] The Chinese mortars and artillery was particularly ineffective however, and very few rounds fell on the Canadian positions during the evening. Indeed in their haste to follow up the collapse of the South Korean 6th Division, the Chinese 118th Division had left the bulk of its artillery and supplies well north of scene of the fighting. Meanwhile, what mortar ammunition they did have had been largely used up on the Australians during the previous evening. In contrast, the New Zealand gunners provided effective fire support and had been able to break up a number of Chinese assaults before they had even reached the Patricias. The Chinese now turned their attention to D Company holding the summit of Hill 677, on the battalion's left flank.[97] At 01:10 a large Chinese force was detected forming up on a spur to the west towards Hill 865 and they were engaged by Bren light machines guns and defensive fires. Assaulting 10 Platoon under the cover of machine-gun and mortar fire, the Chinese were soon effectively engaged by Vickers machine-guns from 12 Platoon firing in mutual support. Switching their axis of assault to 12 Platoon, the Chinese succeeded in overrunning one of the Canadian sections and a medium machine-gun, killing two of its crew who had remained at their post firing until the last moment. The Canadians fought back, engaging the Chinese as they attempted to turn the Vickers on them, rendering it inoperable before calling in pre-arranged defensive fires on to the newly lost position.[99] With the supporting artillery firing at the 'very slow' rate to conserve ammunition, the weight of the Chinese assaults soon prompted the Canadians to request it be increased to the 'slow' rate of two rounds per gun per minute, so that 24 rounds fell every 30 seconds within a target area of 180 metres (200 yd).[100] With the Chinese infiltrating the Canadian perimeter through the gaps between platoons, D Company was close to being surrounded. The company commander—Captain J.G.W. Mills—was subsequently forced to call down artillery fire onto his own position on several occasions during the early morning of 25 April to avoid being overrun. The tactic succeeded and the exposed Chinese were soon swept off the position, while the dug-in Canadians escaped unharmed. The Chinese persisted however, launching a number of smaller attacks during the rest of the night, but these were again repulsed by artillery and small arms fire. By dawn the attacks on the Canadian positions had abated, and with D Company remaining in control of the summit they were able to recover the previously abandoned machine-gun at first light. Meanwhile, on the right flank B Company was also able to re-occupy the platoon position it had been forced to relinquish earlier the previous evening.[100] The Chinese had suffered heavily during the night, with perhaps as many as 300 killed by the Patricias.[101] Fighting concludes, 25 April 1951 A large twin engined propeller driven transport aircraft in level flight A C-119 similar to those used at Kapyong. Although the Chinese had continued to mount small attacks, UN forces were now in control of the battle. Regardless, the Chinese had succeeded in establishing blocking positions on the roads south of the Canadians, temporarily cutting them off from resupply. Anticipating that the battle would continue into the evening, Stone requested that food, ammunition and water be airdropped directly onto Hill 677 and by 10:30 the required supplies—including 81-millimetre (3.2 in) mortar ammunition—were dropped by four American C-119 Flying Boxcars flying from an airbase in Japan. Anticipating a renewed Chinese effort, the Canadians continued to improve their defensive position. Meanwhile, the Middlesex sent out patrols during the morning in order to clear the Chinese that had infiltrated behind Hill 677 during the evening, and although the Chinese blocking positions were relatively weak it was not until 14:00 that patrols from B Company, 2 PPCLI reported the road clear. Stone subsequently requested that further supplies and reinforcements be sent forward by vehicle as rapidly as feasible.[100] The remainder of the day was relatively quiet for the Canadians, although they were subjected to periodic harassing fire from the Chinese. D Company received heavy machine-gun fire from Hill 865 to the west, in particular. Regardless, the Chinese made no further attempt to attack, and confined themselves to limited patrolling activities across the front. Later the Patricias, with American tanks in support, cleared the remaining Chinese from the northern slopes of Hill 677, while several concentrations of Chinese were again broken up by heavy artillery fire and airstrikes. The American battalion on the south-west flank of the Canadians was subsequently relieved by the Middlesex, following which the 5th US Cavalry Regiment launched an assault to recover Hill 504. The Chinese resisted until 16:00, before the 118th Division suddenly withdrew. American patrols north of the feature met no resistance, while the Americans were also able to patrol east along Route 17 to Chunchon without contact. By last light the situation had stabilised on the Kapyong Valley front.[101] Having left their supplies of food and ammunition far behind during the advance two days earlier, the Chinese had been forced to withdraw back up the Kapyong Valley in the late afternoon of 25 April in order to regroup and replenish following the heavy casualties incurred during the fighting.[101][102] Aftermath Casualties With vastly superior numbers the Chinese had attacked on a broad front, and had initially overrun a number of the forward UN positions. Regardless, the 27th Brigade had ultimately prevailed despite being outnumbered by a factor of five to one.[103] Indeed, despite their numerical advantage the Chinese had been badly outgunned and they could not overcome the well-trained and well-armed Australians and Canadians.[68] The battlefield was littered with the corpses of Chinese soldiers, a testament to the discipline and firepower of the defenders. And yet, despite their ultimate defeat the battle once again demonstrated that the Chinese were tough and skillful soldiers capable of inflicting heavy casualties on the Australians and forcing their eventual withdrawal, albeit both intact and orderly.[49] As a result of the fighting Australian losses were 32 killed, 59 wounded and three captured, while Canadian casualties included 10 killed and 23 wounded.[93] American casualties included three men killed, 12 wounded and two tanks destroyed, all from A Company, 72nd Heavy Tank Battalion. The New Zealanders lost two killed and five wounded.[41] In contrast, Chinese losses were far heavier, and may have included 1,000 killed and many more wounded.[93][101] The Canadians were finally relieved on Hill 677 by a battalion of the 5th US Cavalry Regiment on the evening 26 April.[104] Soldiers wearing slouch hats lined up on parade as a reviewing officer conducts an inspection General James Van Fleet inspects members of 3 RAR after awarding a Presidential Unit Citation to the Battalion in December 1951. 2 PPCLI, 3 RAR and A Company, 72nd Heavy Tank Battalion were all subsequently awarded the US Presidential Unit Citation for their actions during the Battle of Kapyong. The New Zealand gunners—without whom the Australians and Canadians may have suffered a similar fate to that of Glosters at the Imjin—were awarded the South Korean Presidential Unit Citation.[49] Although the Canadians and Australians had borne the brunt of the fighting, the Middlesex—despite the imminence of their replacement—had shown no evidence of hesitancy or lack of aggression when recalled into the fighting early in the battle.[40] For their leadership, Ferguson and Stone were both awarded the Distinguished Service Order, while Koch was awarded both the American Distinguished Service Cross and the British Military Cross for the vital part his tanks had played in the fighting.[77][note 7] The Royal Australian Regiment, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry and the Middlesex Regiment were subsequently granted the battle honour "Kapyong".[7][105] Today, the battle is regarded one as the most famous actions fought by the Australian and Canadian armies in Korea.[26] Subsequent operations By 29 April, the First Chinese Spring Offensive was halted by UN forces at a defensive line north of Seoul, known as the "No-Name Line"; in total a withdrawal of 56 kilometres (35 mi) in the US I and IX Corps sectors, and 32 kilometres (20 mi) in the US X Corps and South Korean III Corps sectors.[106] Although the main Chinese blow had fallen on US I Corps, the resistance by British Commonwealth forces in the battles at the Imjin River and at Kapyong had helped to blunt its impetus, with the defence mounted by the 27th Brigade stopping the Chinese from isolating the US I Corps from the US IX Corps, thereby helping to halt the Chinese advance on Seoul and preventing its capture.[68][107] The Chinese had now nearly exhausted their resources of men and material, and were approaching the limit of their supply lines. Many Chinese soldiers were now tired, hungry and short of equipment and during the fighting at Kapyong they had demonstrated a growing willingness to surrender than in previous encounters, with 3 RAR alone taking 39 prisoners, only eight of them wounded. Contingent on the rapid attainment of its objectives, the attempted Chinese coup de main ultimately failed amid heavy casualties and they had little recourse but to abandon their attacks against the US I and IX Corps.[49][108] The Chinese had suffered at least 30,000 casualties during the period 22–29 April.[109] In contrast, US casualties during the same period numbered just 314 killed and 1,600 wounded, while Commonwealth, South Korean and other UN contingents brought the total to 547 killed, 2,024 wounded and 2,170 captured; the disparity highlighting the devastating effect of enormous UN firepower against massed infantry.[110][111] Undeterred by these setbacks, the Second Chinese Spring Offensive began on 16 May to the east of Kapyong, only to suffer their worst defeat at the Battle of the Soyang River.[112] 27th Brigade was replaced by the 28th British Commonwealth Brigade and Brigadier George Taylor took over command of the new formation on 26 April. With the Chinese offensive losing momentum, the new Commonwealth formation was subsequently pulled back into IX Corps reserve to the southwest of Kapyong, near the junction of the Pukhan and Chojon rivers. 3 RAR was transferred to 28th Brigade, while the 1st Battalion, The King's Own Scottish Borderers and the 1st Battalion, The King's Shropshire Light Infantry replaced the Argylls and Middlesex regiments. Later, the Patricias were transferred to the newly arrived 25th Canadian Brigade on 27 May.[113][114] After protracted negotiations between the governments of Australia, Britain, Canada, India, New Zealand and South Africa, agreement had been reached to establish an integrated formation with the aim of increasing the political significance of their contribution, as well as facilitating the solution of the logistic and operational problems faced by the various Commonwealth contingents.[113] The 1st Commonwealth Division was formed on 28 July 1951, with the division including the 25th Canadian, 28th British Commonwealth and 29th British Infantry Brigades under the command of Major General James Cassels, and was part of US I Corps.[115] For many of the Australians Kapyong was to be their last major battle before completing their period of duty and being replaced, having endured much hard fighting, appalling weather and the chaos and confusion of a campaign that had ranged up and down the length of the Korean Peninsula. Most had served in the Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF) during the Second World War and this combat experience had proven vital.[116] Regardless, casualties had been heavy, and since the battalion's arrival from Japan in September 1950 the Australians had lost 87 killed, 291 wounded and five captured.[117] |
About us|Jobs|Help|Disclaimer|Advertising services|Contact us|Sign in|Website map|Search|
GMT+8, 2015-9-11 20:42 , Processed in 0.131825 second(s), 16 queries .
