Hungnam evacuation

U.S. Navy and U.S. Army explosives teams destroy facilities and abandoned United Nations supplies in Hŭngnam on 24 December 1950, the last day of the amphibious evacuation of U.N. forces from Hŭngnam during the Korean War. The U.S. Navy high-speed transport USS Begor (APD-127) stands by in the foreground.
Geoje HuengNam Retreat Memorial Tower

The Hungnam evacuation (Hangul: 흥남 철수 작전; Hanja: 興南撤收作戰), code-named Christmas Cargo, also known as the Miracle of Christmas, was the evacuation of UN forces and North Korean civilians from the port of Hungnam, North Korea, between 15 and 24 December 1950.

Description

The port at Hungnam was the site of a major evacuation of United Nations military, South Korean military, and North Korean civilians during the Korean War in late December 1950. Approximately 100,000 troops and material and 100,000 civilians were loaded onto merchant ships and military transports totaling 193 shiploads over the weeks leading up to Christmas 1950. They were transported to safety in Busan and other destinations in South Korea. The evacuation included 14,000 refugees who were transported on one ship, the SS Meredith Victory — the largest evacuation from land by a single ship. This was made possible by a declaration of national emergency by President Truman issued on 16 December 1950 with Presidential Proclamation No. 2914, 3 C.F.R. 99 (1953). This operation was the culmination of the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, in which the embattled UN troops fought their way out of a Chinese trap. Colonel Edward H. Forney, who served as Deputy Chief of Staff, X Corps was tasked by Major general Edward M. Almond with the organization of the evacuation.

Among the civilians evacuated and brought to the South were the future parents of incumbent South Korean President Moon Jae-in[1].[2]

Assessment

All troops, materials, and civilians were transferred safely during the Hungnam evacuation. Five babies were born on the ships and were nicknamed Kimchi 1-5 by the U.S. sailors.[3] [4]

  • A film about the Hungnam evacuation entered pre-production in 2005 but did not push through.[5]
  • The 2014 film Ode to My Father depicts the Hungnam Evacuation in its beginning.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Choe Sang-Hun (May 9, 2017), South Korea Elects Moon Jae-in, Who Backs Talks With North, as President, New York Times, archived from the original on 2017-05-13
  2. ↑ http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/839493.html
  3. ↑ "Moon Jae-in and ‘Kimchi 5’," Korea Joongang Daily, Jan 20, 2017
  4. ↑ The Kimchi Babies
  5. ↑ Chang boards Korean war epic Christmas Cargo
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