“FREEDOM IS NOT FREE” is the inscription on the Korean War Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The Korean War started JUNE 25, 1950. Communist North Korea invaded South Korea, killing thousands.
Outnumbered South Korean and American troops, as part of a UN “police” action, fought courageously against the Communist Chinese and North Korean troops, who were supplied with arms and MIG fighters from the Soviet Union.
General Douglas MacArthur, who led the United Nations Command from 1950 to 1951, made a daring landing of troops at Inchon, deep behind North Korean lines, and recaptured the city of Seoul.
With temperatures sometimes forty degrees below zero, and Washington politicians limiting the use of air power against the Communists, there were nearly 140,000 American casualties in: the defense of the Pusan Perimeter and Taego; the landing at Inchon and the freeing of Seoul; the capture of Pyongyang; the Yalu River where nearly a million Communist Chinese soldiers invaded; the Battles of Changjin Reservoir, Old Baldy, White Horse Mountain, Heartbreak Ridge, Pork Chop Hill, T-Bone Hill, and Siberia Hill.
President Harry S Truman stated while lighting the National Christmas Tree, December 24, 1952:
“Tonight, our hearts turn first of all to our brave men and women in Korea. They are fighting and suffering and even dying that we may preserve the chance of peace in the world. The struggle there has been long and bitter…
And as we go about our business of trying to achieve peace in the world, let us remember always to try to act and live in the spirit of the Prince of Peace. He bore in His heart no hate and no malice – nothing but love for all mankind. We should try as nearly as we can to follow His example. We believe that all men are truly the children of God…
As we pray for our loved ones far from home – as we pray for our men and women in Korea, and all our service men and women wherever they are – let us also pray for our enemies. Let us pray that the spirit of God shall enter their lives and prevail in their lands…Through Jesus Christ the world will yet be a better and a fairer place.”
President Dwight Eisenhower’s son, John Sheldon Doud Eisenhower, served in Korea during the war. First Lady Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower stated in a conversation at the Doud home regarding him:
“He has a mission to fulfill and God will see to it that nothing will happen to him till he fulfills it.”
The Korean War ended July 27, 1953, with the armistice signed at Panmunjom.
General Douglas MacArthur gave a speech to the Salvation Army, December 12, 1951, stating:
“History fails to record a single precedent in which nations subject to moral decay have not passed into political and economic decline. There has been either a spiritual awakening to overcome the moral lapse, or a progressive deterioration leading to ultimate national disaster.”
William J. Federer is a nationally known speaker, best-selling author, and president of Amerisearch, Inc., a publishing company dedicated to researching America’s noble heritage.
To learn more about the author please visit William Federer
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