Battle of Osan - Daily Dose Documentary

Battle of Osan

Soldiers on a hillside outside of Osan Korea

On June 25th, 1950—a short five years after the end of World War Two—89,000 troops from the North Korean People’s Army stormed into South Korea in a surprise night attack, capturing South Korea’s capital city of Seoul three days later.

Defending South Korea

After the UN Security Council voted to send in troops in defense of South Korea, U.S. President Harry S. Truman sent ground forces into the country with orders to stop North Korea’s incursion. Although understrength and working with outdated equipment, Eighth Army Commander Major General William F. Dean determined that the 24th Infantry Division was the most combat-ready American outfit in Asia, ordering Division commander Lt. Col. Charles Bradford Smith to slow the North Korean advance, until additional U.S. and UN assets could join the fight.

Task Force Smith and The Battle of Osan

Known as Task Force Smith, some 540 U.S. infantrymen engaged in the first ground battle of the Korean War. Most of Smith’s men were teenagers with eight weeks of basic training and zero combat experience, and after they established a forward base at Taejon, on July 4th, they advanced just north of the village of Osan, where heavy rain and cloud cover made air support impossible.

On July the 5th, Task Force Smith engaged tanks from the North Korean 107th Tank Division, disabling three before the tanks continued south. Next came a six-mile-long column of the North Korean 4th Infantry Division—made up of some 5,000 soldiers—and when the head of the column moved within 1,000 feet of the American’s position, the out-manned and out-gunned 24th Infantry Division opened fire with everything they had.

Task Force Smith would hold the line for over three hours, before Smith gave orders to retreat when the unit ran dangerously low on ammunition. Although the Battle of Osan temporarily slowed the North Korean advance, the American’s clear defeat exposed poor training and preparedness against highly-trained North Korean forces.

The day would see 60 Americans killed in action, 20 wounded and 82 captured, leading to the eventual death of 32 prisoners of war. The North Koreans saw 42 killed in action and 85 wounded, making the Battle of Osan, a costly wakeup call in the early days of the Korean War.