"The Greeks were darn good soldiers, we loved them."

I've written about the "Korean Thermopylae" previously. It is to say the least an inspiring story of courage in the face of overwhelming odds. Like many things these days it is unfortunately lost in the pages of history, a history that few people, especially the young, have any familiarity with. Combat changes a soldier forever but the friendships and mutual respect forged in its crucible can never be severed. Listening to the accounts of the Americans that fought side by side with the Greeks of Sparta battalion in Korea one can only be filled with pride. Lest we forget. Watch the whole video. If you are in a hurry jump to 6:48.

Outpost Harry was a remote Korean War station located on a tiny hilltop in what was commonly referred to as the "Iron Triangle" on the Korean Peninsula. This was an area approximately 60 miles (100 km) north of Seoul and was the most direct route to the South Korean capital.

More than 88,000 rounds of Chinese artillery fell on Outpost Harry. Since the outpost was defended each night by only a single company of American or Greek soldiers, the Chinese had anticipated an easy capture. Over a period of eight days, waves of Chinese forces moved into the outposts trench lines and totalling over 13,000 soldiers. Five UNC companies, four US and one Greek, took turns in defending the outpost.

Most of the fighting occurred at night, under heavy mortar fire, while the daylight hours were usually spent by the UNC forces evacuating the dead and wounded, replacing the defending company, sending up resupplies and repairing the fortified positions. The daylight hours were punctuated with artillery, mortar and sniper fire, making repairs and reinforcement a more dangerous task. During the 4 to 5 days prior to the initial attack on the outpost, Chinese artillery and mortar fire increased from an average of 275 to 670 per day during daylight hours.

The soldiers of the Greek Expeditionary Force adapted its name and called it Outpost "Haros", the modern Greek equivalent to Charon, Greek mythology's ferryman to the underworld of Hades.

The Chinese forces employed against Outpost Harry were tabulated by U.S. Intelligence Sections:

June 10 and June 11: one reinforced regiment (approximately 3,600 troops)

June 11 and June 12: one regiment (approximately 2,850 troops)

June 12 and June 13: one reinforced regiment

June 13 and June 14: an estimated 100 troops

June 14 and June 15: an estimated 120 troops

June 17 and June 18: one regiment.

During this period the entire 74th Division was utilized against this position and at the end of the engagement was considered combat ineffective. Rounds fired in support of their attack amounted to 88,810 rounds over 81mm in size: UNC mortar and artillery units in conjunction with friendly tank fires expended 368, 185 rounds over 81mm in size.

Casualty figures were

15th Infantry Regiment - 68 KIA, 343 WIA, 35 MIA; KATUSA - 8 KIA, 51 WIA, 7 MIA;

Greek Expeditionary Force, Sparta Battalion - 15 KIA, 36 WIA, 1 MIA.

Attached and supporting units 5th RCT - 13 KIA, 67 WIA, 1 MIA;

10th Engineer Battalion - 5 KIA, 23 WIA; 39th FA - 5 KIA, 13 WIA.

For the first time in the annals of U.S. military history, five rifle companies together, four American and one Greek, would receive the prestigious Distinguished Unit Citation for the outstanding performance of their shared mission.

01 Σολο Λυρα

Comments

[Joseph]

Dear Stavros, saw this post when I was in Greece last month and was very happy to see you back and continuing to post new articles (didn't see you active for a while and was hoping all was well)
Thanks for the very interesting post here. I know too little about the involvement of Greece in Korea.
Greeks are known for their bravery and courage. War in our time has become a day to day struggle for survival. Greeks and Greece took the hard way to deal with the economical crisis. I hope they will have the power to continue demonstrating courage for a much better future for Greece.

[Stavros]

From your lips to God's ear.

Life often interferes with the things we love to do. It's been a busy summer for me and I have been too preoccupied with other things. I have been neglecting MGO and I do apologize. I will try to rectify this soon.

All the best.

[Joseph]

Thanks a lot Stavros. I occasionally check for updates on MGO and was a bit worried (when I saw none for a while). I was therefore, very happy to see this post. I will patiently wait for the next one…
All the best

[Marios Charalambous]

Giasou Stavro, once again a wonderful article of Greece's involvment in the Korean war, a much forgotten brave contribution by the Motherland, I had no idea that they were so highly decorated by the Americans, thank you for posting it, and God bless, regards, Marios

[Stavros]

Ela Mario,

Glad you liked it. Sometimes we Americans forget who our real allies are, to our detriment.

Best wishes to you and family.

[morpheus]

Greeks should fight for Greece!

[Stavros]

This post is dedicated to the heroism of some Greeks soldiers who fought bravely in a now forgotten conflict. Please don't blacken their sacrifices. They were sent there by the Greek government to fight Communist forces. Greece had just emerged from a civil war. They were merely fighting Communists on another front. The Greek Left loves to disparage such men because it was they that defeated the effort to drag Greece behind the Iron Curtain. As someone with deep roots in Northern Epirus, a region that suffered mightily under Communist rule, I take particular exception to such an undignified and unworthy comment.

[morpheus]

Stavros I am a nationalist and I still dont think Greece should take part in international operations. All due respect to those men but I dont think we should not be sending our meagre resources to other places regardless of what is being fought for of which we dont really know the causal forces anyways. The US had no qualms of playing games with us on Cyprus even though we took part in operations with it and cooperated with it for years. We need to understand what our core interests really are.

[Stavros]

If you read one of my earlier comments you will see that I lament the way the US often treats its nominal allies. I spent a career in the military including two wars. Military men don't get choices. We go where our country sends us. Your complaint should be directed elsewhere.

This post admires Greek courage. Surely we can agree on that.

[morpheus]

Fair enough. I admire their heroism also. But ill tell you most of Greece, including the armed forces etc, is now anti-Western and anti-international, anti-globalist. What I found alot in your comments is an attempt to desperately hold on to Greece connection to the socalled "West". Its a new game out there.

[Stavros]

I am under no illusions. Greece will not emerge from the present turmoil unchanged. Whether that change is for the better or worse remains to be seen. Since independence Greeks are always siding with more powerful countries, they are, after all, not Switzerland. Greeks live in a much more dangerous neighborhood. Funny thing about allies however, their interests don't necessarily match those of Greece. Let's hope that the next ally they hitch their star to does not let them down, although I fear they eventually will.

I suspect that the Greek armed forces will not stray too far. Their weaponry is almost entirely Western made.

[morpheus]

Good points. But what we really need is indigenisation, including our armed forces.

[Stavros]

Had to look it up. If I understand the term and how you are using it correctly; you are advocating more self-reliance and a return to our own culture. Perhaps Greeks can start by returning to the drachma. As for culture, I am afraid from my vantage point as a member of the diaspora it seems that Greeks in Greece are running away from it as fast as they can. The socialist model which they have adopted doesn't exactly foster a sense of self-reliance. The Greeks of my parent's generation especially immigrants were the most self reliant people I ever met. The only thing that has changed is the ascendancy of the Greek Left in the form of Andreas Papandreou. That's when the downhill slide started to pick up speed. If Tsirpas comes to power, the coffers will already be empty and he will merely oversee the final demise of the "free spending" model of government. Without bread and circuses, he is destined to spend his final years in exile or jail.

[morpheus]

Yes, more self-reliant. That means our own currency, trade, products, diversification, building our internal powers, human, natural, cutlural, historical, getting out of the oil economy and international tensions-wars etc.

[morpheus]

Because I will tell you what the World Bank, West will want is for us to reform our economy according to their needs-i.e to become some Meditteranean Puerto Rico which will not solve anything.

[Stavros]

I'm all for self reliance but I think you are starting to sound like Enver Hoxha:

"No country whatsoever, big or small, can build socialism by taking credits and aid from the bourgeoisie and the revisionists or by integrating its economy into the world system of capitalist economies. Any such linking of the economy of a socialist country with the economy of bourgeois or revisionist countries opens the doors to the actions of the economic laws of capitalism and the degeneration of the socialist order. This is the road of betrayal and the restoration of capitalism, which the revisionist cliques have pursued and are pursuing."

Greece separating itself from the global economy would only isolate it and we see how well that worked out for the Albanians.

[morpheus]

Just because he thought that doesnt mean anything. What he says is true. You dont have to be a Stalinist to believe that. I am not saying complete isolation, just more balance. Capitalism at its worst has destroyed cultures, countries and social classes. This is a historical fact.

[morpheus]

And how has integration into the world economy helped Greece?

[Stavros]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeB-B0UPZks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOMI0ORGH44&feature=related

[morpheus]

Milton Friedman? I dont understand the purpose of the posts. Friedman was an American-i.e from a country that has no history before capitalism and business society. I think you miss the point that capitalism, in extremis, has no values.