The Battle of Kapyong (Korean: 가평 전투; MR: Kap'yŏng chŏnt'u; 22–27 April 1951), also known as the Battle of Jiaping (Chinese: 加平战斗; pinyin: Jiāpíng Zhàndòu), was a pivotal engagement fought during the Korean War between United Nations Command (UN) forces—primarily Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand—and the 118th and 60th Divisions of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA). The fighting occurred during the Chinese Spring Offensive and saw the 27th British Commonwealth Brigade (27th Brigade) establish blocking positions in the Kapyong Valley, on a key route south to the capital, Seoul. The two forward battalions—the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) and 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (2 PPCLI) were supported by guns from the 16th Field Regiment (16 NZFR) of the Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery and, early in the battle, with two companies of US mortars and light artillery, fifteen Sherman tanks from the US 72nd Heavy Tank Battalion, two companies of the US 74th Engineer Combat Battalion and 1st Battalion, Middlesex Regiment. These forces occupied positions astride the valley with hastily developed defences.
As thousands of soldiers from the Republic of Korea Army (ROK) began to withdraw through the valley, the PVA infiltrated the brigade position under the cover of darkness and assaulted the 3 RAR on Hill 504 during the evening and into the following day. Five companies of the US and UK forces attached to 27th Brigade fled the battlefield without orders, expecting an imminent PVA breakthrough at the Kapyong Valley. Although heavily outnumbered, the 3 RAR and US tanks held their positions into the afternoon of April 24, before retreating from the battlefield to a reserve position near brigade headquarters. Both sides suffered heavy casualties.
The PVA then turned their attention to the 2 PPCLI on Hill 677, whose encirclement prevented any resupply or reinforcements from entering. The 2 PPCLI were ordered to make a last stand on Hill 677. During a fierce night battle on 24/25 April, the PVA forces were unable to dislodge the 2 PPCLI and sustained enormous losses. The next day, the PVA largely withdrew back up the valley in order to regroup. UN forces subsequently launched counter-offensives to recover the lost areas, the US 5th Cavalry Regiment against Hill 504 and the 2 PPCLI against the northern parts of Hill 677. The 2 PPCLI were relieved late on 26 April.
The fighting helped blunt the PVA Spring Offensive. The delaying action of the 3 RAR at Hill 504 and the last stand of the 2 PPCLI at Hill 677 were critical in preventing a breakthrough against the UN central front, the encirclement of US forces in Korea, which were at that point in general retreat, and ultimately, the capture of Seoul. The 2 PPCLI and 3 RAR battalions, consisting of about 700 men each, bore the brunt of the assault and stopped PVA divisional forces estimated at 20,000 in strength during the hard-fought defensive battle. Today, the battle is regarded as the most famous and significant action fought by the Canadian and Australian armies in Korea, and the most famous battle fought by the Canadian Army since World War II.
Background
Military situation
The UN counter-offensive between February and April 1951 had been largely successful, with the US Eighth Army pushing the PVA north of the Han River during Operation Killer, while Seoul was recaptured in mid-March during Operation Ripper and UN forces once again approached the 38th Parallel. Regardless, the strained relationship between UN commander General Douglas MacArthur and US President Harry S. Truman led to MacArthur's dismissal as Commander-in-Chief, and his replacement by General Matthew B. Ridgway.
Consequently, on 14 April 1951, General James Van Fleet replaced Ridgway as commander of the US Eighth Army and the UN forces in Korea. Ridgway flew to Tokyo the same day to replace MacArthur. Meanwhile, the offensive continued with a series of short thrusts. Operation Courageous, in late March, pushed forward to the Benton Line, 8 km (5 mi) south of the 38th Parallel, while Operation Rugged in early April pushed just north of the 38th Parallel to the Kansas Line. Finally, in mid-April a further advance moved the US Eighth Army to the Utah Line.
Following the Battle of Maehwa-San, the 27th British Commonwealth Brigade were assigned to a period in US IX Corps reserve as the UN forces had continued to push steadily northwards. By April 1951, the brigade consisted of four infantry battalions, one Australian, one Canadian and two British, including: the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment; 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry; 1st Battalion, Middlesex Regiment; and 1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. Brigadier Basil Coad had departed for Hong Kong on compassionate leave on 23 March and the brigade was now under the command of Brigadier Brian Burke.
In direct support was the 16th Field Regiment, Royal New Zealand Artillery (16 Fd Regt) with its 3.45 in (88 mm) 25-pounder field guns. 3 RAR was under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Bruce Ferguson. 2 PPCLI was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel James Stone. Deployed in the central sector, the brigade was attached to US IX Corps which also included the US 24th Infantry Division, ROK 2nd Infantry Division, US 7th Infantry Division and the ROK 6th Infantry Division, under the overall command of Major General William M. Hoge.
During this time, 27th Brigade was attached to the US 24th Division, advancing north through the Chojong valley in late March, reaching the Benton Line on 31 March. The brigade was then released, advancing with IX Corps up the deep and narrow valley of the Kapyong River, 10 km (6.2 mi) to the east. From 3 April, the 27th Brigade moved further up the river, advancing 30 km (19 mi) over the next 12 days as part of Operation Rugged. Although the valley was not held in strength by the PVA, it was skilfully defended by small groups of infantry dug-in on the hilltops that overlooked it. Advancing along the flanking hills and ridges, the brigade captured successive positions, while encountering heavy resistance before reaching the Kansas Line on 8 April. Following a brief operational pause, the advance 5 km (3.1 mi) to the Utah Line began on 11 April, the day after MacArthur's dismissal. PVA resistance strengthened noticeably; as a result, the brigade's initial objectives were not captured until 13 April.
The approach to the Utah Line was dominated by two 900 m (3,000 ft) hills—the 'Sardine' feature 1 km (0.62 mi) north, and 'Salmon', a further 800 m (870 yd) north. A Middlesex company was repulsed twice in attempts to capture Sardine on 14 April, before the task was allocated to 3 RAR. A Company, 3 RAR subsequently captured the crest, killing 10 PVA and wounding another 20 for the loss of eight 3 RAR wounded. The following morning, Salmon was captured by C Company without firing a shot, amidst light resistance. PVA shelling after its capture resulted in two men wounded, while airstrikes then broke up an attempted PVA counter-attack. Meanwhile, 2 PPCLI continued their advance on the right flank, capturing the 'Turbot' feature (Hill 795) on 15 April. Facing a spirited PVA delaying action on successive positions, the 2 PPCLI did not capture their final objective—the 'Trout' feature (Hill 826)—until the following morning.
Chinese Spring Offensive
Preparations
After reaching the Utah Line, 27th Brigade was withdrawn from the front on 17 April, handing over its positions to the ROK 6th Division. Burke subsequently ordered his battalions into reserve positions north of the previously destroyed village of Kapyong, on the main road from Seoul to the east coast. Intelligence indicated that a new PVA offensive was imminent, and while the brigade settled in to rest, it remained on three hours' notice to move to support IX Corps. Having been on operations continuously for the past seven months, the 27th Brigade intended to relieve the bulk of its forces during its period in reserve. Two of the battalions—the Argylls and the Middlesex—would be replaced by two fresh battalions from Hong Kong. Advance parties from Brigade Headquarters and the Argylls departed for Seoul en route for Hong Kong on 19 April, while the remaining battalions were scheduled to depart two weeks later. 3 RAR would not be rotated and remained a part of the brigade for the entire war, operating on an individual reinforcement system instead.
Meanwhile, planning began for Operation Dauntless, a drive 30 km (19 mi) into the Iron Triangle—a key PVA/Korean People's Army (KPA) concentration area and communications junction in the central sector between Chorwon and Kumwha in the south and Pyonggang in the north. Contingency planning also included precautions against a new major PVA offensive, in which the US Eighth Army would conduct a delaying defence on successive positions. Further indications of an imminent offensive—including the visible strengthening of PVA/KPA artillery and logistic systems—led Ridgway to order Van Fleet not to exploit any opportunities beyond the Wyoming Line. Confident nonetheless, Ridgway widened the scope of the offensive, designating a secondary objective line in the eastern sector known as the Alabama Line. Fate would intervene, however, and Van Fleet launched his offensive on 21 April only to be met by a much stronger PVA/KPA offensive the following night.
Launch of Chinese Spring Offensive
The Chinese Spring Offensive—also known as the Chinese Fifth Phase Campaign, First Impulse—envisioned the total destruction of US I and IX Corps above the Han River, involving three PVA Army Groups—the 3rd, 9th and 19th Army Groups—and three KPA Corps—the I, III and V Corps—under the overall command of Peng Dehuai. With the immediate objective of capturing Seoul, the offensive commenced on 22 April on two broad fronts: the main thrust across the Imjin River in the western sector held by the US I Corps, involving 337,000 troops driving towards Seoul, and the secondary effort involving 149,000 troops attacking further east across the Soyang River in the central and eastern sectors, falling primarily on US IX Corps, and to a lesser extent, on US X Corps' sector. A further 214,000 PVA troops supported the offensive; in total more than 700,000 men. As part of the preparation, the battle-hardened 39th and 40th Armies of the 13th Army Group were transferred to the 9th Army Group under the overall command of Song Shi-Lun, and Commander Wen Yuchen of the 40th Army was given the mission of destroying the ROK 6th Division while blocking any UN reinforcements towards the Imjin River at Kapyong.
Facing the offensive were 418,000 UN troops, including 152,000 ROK, 245,000 Americans, 11,500 British Commonwealth and 10,000 troops from other UN countries. However, with the US Eighth Army not strong enough to prevent large penetrations along its line, masses of PVA infantry soon swept around its flanks, surrounding entire formations in an attempt to cut off their withdrawal. Standing directly in the path of the main PVA attack towards Seoul in the I Corps sector was the 29th British Brigade. The brigade's stand on the Imjin River held off two PVA divisions for two days and ultimately helped prevent the capture of Seoul, but resulted in heavy casualties in one of the bloodiest British engagements of the war. The 29th Brigade suffered 1,091 casualties in their defence of the Kansas Line, and they destroyed a large portion of the PVA 63rd Army and inflicted nearly 10,000 casualties. Meanwhile, further east, in the IX Corps sector, the PVA 118th Division, 40th Army and the 60th Division, 20th Army prepared to attack the ROK 6th Division on the night of 22 April.
South Korean withdrawal, 22–23 April 1951
The ROK were holding positions at the northern end of the Kapyong Valley, having advanced 10 km (6.2 mi) since relieving the 27th Brigade. However, anticipating a PVA attack, the divisional commander—General Chang Do Yong—had halted his advance at 16:00 and ordered his two forward regiments—the 19th and the 2nd Infantry Regiments—to tie-in and develop defensive positions. Meanwhile, the 7th Infantry Regiment occupied reserve positions immediately behind the forward regiments. The ROK 6th Division had been bolstered by the attachment of 16 NZFR and a battery of 105 mm (4.1 in) M101 howitzers from the US 213th Field Artillery Battalion. Regardless, left with only one hour to halt its advance and step up defences, the forward ROK units were only able to occupy a series of hill-top positions while leaving the valleys and flanks exposed.
Two PVA divisions—the 118th and the 60th Division—struck at 17:00, easily infiltrating through numerous gaps between the badly organised defensive positions. Under pressure all along the front, the defenders gave ground almost immediately and soon broke. Abandoning their weapons, equipment, and vehicles, they disintegrated and began to stream south out of the mountains and through the valley, and by 23:00, Chang was forced to admit that he had lost all communication with his units. At 04:00, the decision was made to withdraw 16 NZFR to prevent their loss. However, following reports that the ROK were making a stand, they were ordered back up the valley the next morning with the Middlesex accompanying them as protection. By dusk, it was clear that the ROK units had collapsed, and the guns were withdrawn again.
Meanwhile, the US 1st Marine Division was holding firm against the PVA 39th Army to the east, and the withdrawal of the ROK had left their flank exposed. However, with the PVA 39th and 40th Armies only tasked with protecting the eastern flank of the 9th Army Group against possible counterattacks from the 1st Marine Division, the PVA did not exploit this opportunity and the US forces remained relatively unmolested. Yet with the forward UN positions in both the US I Corps and US IX Corps sectors increasingly untenable as the PVA exploited gaps between formations, Van Fleet ordered a withdrawal to the Kansas Line in the mid-morning.
Hoge subsequently ordered the US Marines to form a new defensive position beyond the Pukhan River, between the Hwachon Reservoir and the new position to be occupied by the ROK 6th Division. Hoge's plan relied on the ROK reforming and offering some resistance, and although a rearguard of 2,500 men was belatedly established, it was in no condition to fight. Fearing a breakthrough, Hoge ordered the 27th Brigade, as the corps' reserve, to establish defensive positions north of Kapyong on the afternoon of 23 April as a precaution in the event the ROK were unable to hold, tasking them with blocking the two approaches to the village and to prevent the PVA from cutting Route 17, a key route south to Seoul and an important main supply route.