The Korean War (25 June 1950 — 27 July 1953) was a highly transformative period for what are known today as Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF). Starting when the communist North Korean People’s Army attacked across the 38th Parallel into South Korea, the war expanded when U.S.-led United Nations (UN) forces and Communist China entered the fray. The Korean War consisted of five phases:
During the war, ARSOF evolved rapidly and repeatedly to meet the threat. In addition to activating numerous raider and Ranger units and training programs, the Army employed a revitalized psychological warfare (psywar) capability. Civil Affairs units provided vital services to Korean civilians and administered occupied areas. When the Army became aware of North Korean partisans fighting the Communists from off-shore islands, it organized a bicoastal guerrilla warfare advisory effort from scratch. This campaign was augmented in 1953 by 99 Special Forces (SF)-qualified soldiers from the new 10th SF Group, the first deployment of its kind.
Back in the U.S., the Army created the Psywar Center at Fort Bragg, NC, the command and training headquarters for stateside psywar and SF personnel. This center exists today as the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. Seventy years later, the Korean War experience continues to have lasting implications for ARSOF.
Organized by the five phases, this site documents the ARSOF role in the Korean War. It features historical articles, key ARSOF ‘icons’ from that era, psywar leaflets, and period U.S. Army Signal Corps-produced videos.
War in the Land of the Morning Calm
The Korean War
Born of Desperation
Early Special Operations in the Korean War
The Price of Stabilization
Cultivating and perpetuating knowledge
John H. McGee
Soldier, Leader, Trainer
GHQ Raiders
Wonsan to Chang-to
Military Recovery of Downed Airman
Eastern Korea
Escape & Evasion
West Coast Aircrew Recovery and the Guerrilla-Held Islands
Republic of Korea General Paik Sun-yup
ROK’s most decorated veteran of the Korean War
25 July 1950
Three Combat Forces
Eighth Army Rangers
First in Korea
Rebirth of The Rangers
The Ranger Infantry Companies in Korea
A Highly Praised Luxury
The Ranger Infantry Companies in Korea, 1950-1951
GHQ Raider Monument
14 July 2010, USASOC Memorial Plaza
CA/PSYWAR Timeline
1950-1953
From a Standing Start
U.S. Army Psychological Warfare and Civil Affairs in the Korean War
The "Proper Ganders"
1st Radio Broadcasting & Leaflet Group
The Ganders, Part I
Strategic PSYWAR in the Far East: Introduction
The Ganders, Part II
1st RB&L Group Conducts PSYWAR in Korea
A Civil Affairs Pioneer
BG Crawford F. Sams, U.S. Army Medical Corps
Same Organization, Four Different Names
U.S. Army Civil Affairs in Korea 1950-1953
ICONS
BG John McGee
(1908-1991)
BG Crawford Sams
(1902-1994)
VIDEOS
The Ivanhoe Security Force in Korea, 1950
2nd Infantry Division counter-guerrilla unit
From Hill 710 to “Big Switch”
Ranger Edmund J. Dubrueil, 1st Ranger Company
The 2nd Ranger Infantry Company
“Buffaloes” in Korea, 1950-1951
"When Men Don't Panic"
2nd Ranger Infantry Company on Hill 581
"Cold Steel Third"
The 3rd Ranger Infantry Company
“That D****d Dam”
The 4th Ranger Infantry Company and the Hwachon Dam
“Travel Light and Freeze at Night”
The 5th Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne) in Korea
The 8th Ranger Company
“Black Devils” on Hill 628
The 6th Ranger Company
Look Sharp, Be Sharp, Stay Sharp
The U.N. Occupation of P’yongyang
P’yongyang fell to ROK and U.S. forces on 19 OCT 1950
The Mayor of P’yongyang
The Three Wars of COL Charles R. Munske
Smoke Bomb Hill
Birth of the Psywar Center, Part I
MG Robert A. McClure
Persistent advocate for psychological warfare
Dick Zayac
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
ICONS
LTC Leif Bangsboll
(1919-2001)
MG Robert McClure
(1897-1957)
COL Charles Munske
(1897-1985)
MG John Singlaub
(1921-2022)
MG John Van Houten
(1904–1974)
VIDEOS
A History of Resistance
The Origins of the North Korean Anti-Communist Guerrillas, 1945-1950
Guerrillas in Their Midst
An Introduction to Veritas Vol. 8, No. 2
Operation SPITFIRE
No Lessons Learned
Fight for the Northwestern Islands
The ‘Battle of Taehwa-do’
Facets of the U.S. Army Guerrilla Commands
A Photographic Overview
Culture, Language & Special OPS
Recruiting & Training “TURNCOAT” Agents in Korea
CIA Paramilitary Operations
Korea, 1950-1951
JACK Operations & Activities
Korea, 1951-1953
Soldier-Sailors in Korea
JACK Maritime Operations
Creating an Army Guerrilla Command
Part I: The First Six Months
One Guerrilla's Fight
Operating Behind Enemy Lines in the Korean War
Working with what you have
Guerrilla Warfare on the Korean East Coast
A Giant Enters the Battle
Order of Battle of the UN and Chinese Communist Forces
"Do what You Can"
UN Civil Assistance, Chinnamp'o, North Korea
The Refugee Evacuation from Hungnam
9-24 December 1950
Voice of the U.S. and Aggressors
The 2nd Loudspeaker & Leaflet Company
ICONS
COL Jay Vanderpool
(1917–1993)
BG Russell Volckmann
(1911–1982)
VIDEOS
The Army’s Guerrilla Command in Korea
Part II: The Rest of the Story
JACK Air Operations
Korea, 1951-1953
CCRAK
The Combined Command for Reconnaissance Activities, Korea
Helicopters in the Korean War
The Rescue of Virginia 1
Herbert Avedon
Making Psywar a Career
VIDEOS
Closing Acts
The Special Warfare Campaign at the End of the Korean War
Barbula and Old Baldy, March 1953
Colombia’s Heaviest Combat in Korea
TLO
Line-Crossers, Special Forces, and the "Forgotten War"
A Combat First
Army SF Soldiers in Korea, 1953-1955
Catch as Catch Can
Special Forces and Line Crossers
The Psywar in Korea
A Matter of Adjustment
Rebuilding Psywar
An Introduction
Rebuilding Psywar
The Psychological Warfare Division
“Volunteering” for Combat
Loudspeaker Psywar in Korea
We're Asking the Reds to SURRENDER-PLEASE!
Collier’s, 13 December 1952
1st L&L in Korea
A Photographer’s Record, 1952-53
The 1st RB&L Advance Tackles FEC Priorities
Far East Command Priorities
Top Priority RB&L Missions
Radio Tokyo, VUNC, and KBS
The 4th MRBC in Japan & Korea
1951-1952
Postscript
Joseph E. Dabney
Radio Pusan
“The Voice of South Korea.”
Flying High
The 4th MRBC Antenna Riggers
Harris Presses & Psywar Leaflets
The 3rd Reproduction Company, 1st RB&L Group
1st RB&L Group Products for Korea
The J. B. Haynes Leaflet Collection
FEAF's Humanitarian Bombing
Full Spectrum Campaign in Korea
Strategic Psywar
Full Spectrum UN Psywar Aligns with Allied Bombing Campaign in Korea
Contrasts in Independence
Full Spectrum March 1st and Plan PATRIOT
The May Day Riots
Labor-organized assembly turns into an anti-American riot
A Clearer View of Psywar
Fort Riley & Fort Bragg, 1951-1952
Background to A Clearer View of Psywar
Fort Riley & Fort Bragg, 1951-1952
The Psywar Center, Part II
Creation of the 10th Special Forces Group
ICONS
VIDEOS
Less than five years after the end of World War II, on 25 June 1950, the North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) crossed the 38th Parallel into South Korea, starting the Korean War. Woefully unprepared, the U.S and its United Nations (UN) allies scrambled to defend the Republic of Korea. One of the U.S. Army’s shortcomings since the end of WWII was psychological warfare (psywar). In June 1950, the Tactical Information Detachment (TID), at Fort Riley, KS, was the only psywar unit on active duty. Three months later, it deployed to Korea and was re-designated as the 1st Loudspeaker and Leaflet (L&L) Company.
Photo use: All images and materials are owned by the Department of Defense (DoD), publicly released by other government agencies, in the public domain, or covered by Fair Use, unless otherwise noted.
