24 Korean War Facts Your Grandpa Forgot to Tell You

1.

Today I learned about the Horse, Sergeant Reckless. A Horse who served with the marines in Korea. She was able to haul ammunition by herself without a handler, would seek a bunker or lay down when under fire and received two purple hearts as well as other medals for her service in the Korean war.-u/SonofSanguinius87

2.

Legendary baseball player Ted Williams was future Astronaut John Glenn's Wingman during the Korean War.-u/cmurder3

3.

Ethiopia sent troops to South Korea during the Korean War, making it the only African country to do so.-u/Yuvithegod

4.

The Korean War never ended. Although the fighting between North and South Korea and their respective allies ended in July 1953 when the Korean Armistice Agreement was signed, no peace treaty was ever signed, and the two Koreas are technically still at war, engaged in a frozen conflict.-u/sexpressed

5.

The Bodo League Massacre of 1950 was where 60,000-200,000 civilians suspected of being communists (many of whom had no connection with communism) were executed in South Korea during the Korean War.-u/ultimationt

6.

Shortly after the Korean War, there were few refrigerators or protein-dense foods in South Korea. Koreans would barter with American troops for Spam (canned pork). As South Korea continued to develop, Spam turned into a staple food and it is often a common gift given during Korean Thanksgiving.-u/vaish7848

7.

The actor who played Boss Hogg on Dukes of Hazard went to Columbia and Yale, spoke 5 languages, and was a counterintelligence officer during the Korean War.-u/AvgGamerRobb

8.

In 1951, negotiations to end the Korean War broke down as over 21,000 Communist POWs wanted to defect to UN forces. The war would drag on for 2 more years.-u/Asahi220

9.

Lewis Millet led the last U.S. military bayonet charge in 1951 during the Korean War. Out of 50 enemy dead, 20 died from bayonet wounds. He received the Medal of Honor.-u/dj2short

10.

The Chinese army held an Olympics event for captured POWs in the Korean war, with 500 POWs from 11 countries participating. POWs also took roles as photographers, announcers and reporters.-u/TreaCommie

11.

On the first day of the Korean war, the S.Korean navy spotted and sunk a ship carrying 600 N.Korean commandos near the Southern port city of Busan. Since the city was barely defended, historians believe that had they landed, S.Korea would've fell before UN forces could intervene in the war.-u/soyfox

12.

During the Korean War, American and Greek soldiers at Outpost Harry defended against multiple Chinese assaults of far greater numbers. At times being outnumbered 30:1, massive artillery bombardments and intense hand-to-hand fighting were daily occurrences. The Chinese failed to take the outpost.-u/Centurion87

13.

During the Korean War, U.S. Marine Corps pilot Jesse G. Folmar shot down a jet-powered MiG-15, while flying a propeller-driven Vought F4U Corsair.-u/netz123

14.

Lenny Kravitz was named for his uncle Leonard Kravitz, who died saving the lives of other Korean War soldiers in 1951. He was awarded the Medal of Honor in 2012 after Congress reviewed Jewish (and Hispanic) recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross who were denied the higher honor.-u/mbbaer

15.

During Korean War, U.S Navy pilot Royce Williams shot down 4 swept-wing Soviet MiG-15s in a single mission on November 18, 1952, while flying a straight-wing F9F Panther. It is considered a unique feat since the MiGs have better high-altitude performance than the F9F and was faster by 100 MPH.-u/vaish7848

16.

The Highest Ranking UN POW captured in the Korean War was US General William F. Dean. The N. Korean advance in 1950 was so rapid, it caught up Dean's HQ, forcing him to participate in the fighting. The general personally fought as tank-hunter & knocked out a few tanks before being captured.-u/Khysamgathys

17.

"The Great Impostor" Ferdinand Demara posed as a surgeon aboard a Navy destroyer in the Korean War and was forced to perform surgery on 16 people. He proceeded to speed-read a textbook on general surgery and was able to successfully perform all the surgeries without anyone dying.-u/Furry_Porn_Alt

18.

The blockade of North Korean port city of Wonsan during the Korean War was the longest naval blockade in modern history. It lasted for 861 days.-u/netz123

19.

The US Military during the Korean War illegally used Japanese civilians, including children, as soldiers.-u/LividRooster6

20.

Trapped behind enemy lines during the Korean War Chester Puller stated, "We’ve been looking for the enemy for several days now. We’ve finally found them. We’re surrounded. That simplifies our problem of finding these people and killing them." He and his men survived.-u/Jneebs

21.

There was a 'Second Korean War', aka The Korean DMZ Conflict, that ran from 1966 to 1969 that included an assassination attempt on the S Korean President by N Korean commandos, and the capture of the USS Pueblo along with its crew.-u/Frank_Dracula

22.

The FBI began spying on Malcolm X after declaring himself a communist opposed to the Korean War in a letter to President Harry Truman. This surveillance lasted until Malcolm X's death in 1965.-u/dcdiehardfan

23.

Buzz Aldrin was credited with two air combat victories during the Korean War.-u/VerpinBeeping

24.

At the age of 19, Michael Caine had a near death experience in the Korean War that “formed his character” for the rest of his life. He learned to live every moment as if it where his last and to always look on the bright side of life.-u/Tokyono

25.

During the Korean War, hundreds of American pilots fought and died in a hot aerial war with the Soviet Union, which flew 75% of all fighter missions in support of North Korea. This was kept secret by both countries until the end of the Cold War to avoid pressure for confrontation.-u/DudeAbides101