The Korean War was fought from June 25

th
, 1950 to July 27
th
, 1953. This three-
year war was waged between the Republic of Korea (South Korea) with the support of
the United Nations, and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (North Korea) with
the support of China and the Soviet Union. Unlike the French Revolutionary War and the
two World Wars before it, the Korean War was very different due to the fact it wasnt
plainly a global conflict or not (Young). Revolutions are often not global conflicts,
pertaining to the mother-country and the rebel nation. The World Wars were distinctly
global conflicts. The Korean War was ambiguous in the sense that it could have either
been a strictly civil war or a war that required the prescence of other nations around the
world. Regardless, the Korean War was a globally recognized conflict that had distinctly
different causes and effects on the world than the preceeding wars. Apparent causes of
the Korean War were the
Korea had been controlled by the Japanese since 1904, during the Japanese war
with Russia. After the defeat of Japan on August 9
th
, 1945, the Soviet Union declared war
against Japan and started advancing into Chinese Manchuria (Bachrach). Stalin quickly
ordered his army to seize as much Korean territory as possible in order to establish a
Communist presence. This entrance of an overwhelming Communist power into other
non-Communist nations angered the United States. In reciprocation, the United States,
with the aid of the United Nations, entered Southern Korea and established a line that
would separate the already Communist-stricken Korea from the still free southern Korea.
This creation of the dividing line at the 38
th
parallel was a decision that ultimately led to
the Korean War.
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman had decided that he needed to take a powerful
stance against Communism. In the Truman Doctrine, specific obligations were outlined,
including the necessity of the United States to provide economic and military aid to
foreign nations so they could remain free, (Uschan). Trumans proclaimation of the
United States promise to fight against Communism around the world signaled a key shift
in global power, recognizing the United States over Great Britain as the worlds over-
seeing power. The Truman doctrine aided Greece and Turkey, who were, at the time,
battling Communist-led groups inside their nations. Trumans assistance helped the
democratic governments in both Greece and Turkey survive the attacks of Communism.
Soon after Truman made his doctrine, his former army general George Marshall
recognized the fact that even countries with a history of freedom could fall to the
dangerous claws of Communism due to enormous postwar economic problems
(Bachrach). The Marshall Plan provided $12 billion in United States aid to Europe to
fight against the oppressive Communist regime. The creation of the Truman Doctrine and
the Marshall Plan led to the United States iniciation of the division of Korea, which
eventually led to the breakout of war.
A U.S. force of about 50,000 soldiers occupied South Korea from 1945 to 1948.
These American soldiers set up a military government and fostered democracy (Cothran
34). Governing the north harshly, the Soviets treated their piece of Korea as jail,
eliminating freedom of press and restricting non-Communist opposition. In 1948, the
Soviets withdrew their soldiers, and the last American troops were withdrawn in 1949. At
that time, there were two Koreas, each guarded by its own army and each dependant upon
military aid from the two Cold War rivals. As historian John Toland stated, Korea had
become a pawn in the great chess match between the United States and the USSR, (37).
The polariztion of North and South Korea created feelings of anger and opposition that
eventually led to war.
The Korean War started on June 25
th
, 1950 when Communist North Korea
invaded South Korea with 135,000 men. Shortly after this, President Truman deployed
the 7
th
fleet to waters off of Taiwan to prevent the spread of conflict (Freedom). The war
continued on for three years, with troops streaming across the 38
th
parallel to attack the
other side. Starting in July of 1953, an armistice was negotiated until November 1954
(Sami3rm). The war caused severe casualties and had lasting effects on the relationships
between nations.
The Korean War devestated the nation that was Korea. The combination of
military and civilian casualties totaled more than 2 million. However, the Korean War did
little to change the countrys political status quo (Uschan). After the war, Korea remained
divided into a Communist North and a democratic South. The war did, however, have
drastic economic and social consequences. In the North, the oppressive regime of
Communist leader Kim Il Sung aimed to reunite Korea by utilizing a stagnant economy
and taking away the rights of his citizens. Meanwhile, in South Korea, a succession of
regimes supported by the United States aimed to defend against future northern
aggression, and economic ventures were executed and deemed successful. The
demographics of Korea also changed significantly. The rural countrysides of Korea were
sparsely populated before the war, and even more so after the war (Cothran). Citizens
living in the rural countrysides had moved towards industrial cities in search of safety and
jobs.
In a different light, the Korean War affected Korean society in some positive
aspects. During the 1960s, South Korea industrialized and modernized with the help of
the United States. The economies of both North and South Korea became strengthened,
but the economy of South Korea had one of the fastest growing economies from the early
1960s to the late 1990s (Sami3rm). A large number of mixed race (G.I.) babies were
filling up the countries orphanages. During the war, soldiers would meet Korean women
and have offspring, these children of mixed race. As a result of this influx of mixed
American and Korean children, the U.S. passed the Immigration Acts of 1952 and 1953.
These laws substantially changed U.S. immigration policy toward immigrants from
countries other than Europe (Young). Immigration into the United States increased and
the economies of both nations thrived.
In addition to the positive and negative effects of the war on Korea, the war also
impacted the United States and the rest of the world. China lost about one million
soldiers, and the United States lost more than 140,000 soldiers (Bachrach). The financial
cost to keep South Korea independent had cost the United States over $67 billion. Apart
from the numerous casualties and financial strenuity, the Korean War also created more
friction between the United States and the Soviet Union (Sami3rm). With Communism
having a crucial part leading up to the Korean War, it also created higher tensions after
the war. With the fall of North Korea to Communism, the United States had become
aware of the falling domino effect. This only heightened the undeniable opposition the
United States and the Soviet Union felt for each other after the Korean War. This friction
would impinge on the future of the United States and the Soviet Unions relationship.
The Korean War was not initially a world conflict. However, due to the division
of Korea after World War Two and the friction between the United States and the
Communist Soviet Union, the war took place. The war severely affected Korea itself and
nations around the world. The economies of both North and South Korea thrived and
immigration into the United States increased. The social rights of citizens in North Korea
were commonly ignored while in South Korea, men and women enjoyed their freedom.
An even deeper friction was felt between the Soviet Union and the United States, as the
U.S. acknowled the falling domino effect of Communism and the possiblity of it
spreading to other nations around the world.














Works Cited
Bachrach, Deborah. The Korean War. San Diego: Lucent, 1991. Print. America's Wars.
Cothran, Helen, Charles W. Carey, and Scott Barbour, eds. Living through the Korean
War. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven, 2006. Print. Living through the Cold War.
"Freedom Is Not Free." In Commemoration of the Korean War. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 May
2014. <http://www.nj.gov/military/korea/timeline_1950.html>.
Sami3rm. "The Korean War." Korean War. Blogger, 29 Apr. 2013. Web. 29 May 2014.
<http://allaboutthekoreanwar.blogspot.com/>.
Uschan, Michael V. The Korean War. San Diego: Lucent, 2001. Print. World History.
Young, John. "The Origins of the Korean War." Oxford University Press. By Peter Lowe.
Vol. 104. Oxford: Oxford University, 1989. N. pag. JSTOR. Web. 20 May 2014.
<http://www.jstor.org/stable/572894>.