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THE PUSAN PERIMETER
AUG.-SEP. 1950
GENERAL DISPOSITION OF 8TH ARMY & NORTH KOREAN FORCES
U. S. MARINE OPERATIONS IN KOREA
1950–1953
VOLUME I
The Pusan Perimeter
by
LYNN MONTROSS
and
CAPTAIN NICHOLAS A. CANZONA, USMC
Historical Branch, G-3
Headquarters, U. S. Marine Corps
Washington, D. C., 1954
iii
Foreword
An ability to furnish skilled forces to meet emergency situations onshort notice has long been a hallmark of the Marine Corps. Whenthe call came for such a force to be dispatched to Korea on 2 July 1950,the Corps was handicapped by the strictures of a peacetime economy.Nevertheless, a composite brigade consisting of a regiment and an airgroup was made available within a week’s time.
With a reputation built largely on amphibious warfare, Marines of the1st Brigade were called upon to prove their versatility in sustainedground action. On three separate occasions within the embattled Perimeter—southtoward Sachon and twice along the Naktong River—theseMarine units hurled the weight of their assault force at the enemy. Allthree attacks were successful, and at no point did Marines give groundexcept as ordered. The quality of their performance in the difficult daysof the Pusan Perimeter fighting made them a valuable member of theUnited Nations team and earned new laurels for their Corps.
Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr.,
General, U. S. Marine Corps,
Commandant of the Marine Corps.
v
Preface
This is the first volume of a planned series dealing with UnitedStates Marine Operations in Korea during the period 2 August 1950to 27 July 1953. Volume I is designed to give the military student andthe casual reader an accurate and detailed account of the operations inwhich Marines of the 1st Provisional Brigade and Marine Air Group 33partic