shellbackmac
Lantern Swinger

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Round-British-Stand-Imjin/dp/1845134087/ref=pd_rhf_shvl_1_title
The Epic British Stand On The Imjin River, Korea 1951
Just started this. When you read about the lads in Afghanistan being involved in 'the most vicious fighting British Forces have been engaged in
for 50 years' this is the 'since' that the historians are referring to.
The synopsis at the link gives a dit on the books scope. Basically 3 British
infantry battalions (The Gloucesters, The Royal Ulster Rifles and the The Royal Nortumberland Fusiliers) plus Royal Artillery, tank support from Centurions of the Royal Irish Hussars and a battalion of the Belgian Army were assaulted by an entire Chinese Army numbering tens of thousands. The Gloucesters ceased to exist as a unit after the action, with many casualties and most of the survivors going into brutal North Korean
captivity for a couple of years.
I have read 'The Edge Of The Sword' by Anthony Farrar-Hockley which is his excellent autobiographical account of the Gloucesters stand and his own subsequent escapes and recaptures in North Korea (he explains how
difficult it is to escape in an Asian country when your are 6ft tall and
white!), but this one goes into full detail of the entire battle with lots of photos and interviews with veterans. Just started it but so far the best book on the British involvement in the Korean War I've found. Anyone
else read any good stuff about our (and Commonwealth) forces in this conflict?
The Epic British Stand On The Imjin River, Korea 1951
Just started this. When you read about the lads in Afghanistan being involved in 'the most vicious fighting British Forces have been engaged in
for 50 years' this is the 'since' that the historians are referring to.
The synopsis at the link gives a dit on the books scope. Basically 3 British
infantry battalions (The Gloucesters, The Royal Ulster Rifles and the The Royal Nortumberland Fusiliers) plus Royal Artillery, tank support from Centurions of the Royal Irish Hussars and a battalion of the Belgian Army were assaulted by an entire Chinese Army numbering tens of thousands. The Gloucesters ceased to exist as a unit after the action, with many casualties and most of the survivors going into brutal North Korean
captivity for a couple of years.
I have read 'The Edge Of The Sword' by Anthony Farrar-Hockley which is his excellent autobiographical account of the Gloucesters stand and his own subsequent escapes and recaptures in North Korea (he explains how
difficult it is to escape in an Asian country when your are 6ft tall and
white!), but this one goes into full detail of the entire battle with lots of photos and interviews with veterans. Just started it but so far the best book on the British involvement in the Korean War I've found. Anyone
else read any good stuff about our (and Commonwealth) forces in this conflict?