Evening star., 1950-10-15
End Result Could
Be Turning Point
For Communism
By William Hines

was invaded Ill julie IIlc OAlVCo
Nations, spurred by American de-
mands, leaped to the aid Of the
South Koreans and in effect drew
line beyond which Communist
influence must not go by force.
In this action was an element
which may in time cause history's
light to shine on the Korean cam
paign as one of the decisive battles
of the world. On the other hand,
Korea may turn out to be but the
opening gun of another war, to
be relegated to the half forgotten
realm of incidents" along with
Sarajevo and the Maine. Only
history will determine the eventual
place of Korea in the panorama
of human conflict.
But certainly the battle for
Korea has in it the seeds Of de-
cisiveness. Whether it will or not,
st very easily can prove to be Rus
sia's Rubicon. and one that Stain,
unlike Caesar, will decide not to
cross.
History is chary of her judg-
ments about decisive battles. From
the dawn of history to the begin
ming of the 10th century. there
were only is which now are known
as decisive battles Of the world.
These Is, codified as such by Sir
Edward Greasy in 1851, yield an
amazing number Of parallels with
present-day political alignments
and military strategies. They are
best known, however, not for their
earth-s shaking Importance, but for
their brief mention in the field of
comic opera.
'In Order CATEGORICAL
Gilbert and Sullivan's major
general, in reciting his list of ac-
complishments, said that he could
'quote the fights historical from
Marathon to Waterloo in order
categorical"
Since Greasy, others have COM
piled post-Waterloo lists Of
battles, including such fights as
Sevastopol, Gettysburg, Sedan,
Manila Bay, Tannenberg and
First and Second Marne. All
these battles undoubtedly have
the element of decision in them,
as have Stalingrad and the Coral
Sea in World War II.
The element of decision boils
down to this: AS result of any
decisive battle, the course of his
tory was demonstrably changed.
In other words, result "a" hap
pened, and the worlds history
has been thus since that date; had
result "B" occurred. the history
of the world would have been en-
tirely different.
In that respect, Korea seems to
have it in the element Of decision.
A review of Creasy's Is battles
Is not only interesting but vital
information to any one who as
pires to a knowledge of military
or for that matter, world-history.
Here, in nutshells, are the stories
of the big Is.
Marathon. Greece. September
81, BIC. 490-Nine thousand
Athenians and 1000 Plataeans
under the leadership Of Callima-
chus defeated a 20,000-man Per-
sian army under Datis and Arta-
phernes. The Persians. moving by
sea to attack Athens. landed their
troops at the plain of Marathon.
Callimachus' forces, holding the
heights above the beachhead.
moved down to engage the Per-
SLAMS. The Greek commanders
line was weak at it's center and
strong at the flanks, and when the
Persians attacked the middle of
the line, the ends swung around
in pincer fashion and smashed
the Persian onslaught. About 200
Greeks and 6,400 Persians were
killed in the engagement, and the
Greeks were able to hasten to the
subsequent successful defense of
Athens, where they forestalled a
Persian landing. The battle was
decisive not because it ended
Persian aggression-for it did not
but because it enabled the
Greeks to build in the ensuing
years a powerful navy that made
1t impossible for the Persians ever
to take Athens.
Syracuse. Sicily, spring of
BIC. 413-An Athenian joint
army-navy force under a number
Of leaders eventually headed by
Demosthenes, laid siege to Syra-
cuse in late AIS or early Ala.
The Greeks, overconfident because
of their strength and because they
had substantial fifth column in
side Syracuse. neglected to close
their siege lines completely and
delayed delivering a knockout
blow. Syracuse took and de-
Tended heights dominating the
Greek lines, and the Greeks later
occupied heights that nullified
the Syracusan position. The
siege began in earnest in Alb, and