page_title: Third Battle of Seoul
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Third Battle of Seoul / Background
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of US Eighth Army retreat from December 1 - 23, 1950.
context_page_description: The Third Battle of Seoul, also known as the Chinese New Year's Offensive, the January–Fourth Retreat or the Third Phase Campaign Western Sector, was a battle of the Korean War, which took place from December 31, 1950, to January 7, 1951, around the South Korean capital of Seoul. In the aftermath of the major Chinese People's Volunteer Army victory at the Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River, the United Nations Command started to contemplate the possibility of evacuation from the Korean Peninsula. China's Chairman Mao Zedong ordered the Chinese People's Volunteer Army to cross the 38th Parallel in an effort to pressure the UN forces to withdraw from South Korea.
  On December 31, 1950, the Chinese 13th Army attacked the Republic of Korea Army's 1st, 2nd, 5th and 6th Infantry Divisions along the 38th Parallel, breaching UN defenses at the Imjin River, Hantan River, Gapyeong and Chuncheon in the process. To prevent the PVA forces from overwhelming the defenders, the US Eighth Army now under the command of Lieutenant General Matthew B. Ridgway evacuated Seoul on January 3, 1951.
context_section_description: With the China entering the Korean War in late 1950, the conflict had entered a new phase. To prevent North Korea from falling under UN control after the UN offensive into North Korea, the PVA entered North Korea and launched their Second Phase Offensive against the UN forces near the Sino-Korean border on 25 November. The resulting battles at the Ch'ongch'on River Valley and the Chosin Reservoir forced the UN forces to retreat from North Korea during December 1950, with PVA and North Korean Korean People's Army (KPA) forces recapturing much of North Korea. On the Korean western front, after the US Eighth Army suffered a disastrous defeat at the Ch'ongch'on River, it retreated back to the Imjin River while setting up defensive positions around the South Korean capital of Seoul. Although the Eighth Army was ordered to hold Seoul for as long as possible, UN commander General Douglas MacArthur planned a series of withdrawals to the Pusan Perimeter if UN forces were about to be overwhelmed. General Walton Walker, commander of the Eighth Army, was killed in a traffic accident on December 23, and Lieutenant General Matthew B. Ridgway assumed command of the Eighth Army on December 26, 1950. At the UN, a ceasefire along the 38th Parallel was proposed to China on December 11, 1950 in order to avoid any further escalation of hostility between China and the US.
  Although the PVA had been weakened from their earlier battles, with nearly 40 percent of its forces rendered combat ineffective, its unexpected victories over the UN forces had convinced the Chinese leadership of the invincibility of the PVA. Immediately after the PVA 13th Army's victory over the Eighth Army at the Ch'ongch'on River, China's Chairman Mao Zedong started to contemplate another offensive against the UN forces on the urging of North Korean Premier Kim Il-sung. After learning of MacArthur's plans and the UN ceasefire, Mao also believed that the UN evacuation of the Korean Peninsula was imminent. Although the over-stretched Chinese logistics prevented the PVA from launching a full-scale invasion against South Korea, Mao still ordered the PVA 13th Army to launch an intrusion, dubbed the "Third Phase Campaign", to hasten the UN withdrawal and to demonstrate China's desire for a total victory in Korea. On December 23, 1950, China's Foreign Minister Zhou Enlai formally rejected the UN ceasefire while demanding all UN forces to be withdrawn from the Korean Peninsula.
caption: Map of US Eighth Army retreat, December 1–23, 1950
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