page_title: First and Second Battles of Wonju
section_title: Hill 247
hierarchical_section_title: First and Second Battles of Wonju / Second Battle of Wonju / Hill 247
caption_attribution_description: English: Their job to blast Communist-held positions in Defilade, troops of Heavy Mortar Co., 32nd Regiment, 7th Division, move into position in a pass between Punggi and Tanyang, Korea.
context_page_description: The First and Second Battles of Wonju, also known as the Wonju Campaign or the Third Phase Campaign Eastern Sector, was a series of engagements between North Korean and United Nations forces during the Korean War. The battle took place from December 31, 1950 to January 20, 1951 around the South Korean town of Wonju. In coordination with the Chinese capture of Seoul on the western front, the North Korean Korean People's Army attempted to capture Wonju in an effort to destabilize the UN defenses along the central and the eastern fronts.
  After a joint Chinese People's Volunteer Army and KPA assault breached the UN defenses at Chuncheon on New Year's Eve of 1951, KPA V Corps attacked US X Corps at Wonju while KPA II Corps harassed US X Corps' rear by engaging in guerrilla warfare. In response, US X Corps under the command of Major General Edward Almond managed to cripple the KPA forces at Wonju, and the UN forces later carried out a number of anti-guerrilla operations against the KPA infiltrators. In the aftermath of the battle, the KPA forces on the central and the eastern fronts were decimated, allowing the UN front to be stabilized at the 37th parallel.
context_section_description: Hill 247 was located among the hill mass 3 mi (4.8 km) south of Wonju, and was a critical height that commanded Wonju. With the loss of Wonju on January 7, Almond was furious at McClure for disobeying the order to hold it, and this later resulted in Major General Clark Ruffner replacing McClure on January 13. On January 8, Almond ordered the US 2nd Infantry Division to retake Wonju. Following his orders, the US 23rd Infantry Regiment, under the command of Colonel Paul L. Freeman, attacked towards Wonju on January 8. The 23rd Infantry Regiment managed to reach within 3,000 yd (2,700 m) at the south of Wonju and caught a sleeping KPA regiment by surprise at Hill 247. About 200 KPA soldiers were killed in the ensuing battle, however the alerted KPA forces soon counterattacked by outflanking the 23rd Infantry Regiment to the east, and the Regiment was forced to retreat to avoid encirclement.
  Encouraged by the heavy KPA losses during the initial UN attacks, Almond again ordered the US 2nd Infantry Division to recapture Wonju on January 9. About four infantry battalions from the US 23rd and 38th Infantry Regiments supported by French and Dutch troops advanced toward Wonju on January 9, yet the attack was stalled at Hill 247 due to the cold weather and the lack of air support. As the UN forces tried to dislodge the KPA the next day, they were met by six defending KPA battalions with an estimated strength of 7,000 soldiers. Under a heavy snowstorm and with no air support, the battle for Hill 247 continued for most of January 10, and the fighting around the French Battalion of the 23rd Infantry Regiment became particularly fierce. At one point, the French Battalion was forced to fend off several KPA counterattacks with bayonet charges after running out of ammunition. The French Battalion's action at Wonju impressed Ridgway, who later encouraged all American units in Korea to utilize bayonets in battle. The KPA tried to encircle the attacking UN forces as the latter began to gain the upper hand, however artillery fire broke up the KPA formations, and they had suffered an estimated 2,000 casualties in the aftermath of the battle. When air support returned on January 11, the attacking UN forces inflicted another 1,100 KPA casualties and captured Hill 247 by January 12. Although the cold weather and the stubborn KPA defenses prevented the UN forces from entering Wonju, the capture of Hill 247 had put all of Wonju within UN artillery range, and the village soon became a no man's land under the devastating bombardment.
caption: Soldiers from US 7th Infantry Division moving to blast North Korean positions along Route 29
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