page_title: Battle of Chosin Reservoir
section_title: Breakout
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Chosin Reservoir / Battle / Breakout
caption_attribution_description: Map of the fight from the Changjin (Chosin) Reservoir.
context_page_description: The Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as the Chosin Reservoir Campaign or the Battle of Jangjin Lake was an important battle in the Korean War. The name "Chosin" is derived from the Japanese pronunciation "Chōshin", instead of the Korean pronunciation.
  Official Chinese sources refer to this battle as the eastern part of the Second Phase Campaign. The western half of the Second Phase Campaign resulted in a Chinese victory in the Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River.
  The battle took place about a month after the People's Republic of China entered the conflict and sent the People's Volunteer Army 9th Army to infiltrate the northeastern part of North Korea. On 27 November 1950, the Chinese force surprised the US X Corps commanded by Major General Edward Almond at the Chosin Reservoir area. A brutal 17-day battle in freezing weather soon followed. Between 27 November and 13 December, 30,000 United Nations Command troops under the field command of Major General Oliver P. Smith were encircled and attacked by about 120,000 Chinese troops under the command of Song Shilun, who had been ordered by Mao Zedong to destroy the UN forces.
context_section_description: After a short rest, the breakout began on 6 December, with the 7th Marines as the vanguard of the retreating column, while the 5th Marines covered the rear. At the same time, the much-delayed PVA 26th Corps arrived at Hagaru-ri with its 76th and 77th Divisions to relieve the 58th and 60th Divisions. As the 7th Marines pushed aside the PVA 76th Division south of Hagaru-ri, the 5th Marines took over the Hagaru-ri perimeter and recaptured the East Hill from the 76th Division. In a last effort to stop the breakout, the customary Chinese night attack was launched, with the 76th and 77th Division striking the Hagaru-ri perimeter from all directions. The Marines repulsed the attacks, inflicting heavy casualties.
  Meanwhile, the 7th Marines opened the road between Hagaru-ri and Koto-ri by capturing the high ground surrounding the road. But as soon as the Marines pulled out, the 77th Division returned to the peaks and attacked the column. Chaotic fighting broke out and the retreat was slowed to a crawl. The Marine night fighters, however, returned to subdue the Chinese forces, and most of the blocking troops were eliminated. On 7 December, the rest of the column managed to reach Kot'o-ri with little difficulty, with the last elements reaching Kot'o-ri that night.
  After the failure of the 26th Corps at Hagaru-ri, the PVA High Command ordered the 26th and 27th Corps to chase the escaping UN force, with the 20th Corps assigned to block the escape route. But with most of the 20th Corps destroyed at Yudam-ni and Hagaru-ri, the only forces between Kot'o-ri and Hungnam were the remnants of the 58th and 60th Divisions. In desperation, Song Shilun ordered these troops to dig in at Funchilin Pass, while blowing up the vital treadway bridge (40.232°N 127.296°E), hoping the terrain and obstacles would allow the 26th and 27th Corps to catch up with the retreating UN forces. The PVA 180th Regiment that occupied Hill 1081 (40.233°N 127.326°E) blew up the original concrete bridge and two improvised replacements in succession, believing the bridge was rendered irreparable. In response, the 1st Battalion, 1st Marines (1/1) attacked Hill 1081 from the south, and the hill was captured on 9 December, though the defenders fought to the last man. At the same time, the 7th Marines and RCT-31 attacked the treadway bridge from the north, only to encounter defenders who were already frozen in their foxholes.
  With the path to Hungnam blocked at Funchilin Pass, eight C-119 Flying Boxcars flown by the US 314th Troop Carrier Wing were used to drop portable bridge sections by parachute. The bridge, consisting of eight separate 18 ft (5.5 m) long, 2,900 lb (1,300 kg) sections, was dropped one section at a time, using a 48 ft (15 m) parachute on each section. Four of these sections, together with additional wooden extensions were successfully reassembled into a replacement bridge by Marine Corps combat engineers and the US Army 58th Engineer Treadway Bridge Company on 9 December, enabling UN forces to proceed. Outmaneuvered, the PVA 58th and 60th Divisions still tried to slow the UN advance with ambushes and raids, but after weeks of non-stop fighting, the two Chinese divisions combined had only 200 soldiers left. The last UN forces left Funchilin Pass by 11 December.
  One of the last engagements during the withdrawal was an ambush at Sudong (40.17°N 127.324°E) by the pursuing PVA 89th Division, which Task Force Dog of the 3rd Infantry Division repulsed with little difficulty. The trapped UN forces finally reached the Hungnam perimeter by 21:00 on 11 December.
caption: Map of the Retreat from the Changjin (Chosin) Reservoir
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