CHAPTER 8
In the dimness of the shadows
Where we hairy heathens warred,
I can taste in thought the lifeblood;
We used teeth before the sword.
August 23, 1950
Douglas MacArthur looked at his watch. 1729. In one minute, the most important conference of the war would begin. He and his staff had been working on the plans for ‘Chromite’ for two months. Washington had been informed about the general idea of the plan, but little more. This meeting, with General Collins representing the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Forrest Sherman from the Navy and a group of other commanders, would be when he explained to them the full extent of the plan. They would approve it, and then in three weeks his beloved operation would go ahead and he would win the war.
“Gentlemen,” he announced as he stood up. “I’d like to begin by taking you back to the winter of 1847. You will undoubtedly recall that we were at war with Mexico. Zachary Taylor had won battle after battle south of the Rio Grande, and California was secured in our arms. Santa Anna retreated from the smoky battlefield of Buena Vista. Had you asked General Taylor where to go from there, he would have asked for supplies and marched south. The way to Mexico City was open. Why did we not follow?” he puffed on his corncob pipe for dramatic effect. “It would not be decisive. All that Taylor would accomplish would be to push the Mexicans into the mountains. It would be the beginning of an endless war, where we fight an unseen enemy the way my father did in the Philippines.
“A similar situation faces us today. This morning General Patton sent my staff another request for men and supplies. He claims that the defeat of the communists is inevitable. I have no doubt that Patton is one of our most talented officers. We have all studied his campaigns in Europe and Africa.” He puffed on his pipe once more. “Since he arrived just in the middle of July, Eighth Army has averaged an advance of less than one mile a day. This is not the broad sweeping advance of a dashing cavalry general, but a march into the German Westwall. Continuing that advance would not see us reach Seoul for another five months, and all it would do is allow the North Korean army to hide in their mountain outposts, preparing another communist insurrection in the lands of our ally.
“Therefore, we must invoke the spirit of Winfield Scott, and land at Inchon. Behind the enemy lines, and but twenty miles from Seoul, a landing there would allow us to put a cork in the bottle, trapping the communist army south of the parallel while Patton ensures their destruction. The weather conditions of the region have led me to believe that September 15th would be the optimal date for a landing, and if this operation is successful, as I am confident it will be, North Korean resistance shall be concluded within a month thence. Our troops would be able to return to their previous duties by Thanksgiving.
“Inchon.” he repeated. “I shall now have my G3 explain the details of the operation.”
Pinky Wright stood up in front of a large map of the Inchon area and began reciting the details of the invasion. Three divisions, “one from the Army, one from the Koreans and one from the Marines” organised as the X Corps, were to land on three beaches: Green and Red at the city’s north and Blue two miles to the south. A few days before, the Navy would begin shore bombardment to disable any North Korean defences that might be present. On the morning of the 15th, the tiny island of Wolmi-do would be captured, although the tides would not be suitable for the rest of the landing force until that evening. Once the port of Inchon was secured, the landing force would advance inland and capture Kimpo airfield, before turning south to attack Seoul from behind. The North Koreans, faced with this overwhelming attack in their rear, would be forced to pull troops from the frontline to meet it, easing the pressure on Eighth Army and allowing Patton to conduct a simultaneous offensive.
Admiral James H. Doyle, who was to command the amphibious forces as they landed, then spent an hour and a half explaining every aspect of the naval and amphibious parts of the operation, although to MacArthur’s dismay he did not sound especially confident about the operation.
“Doyle,” Admiral Sherman broke in, “do I gather that you think this is an impossible operation?”
“The operation is not impossible.” Doyle said, “But I do not recommend it.”
Doyle then claimed that according to the Navy, nothing was impossible, but the questions had already begun. Officer after officer raised their concerns about virtually every aspect of the operation. The tides, despite being some of the world’s highest, would be suitable for a landing only for a couple of hours. The channel through which the Navy would have to be passed could be easily blocked if a ship was sunk in the wrong place. It was monsoon season, so the weather could easily interrupt plans, and indeed a typhoon could well tear through the landing sites. One had passed through Okinawa in October 1945 and caused catastrophic damage to the military base there: had the invasion of Japan still been set to go ahead on November 1st that storm might have jeopardised the whole operation.
There was plenty of doubt in the room – far too much for MacArthur’s liking – but the strongest opposition emerged in General Collins. “If, as you say, it will take five months for Patton to reach Seoul, and the troops at Inchon are held up by a strong communist defence, then the meeting of the two forces will be impossible. The Inchon force would be trapped, and their loss would be a disaster. How can this operation possibly be preferable to using the troops to simply reinforce Patton?”
MacArthur leaned back in his chair as the room fell silent. No-one said anything for a full minute, before he stood up for another speech.
“Since Patton crossed the Kum River at the end of last month, the Reds have launched two major offensives against our lines. Once against Patton and once against the South Koreans. I am convinced that they did so because they are desperate for a breakthrough, and to achieve that breakthrough, they have committed the bulk of their forces against the Eighth Army.
Everyone in this room is familiar with the book Patton published three years ago. Many of our troops brought a copy with them to Korea. It is likely that at least one of these has fallen into enemy hands. Even if they did not, the North Korean General Staff, and the Red Chinese, and the Russians, will all have studied the campaigns across Sicily and Western Europe. They will have studied it again once we announced that Patton would lead the Eighth Army.” That Patton was leading the American troops was no secret: Truman had announced it on the radio in an effort to boost morale. “Patton is an opponent with a well known style of fighting. Every day, he argues that more forces should be sent to Eighth Army, which is exactly what his book would recommend. The communists will therefore be prepared for us doing exactly that. If they have any reserves, they will be positioned in anticipation of an armoured attack by Eighth Army. Just as Patton was used as a distraction to keep the Germans away from Normandy, we may use him in this role once again. As long as our foe believes that Patton will lead the offensive, their defences at Inchon will be unprepared.
“The Navy’s objections as to tides, hydrography, terrain and physical handicaps are indeed substantial and pertinent.” He said, waving those same concerns away with his hand. “My confidence in the Navy is complete, and in fact I seem to have more confidence in the Navy than the Navy has in itself.”
“Of course, should my estimates prove to be inaccurate and I run into a defence with which I cannot cope, I will be there personally and will immediately withdraw our forces before they are committed to a bloody setback. The only loss then will be my personal reputation. But Inchon will not fail. Inchon will succeed, and far more brilliantly than Patton’s attempts to push through the North Korean army alone.
“The arms of destiny await us. Just as Scott’s landing at Veracruz shifted the strategic focus of the war in Mexico, my landing at Inchon will shift the focus of Korea. The capture of Mexico City ensured the end of the Mexican War, and now the opportunity to capture Seoul will enable us to end the war in Korea with one swift stroke.” MacArthur gave one last puff of his pipe. “We shall land at Inchon and I shall crush them.”
The room sat in a stunned silence until Admiral Sherman stood up. “Thank you. A great voice in a great cause.”
MacArthur had thought Sherman one of the people least convinced by the Chromite plan, and sure enough, once he spoke up it seemed like everyone else wanted to voice their support for the operation as well.
The following day, Collins and a number of others returned to voice their concerns about Chromite, but MacArthur remained steadfast. They suggested an alternative landing site, such as a position due west of Osan, which would be just forty miles away from Patton’s present positions.
“If you were to make a list of every handicap to an amphibious invasion,” one officer remarked, “Inchon has them all.”
“And that is why we should land there.” MacArthur replied. “The North Koreans will think it impossible, so we shall catch them by surprise. Inchon will not fail.”
The officers left without comment.
***
August 29, 1950
“General, MacArthur says that Chromite has been approved.” Doyle Hickey said. “He orders you to transfer the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade to his command effective immediately, and see to it that they be transported to Pusan in four days.”
“He’ll have them.” Patton promised. “I believe MacArthur wishes for me to launch a synchronised general offensive on the same day as the landings. When is that to be?”
“September 15th, sir.” Hickey said.
“Thank you.” Patton said, putting down the phone.
Colonel Abrams was off visiting the front, but when he returned to the Taejon headquarters a couple of hours later, he brought news that Patton had been looking forward to hearing for a while.
“Sir, the Korean offensive has been stopped in front of Chongju. Our losses were light, the enemy’s heavy. General Gay believes that the enemy’s momentum is shot.”
“I wouldn’t be quite so confident about that yet.” Patton said. “Every one of the North Korean offensives has begun with a frontal attack, and as soon as that fails they try hitting from the side.” He shouted for Colonel Landrum, who was then ordered to warn Gay against a possible enemy attack along the road between Chongju and the similarly named Chungju twenty-five miles to the northeast.
“As for you, Abe, I’ve got something important.” Patton said. “I got a call from Tokyo this morning, they’re taking the Marines off us. Chromite is on for September 15. Doug MacArthur wants to surprise the communists by landing in their rear.” Abrams had been briefed on the plan for Inchon days ago, but Patton felt the need to repeat it. “Take the port, take Seoul, win the war, he says.”
“That’s a big risk.” Abrams said.
“A stupid one.” Patton said. “That’s not the point. What I want to do is have Eighth Army launch the attack early. Dawn of September 4th. We’ll have all the men we’re likely to get for a while by then, so I can’t see a reason to waste time. Have the plans ready and troops in position for that.”
“September 4th?” Abrams asked, wondering if Patton had meant to say the fourteenth. “Eleven days ahead?”
“September 4th. That’s right. We’ll keep it going past the 15th if that’s what he wants.” Patton confirmed.
That evening, he would offer Sergeant Meeks another explanation for the early offensive. “Just between you and me, I’m going to beat that son of a bitch into Seoul.”
END OF PART I
- BNC