Battle of Ganghwa
This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (August 2018) ) |
Battle of Ganghwa | |||||||
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Part of the Korean Expedition | |||||||
A map of the Corean Forts, Unknown author | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
United States | Joseon | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Eo Jae-yeon † Eo Jae-sun † | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
651 troops 6 howitzers 1 frigate 2 sloops-of-war 2 gunboats |
300 troops 40 artillery pieces 6 forts 4 shore batteries | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
3 killed 10 wounded 1 gunboat damaged |
243 killed 20 captured (later released) 40 artillery pieces captured 5 forts destroyed 1 fort damaged 4 shore batteries destroyed |
The Battle of Ganghwa was fought during the conflict between
Background
The
Battle
The battle began on June 10, when the American squadron arrived of Point Du Conde and began bombarding the fort there. The shore party was landed by boats which immediately launched an attack on Fort Du Conde which was taken without serious resistance. Next, the Americans proceeded north a short distance where they captured Fort Monocacy, skirmishing with bodies of Korean troops along the way. After the fall of Fort Monocacy, the Americans rested for the night and became the first western military forces to camp on Korean soil. On June 11, the main engagement occurred, the five warships began bombarding the four remaining forts while the shore party attacked from land. About 300 Koreans, armed with matchlock rifles, swords, and clubs held Fort McKee which was the heart of Korean defenses. The cannons of the USS Monocacy blasted the Korean citadel's walls, and the Americans then charged up the ramparts. The Koreans, running low on ammunition, began throwing rocks and slinging their swords, fatally injuring Lieutenant Hugh McKee, who was stabbed by a spear as he led the charge. One by one the Americans climbed over the fort's walls. Fierce close-quarters combat ensued but lasted only fifteen minutes until the fort was secure.[1]
In the end, 243 Koreans were counted dead (350 according to Korean sources), twenty captured and a few wounded. Over forty cannons ranging from two to 24-pounders were also taken and within the next few days the forts were dismantled, with the exception of
Although the battle was a military victory for the American forces, the Koreans refused to sign a trade treaty with the United States until 1882.
In popular culture
The opening episode of Mr. Sunshine features of the Battle of Ganghwa Island, one of the characters, Jang Seung-gu, fought in the battle as a teenager and witnessed his father killed in the fighting.[2]
Gallery
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A posed photograph of a council of war of United States Navy officers off Korea aboard the Asiatic Squadron flagship USS Colorado in preparation for the June 1871 United States expedition to Korea.
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Officers of the USS Colorado, sitting at left front is Lt Hugh McKee.
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American servicemen after capturing Fort Dŏkjin (Fort Monocacy) on June 10
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Korean casualties, after the attack on Fort Sondolmok (Fort McKee)
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Sujagi flag, captured at Fort McKee in the attacks on the Salee River Forts, June 10 and 11,
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A "Corean" [sic] official bearing the first despatches on board the Colorado., 06/1871
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Officers and crew of the USS Monocacy
See also
References
- ^ Roblin, Sebastien (18 January 2018). "In 1871, America 'Invaded' Korea. Here's What Happened". The National Interest.
- ^ "TWE Remembers: The Korean Expedition of 1871 and the Battle of Ganghwa (Shinmiyangyo)". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
- OCLC 248251538.
- Duvernay, Thomas A. (2021). Sinmiyangyo: The 1871 Conflict Between the United States and Korea. Seoul: Seoul Selection. ASIN B08BF9J9HB.
- Nahm, Andrew C. (1996). Korea: A history of the Korean people (2nd ed.). Seoul: Hollym. ISBN 1-56591-070-2.
- Gordon H. Chang, "Whose "Barbarism"? Whose "Treachery"? Race and Civilization in the Unknown United States-Korea War of 1871," Journal of American History, Vol. 89, No. 4 (Mar., 2003), pp. 1331–1365 in JSTOR