PURPOSE
OF THE FEW
"WE FEW, WE CHOSIN FEW,
WE ETERNAL BAND OF BROTHERS" ©
The CHOSIN FEW was established to perpetuate the spirit and comradeship of those individuals who participated in the battle of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea during
November - December of 1950. We are here to carry the message of remembrance of our missing and fallen comrades, (POW's/MIA's/KIA's) that they are
NEVER FORGOTTEN.
THE ORGANIZATION
The CHOSIN FEW reunites allied survivors of the 1950 battle of the
Chosin (Changjin) Reservoir fought that November - December in
North Korean mountains near Manchuria.
Founded April 22, 1983, and formally recognized as a Non-profit
association by the Internal Revenue Service.
The CHOSIN FEW has aggregate membership of 6000 (3917 active)
as of November 1, 1998 from all U. S. Services.
Plus former South Koreans (ROK), British Marine Commandos and
Royal Australian Air Force members. The name stems from the fact that
so FEW survived that were engaged in the Battle at The Chosin.
THE BATTLE
Chosin pitted about 15,000 allied
ground troops,
mostly the
1st Marine Division and Regimental
Combat Teams
from the Army's 7th Infantry
Division,
against 120,000 Chinese infantrymen
concealed
in the mountains around
the valley town of Yudam-ni.
There were nearly 500,000 North
Korean troops immediately across the Yalu River.
The ten Chinese Divisions were
ordered to annihilate the
1st Marine Division and allies
to the last man.
The 15,000 allies suffered 12,000
casualties, including more than
3,000 killed and 6,000 wounded,
plus thousands of
sever frostbite cases from the
-30 degree temperatures.
They merged from the ordeal
with a
Presidential Unit Citation for,
".... decisively defeating seven
enemy divisions
together with elements of three
others."
The Chinese suffered an estimated
37,500 casualties,
including 25,000 killed and
12,500 wounded.
PERSPECTIVE
Historians have termed Chosin
the most savage battle of
modern warfare. They compare
it to Tarawa,
the bloodiest battle of WW II
in terms of the ratio of casualties
to Americans engaged, also 15,000.
Some 1,000 were killed and 2,300
wounded in that fight.
Of the islands 5,000 defenders,
4,500 died.
President Reagan cited Chosin
as among the epics of military history in his first Inaugural Address.
Time Magazine described it as,
"....unparalleled in U. S. military
history ..
an epic of great suffering and
great valor."
The press has likened it to
the Alamo or
Custers Last Stand because of
the seemingly hopeless odds.
A total ofand
were awarded for the campaign,
the most ever
for a single battle in U. S. military history.
CHRISTMAS MIRACLE
The Chosin fighters, by decimating
and checkmating
the Chinese forces in
the mountains, enabled the evacuation of 100,000 North Korean civilians,
(men, women and children)
by sea, the last on Christmas
Eve.
The U. S. Government formally
described the humanitarian feat as "..the greatest rescue operation in
history of mankind." Never in recorded history have combatants rescued
so many enemy civilians in the midst of battle. Those refugees who "voted
their feet against communism" are now living free,
many in the United States. They
are the living legacy of,
"THE CHOSIN FEW".
Those Koreans will never forget
the men of the Chosin.
KOREAN WAR
Allies of 17 nations fought
for and WON - the freedom of the Republic of Korea (ROK)
during the three years of fighting
from
June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953.
This marked the first time nations
fought under the flag of the
United Nations.
During the so-called
"FORGOTTEN WAR," 54,246 Americans
were killed.
Total allied losses were 297,389
dead.
We "THE
CHOSIN FEW" will not forget.
NOTE: Public school history
books devote a page or less to the entire Korean war. A TRULY FORGOTTEN
WAR!
PRIMARY OBJECTIVES
To unit the survivors of,
The Chosin Reservoir Campaign
into one body of sharing, caring,
companionship and everlasting remembrance of those who did not survive.
Recover all Missing In Action
(MIA's) and officially listed Prisoners Of War (POW's).
This involves close cooperation
with
U. S. Government Officials and
(not
free lancing do gooders) direct negotiations
with the North Korean government.
Ensure that our fallen brothers
and allies of the war are no longer and never forgotten by the dedication
of memorials throughout the world.
Long May It Wave,
Over The Land of The Free,
and The Home of The Brave.
