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About This Quiz
Many people know very little about the Korean conflict, overshadowed as it is by both World War II and Vietnam. How much do you know about this devastating war? Find out now with our quiz.
What is the name of the indirect war the USSR and the US fought from the late 1940s through the 1980s?
the Cold War
On the ​surface, this question isn't about Korea. Except, of course, that the struggle between capitalism and communism has everything to do with what happened in Korea in the early 1950s.
the Long War
the Proxy War
there is no name for it
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In the United States, the Korean War is also called the _______ War.
38th Parallel
Forgotten
Remember, the Korean War was first dubbed a "UN police action," not a war. Then, it never officially ended. It's not surprising that it hasn't captured a higher profile in the history books.
Truman's Folly
Unending
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Which long-running, beloved television series was set in wartime Korea?
China Beach
M*A*S*H
A witty, socially-conscious-but-not-preachy comedy, "M*A*SH" was one of the most-watched shows of the 1970s. It ran for eleven years, eight more than the Korean War itself, leading Mad Magazine to joke that "the pen really is mightier than the sword!"
Dark Angel
Trapper John, M.D.
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A chief reason that the U.S. intervened in Korea was the idea that communism would spread from nation to nation if unchecked. What is this theory called?
Cohn's theory
domino theory
The name is based on a visual: that of a line of dominoes falling, one after the other. Of course, the other famous metaphor about communism was that of a camel with its nose in a tent -- if not pushed back, pretty soon the camel will come further and further inside.
Lenin theory
virus theory
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Which nation ruled Korea from 1910 to 1945?
Japan
From 1905 to 1910, Japan considered Korea a "protectorate." In 1910, it annexed the neighboring country entirely.
the United States
Russia
Vietnam
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What was the Cairo Conference?
a discussion among Western leaders about how to contain communism
a mid-WWII discussion of the Allies' position on Japan and Asia
The Cairo Conference was held because it was becoming clear that the Allies would win in the Pacific theater. Allied leaders agreed that they did not wish to benefit from Japan's defeat, but did want to strip the nation of holdings seized by aggression. This meant that the Allied leaders decreed that Korea "shall be free" after Japan's defeat.
a discussion of how to repatriate Korean War POWs
a last-ditch negotiation to keep war from breaking out in Korea
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After 1945, a divided Korea was under the control of the United States and which country?
China
Japan
the USSR
The Soviet Union was an American ally in WWII (the Cold War hadn't broken out yet). So, as a major world power, the USSR was a natural choice to co-administrate Korea.
Germany
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For how long was the joint trusteeship supposed to last?
five years
This was undoubtedly five years too long for most Koreans. They had already spent decades under Japan's control.
15 years
25 years
indefinitely
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What was the name of the border between the two Koreas?
the Rumsfeld line
the no-man's-zone
the 38th Parallel
The border between the two Koreas was simply called the 38th Parallel. Today you'll also hear the phrase "the demilitarized zone," a buffer zone about two and a half miles wide to which neither side has ultimate rights.
the Truman line
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Who became the leader of the Republic of Korea (South Korea)?
Omar Bradley
John Hodge
Mao Zedong
Syngman Rhee
Rhee, elected president in 1948, was educated in the United States, including an M.A. from Harvard and a Ph.D.​ from Princeton. He was strongly anti-communist and considered by many to be a strongman.
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Who became the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea?
Kim Cho-Park
Kim Tu-bong
Kim il-Sung
Within a few years, both Koreas had their own leaders. Predictably, the USSR-influenced North chose a Communist, while the American-influenced South chose a pro-Western leader.
Kim Jong-il
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Who was president of the United States the year the Korean War began?
Dwight Eisenhower
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Harry S. Truman
Truman took office after the death of FDR in 1945, and served through 1953. The middle initial, "S", in his name is just an initial -- it honors both his grandfathers, Solomon Young and Anderson Shipp Truman.
Jimmy Carter
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On what date in 1950 did the Korean People's Army invade the South?
January 1
April 9
June 25
On this day, soldiers from the North crossed the 38th Parallel. For a while, their advance into the South was virtually unchecked.
September 1
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Who was the Soviet premier when the Korean War broke out?
Yuri Andropov
Nikita Kruschev
Georgy Malenkov
Joseph Stalin
Stalin has a fearsome legacy in the history books. His time in office saw great expansion for the USSR, but also famines due to food collectivization, and the disappearances and deaths of many purported "enemies of the state."
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In which year did the Korean People's Army invade South Korea?
1948
1950
The Korean People's Army was the army of North Korea. There are some who believe that the South started aggressions, but there's no denying that the KPA came over the border and began steamrolling its way southward.
1954
1956
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Many of North Korea's soldiers were battle-hardened by participation in what war?
the Crimean War
the Chinese civil war
The North Korean government had given supplies and soldiers to the Communists, who were eventually successful in defeating the Chinese Nationalists. As a byproduct, many North Korean soldiers were battle-ready when it came time to invade the South and try to reunify Korea.
the Russian Revolution
WWII
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Technically, the pro-Western forces in South Korea were under the command of which nation?
USA
United Kingdon
South Korea
they were controlled by the UN
Technically, what happened in Korea was not a war but a "UN police action." Which is not a convincing argument when your country is full of soldiers, tanks, and artillery arrays.
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The UN resolution to send troops to South Korea was called what?
the Truman Resolution
the Marshall Resolution
the Seoul Resolution
Resolution 83
It's not the most stirring name! In contrast, U.S. military actions have names like "Desert Storm" -- created by Pentagon think tanks in order to appeal to the public.
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Why didn't the Soviet Union's UN delegates vote against Resolution 83?
the Soviets were confident North Korea would win
the Soviet Union was boycotting the UN at the time
The boycott was based on the fact that the UN did not acknowledge the new communist government of China. In solidarity, the USSR boycotted the United Nations -- and therefore did not vote on Resolution 83. It seems likely that the United States would have found a way to go to war in defense of South Korea anyway, but it didn't have to.
the Soviets didn't want to provoke the US
they did vote against it, but were overruled
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Which of these countries was not part of the UN "police action"?
Colombia
Italy
Sixteen countries formed the UN coalition that sent troops to South Korea. Some of its constituents might surprise people today, who don't think of countries like Colombia as natural US allies. Nor is Thailand thought of as a military power -- but it sent approximately 1,300 soldiers to the effort.
South Africa
Thailand
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What percentage of soldiers in the UN force were neither American nor South Korean?
5 percent
When you look at the troop numbers, it's clear that the UN police action was a thinly-veiled American mission. While the largest number of soldiers were South Korean, Americans made up the highest number of non-Korean combatants, at approximately 300,000. The next-nearest number were 14,000 from Great Britain.
12 percent
15 percent
30 percent
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Shortly after the KPA invasion, South Korean forces only held a small territory on the southern peninsula. What was it called?
the Demilitarized Zone
the Little Republic
the Pusan Perimeter
Western-allied forces held the tip of the peninsula, around Pusan, behind a 140-mile-long boundary. The rest of Korea had fallen to KPA forces.
the Rhee Perimeter
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Which famous general was brought in to turn the tide of the KPA invasion?
George Patton
Douglas MacArthur
MacArthur wasn't always well-liked in Washington because of what some would call showboating behavior. However, both he and his father were awarded the Medal of Honor, the first father and son to do so.
Black Jack Pershing
Hoyt Vandenberg
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MacArthur planned an amphibious landing at which Korean port city?
Jeju
Inchon
Inchon was a difficult target, with impassable mud flats at low tide and high seawalls. Nonetheless, the operation behind North Korean lines was a success.
Pusan
Ulsan
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To slow the advance of the KPA, South Korean forces blew up the Hangang Bridge over which river?
the Han
Unfortunately, several thousand refugees were crossing the bridge at the time. It's estimated that hundreds of them were killed.
the Seoul
the Mekong
the Yalu
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Which Asian nation was the United States particularly anxious to protect in the early 1950s?
China
Japan
Japan had been a U.S. enemy in WWII. But since its surrender in 1945, Japan was an important capitalist power in East Asia, and the United States wanted to protect it from the spread of communism.
Cambodia
Vietnam
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When did Gen. MacArthur restore the government of Syngman Rhee?
September 1950
By late September, Seoul was once again in South Korean hands, and the Rhee government was restored. This was a mere three months after the KPA came over the 38th Parallel.
June 1951
August 1952
March 1953
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With South Korea restored, what did MacArthur's forces do next?
de-mobilized and went home
stayed as a limited defense force in Seoul
kept up a force at the 38th Parallel
advanced into North Korea, all the way up to the Chinese border
MacArthur felt certain that China would not act if UN forces attempted to take the North and unify Korea under capitalist rule. This isn't to say that MacArthur acted solely on his own initiative: a secret memo from the defense secretary gave him the go-ahead to cross into the North.
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How did China respond when MacArthur's forces entered North Korea?
censured the US openly in a UN session
sent troops to defend North Korea
China entering the war shifted the balance back in North Korea's favor. It also emboldened the USSR, previously unwilling to get involved, to provide fighter jets and pilots.
asked the Soviets to launch a nuclear attack
they did nothing
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Who won the Korean War?
the North
the South
neither
The North and South declared a cease-fire, which has held for more than 50 years. But technically, the two nations are still at war.
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In what year did hostilities cease?
1952
1953
After the combined Chinese and North Korean forces drove South Korean and UN troops back south, the war stretched on for three years, with the US regularly bombing North Korea in a "scorched earth" policy. Simple exhaustion with this state of affairs led to the armistice.
1954
1955
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Which of these was a major issue preventing a peace treaty?
both sides' desire to rule the whole country
northern POWs refusing to be repatriated
Did the majority of Koreans want Communism? That "hearts and minds" question is difficult to answer with certainty. On the one hand, Rhee massacred a great many Communists in the South. However, a number of North Korean soldiers did not want to go back to the Communist North after the war.
an issue of financial reparations
the continued influence of China on the North
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How many Americans were killed in the Korean War?
about 9,000
about 30,000
33,629 Americans were killed in three years of fighting. The figure was once listed at about 54,000, but this included all military deaths during that time period, even outside Korea. Revised to just reflect battle deaths in Korea, the number came out at the 33,000+ figure.
about 50,000
more than 100,000
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Approximately how many Koreans and Chinese were killed in the war?
55,000
75,000
200,000
4 million
Sadly and predictably, many of the Korean casualties were civilians. China, meanwhile, paid a high price in human lives for its support of ally North Korea.
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What is/was No Gun Ri?
a suggested boundary to replace the 38th Parallel
a war memorial
a massacre of civilians
As many as 400 Korean civilians were killed by an air and ground attack near the village of No Gun Ri. The Associated Press broke the story in 1999 ("broke" meaning to the wider world; the incident was well known inside Korea). In a controversial move, U.S. troops were ordered at the time to fire on civilian refugees, because the KPA was disguising soldiers as refugees in order to get them close enough to attack.
the site of attempted peace talks
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You Got:
/35
n/a