Second Phase Offensive

Second Phase Campaign
	Part of the Korean War
Date	25 November – 24 December 1950
Location	North Korea
Result	Chinese victory Expulsion of UN forces from North Korea;
Belligerents
United Nations (UNC) United States; South Korea; Turkey; United Kingdom;	China; North Korea
Commanders and leaders
Douglas MacArthur; Walton H. Walker; Edward Almond ; Oliver P. Smith	Peng Dehuai; Han Xianchu; Song Shilun
Units involved
Eighth Army I Corps 1st Cavalry Division; 24th Infantry Division; 1st Infantry Division; 27th Commonwealth Brigade; 29th Independent Infantry Brigade; ; IX Corps 2nd Infantry Division; 25th Infantry Division; 1st Turkish Armed Forces Command; ; Republic of Korea Army I Corps 3rd Infantry Division; Capital Division; ; II Corps 6th Infantry Division; 7th Infantry Division; 8th Infantry Division; ; Fifth Air Force; X Corps 1st Marine Division; 3rd Infantry Division; 7th Infantry Division; 1st Marine Air Wing;	People's Volunteer Army 20th Army 58th Division; 59th Division; 60th Division; 89th Division; ; 26th Army 76th Division; 77th Division; 78th Division; 88th Division; ; 27th Army 79th Division; 80th Division; 81st Division; 94th Division; ; 38th Army 112th Division; 113th Division; 114th Division; ; 39th Army 115th Division; 116th Division; 117th Division; ; 40th Army 118th Division; 119th Division; 120th Division; ; 42nd Army 124th Division; 125th Division; 126th Division; ; 50th Army 148th Division; 149th Division; 150th Division; ; 66th Army 196th Division; 197th Division; 198th Division; ;
Strength
358,091	300,000–390,000
Casualties and losses
US:; 24,000 casualties (including 4,538 killed); ROK:; 12,000 (Chinese estimate) Total: 36,000 casualties	Chinese estimate: 30,000 battle casualties (including 9,549 killed); 50,000 non-battle casualties. Total:80,000 casualties

The Second Phase Offensive (25 November – 24 December 1950) or Second Phase Campaign (Chinese: 第二次战役; pinyin: Dìèr Cì Zhànyì) of the Korean War was an offensive by the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA) against United Nations Command (U.S./UN) forces, most of which were soldiers of South Korea and the United States.^[2]^: 23–24 The two major engagements of the campaign were the Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River in the western part of North Korea and the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the eastern part of North Korea.

Casualties were heavy on both sides. The battles were fought in temperatures as low as −30 °C (−22 °F)^[6] and casualties from frostbite may have exceeded those from battle wounds. On 23 December 1950 Lieutenant General Walton Walker died in a vehicle accident in Seoul while in command of the U.S. 8th Army. He was the highest ranked U.S. military service member killed in the Korean War.

U.S. intelligence and air reconnaissance failed to detect the large numbers of Chinese soldiers present in North Korea. Thus, the UN units, the Eighth United States Army on the west and the X Corps on the east, kicked off the "Home-by-Christmas" offensive on 24 November with "unwarranted confidence...believing that they comfortably outnumbered enemy forces."^[2]^: 60 The Chinese attacks came as a surprise. The Home-by-Christmas offensive, with the objective of conquering all of North Korea and ending the war, was quickly abandoned in light of the massive Chinese assault.

The Second Phase Offensive forced all UN forces to go on the defensive and retreat. China had recaptured nearly all of North Korea by the end of the offensive.

^ ^a ^b ^c Li, Xiaobing (2014). China's Battle for Korea: The 1951 Spring Offensive. Indiana University Press. p. 45.
^ ^a ^b ^c Mossman, Billy (1990). Ebb and Flow: November 1950–July 1951. Center of Military History, United States Army. pp. 54–55. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^ Appleman, Roy (1992). South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu. Center of Military History, U.S. Army. p. 770. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Some authorities estimate Chinese forces as high as 390,000 men, See Li, 46, but the attrition during their long march southward to the battlefield probably depleted their numbers and 300,000 or slightly more seems the most likely estimate.
^ Ecker, Richard E. (2005). Korean Battle Chronology: Unit-by-unit United States Casualty Figures and Medal of Honor Citations. McFarland & Company. p. 62 ISBN 978-0786419807.
^ Xue, Yan (徐焰) (1990). 第一次较量：抗美援朝战争的历史回顾与反思 [First Confrontation: Reviews and Reflections on the History of War to Resist America and Aid Korea] (in Chinese (China)). Chinese Radio and Television Publishing House. pp. 59–60.
^ Battle of Chosin Reservoir Archived 2022-01-06 at the Wayback Machine. Estimates of the lowest temperature encountered vary.

[Li-1] Li, Xiaobing (2014). China's Battle for Korea: The 1951 Spring Offensive. Indiana University Press. p. 45.

[Mossman-2] Mossman, Billy (1990). Ebb and Flow: November 1950–July 1951. Center of Military History, United States Army. pp. 54–55. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

[Appleman-3] Appleman, Roy (1992). South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu. Center of Military History, U.S. Army. p. 770. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Some authorities estimate Chinese forces as high as 390,000 men, See Li, 46, but the attrition during their long march southward to the battlefield probably depleted their numbers and 300,000 or slightly more seems the most likely estimate.

[4] Ecker, Richard E. (2005). Korean Battle Chronology: Unit-by-unit United States Casualty Figures and Medal of Honor Citations. McFarland & Company. p. 62 ISBN 978-0786419807.

[Xue_1990_59–60-5] Xue, Yan (徐焰) (1990). 第一次较量：抗美援朝战争的历史回顾与反思 [First Confrontation: Reviews and Reflections on the History of War to Resist America and Aid Korea] (in Chinese (China)). Chinese Radio and Television Publishing House. pp. 59–60.

[6] Battle of Chosin Reservoir Archived 2022-01-06 at the Wayback Machine. Estimates of the lowest temperature encountered vary.

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