Korean War 1950–1953 – front lines month by month
History20th Century & TodayAges 17–18
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Sign in to playA hand-drawn map of the Korean peninsula shows how the front line moved month by month from 25 June 1950 to the armistice of 27 July 1953: the North Korean invasion, the Pusan Perimeter, the Inchon landing, the advance to the Yalu, Chinese intervention, the stalemate near the 38th parallel and the DMZ. Information panels explain the roles of the UN, the USA, China and the USSR in the Cold War and give estimated casualties.
Lesson: The Korean War (1950–1953) and the Cold War in Asia
What it shows
The Korean War began on 25 June 1950 when North Korean forces crossed the 38th parallel into South Korea. A UN Command led by the United States pushed them back almost to the Chinese border, until Chinese forces intervened in October 1950. After a year of swinging offensives the front settled near the 38th parallel, and two years of talks ended in the armistice of 27 July 1953. The sim shows each phase on a map, with the Cold War context and casualty estimates; see also the sims The Cold War world, 1945–1991 and Decolonisation in Asia and Africa.
How to use
Press Run, drag the Date slider or the timeline under the map, or step with the arrow buttons. Turn Arrows and Map labels on or off. Read the area held by each side in the Events panel, then open Roles & Cold War and Losses & forces to compare the sides.
Parameters you can change
- Starting point on the timeline (0 = 25 June 1950, 39 = 27 July 1953) 0–39 step
- Timeline playback speed 0.5–4 steps/s
- Information panel Events, Roles & Cold War, Losses & forces
- Show movement arrows
- Show labels on the map
Questions to explore
- In which months did the front line move fastest, and why did it hardly move after mid-1951?
- What happened after UN forces crossed the 38th parallel and advanced towards the Yalu River?
- How does the Korean War show the policy of containment in the Cold War?
