Historical Dictionary of the Korean War

Book excerpt: The Korean War has often been regarded as a forgotten war, although that is certainly unfair. It was, if anything, a rather crucial war within the ambit of the Cold War, started by North Korea in 1950 and, although the bulk of the fighting was over by 1954, peace has never been concluded and the two sides still face off over the demilitarized zone. On the other side of the zone is South Korea, which has since become a very prosperous and democratic country, while North Korea has achieved relatively little. So, that war is certainly not forgotten by the Koreans. And, given the large number of deaths and casualties, it is still remembered by many in the United States and other allies, as well as China and the Soviet Union. This Historical Dictionary of the Korean War, now in its second edition, does much to jolt our memory and inform us about the war. This is done first in a lengthy chronology, tracking the war but also the path to war and what happened after. The introduction covers the war as a whole, trying to make sense of it. The dictionary section provides all of the necessary details on significant persons, places and events, battles and other engagements, military units and material, as well as the political, economic and social background. There are also maps and a list of acronyms. This is really the ideal source for information, in addition to which, it also has an extensive bibliography.