Korean People's Army, Part 5 - Independent Infantry Brigades

["Joseph S. Bermudez Jr." <joseph_bermudez@compuserve.com>]

Korean People's Army Independent Infantry Brigades, June 1950 - January 1956

Copyright (C) 2000, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr.

Latest Revision: March 4, 2000


20th Infantry Brigade

The origins of this brigade are obscure since there are no reports
concerning this unit until mid-1953. It is possible, however, that with the
reorganization of the mechanized artillery brigades in mid-1952, the KPA
activated this brigade. In August 1953 the 20th Brigade was attached to V
Corps, and deployed in the Ch¹ongjin area, with the mission of coastal
defense. During July-August 1955 the 20th Brigade underwent a major
reorganization and reequipment. By January 1956 V Corps had displaced
forward, and its place taken by II Corps/III Army Group. During this
redeployment the 20th Brigade remained behind and was attached to the II
Corps. It remained deployed within the Ch¹ongjin area and was responsible
for the defense of the coast from Songjin - USSR border. Its commander
during this period was Major General Kang Tae Mu.



21st Infantry Brigade

A reorganization of the 23rd Mechanized Artillery Brigade into an ordinary
infantry brigade in June 1952 resulted in the activation of the 21st
Brigade. By the end of 1952 this brigade was deployed on a defense mission
in the Hwanghae Province. It was composed of three infantry battalions, one
artillery battalion, and one transportation battalion. During
August-September 1955 the brigade underwent a major reorganization and
reequipment. By January 1956 the brigade was attached to IV Corps/II Army
Group and remained in Hwanghae Province. It was responsible for coastal
defense from Haeju - Changyon, with its HQ near Ongjin. During this period
it was commanded by Senior Colonel Tae Kil.



22nd Infantry Brigade

The origins of this brigade, also, are obscure since there are no reports
concerning this unit until mid-1953. It is possible, however, that with the
reorganization of the mechanized artillery brigades in mid-1952, the KPA
activated this brigade. In August 1953 the 22nd Brigade was attached to V
Corps and deployed along the eastern coast near Tanch'on. During
August-September 1955 the brigade underwent a major reorganization and
reequipment. By January 1956 the brigade had been redeployed forward and
attached to VII Corps/I Army Group. Where it was responsible for coastal
defense from Changyon - Songjin-ni, with its HQ at T¹ongch¹on. Its commander
during this period was Major General Cho Kwan.



23rd Infantry Brigade

This unit was established in August 1950 by redesignating the remnants of
the 956th Independent Naval Infantry Regiment as the 23rd (239th) Naval
Infantry Brigade at Chinnamp'o. At this time, battalions of the brigade were
sent to the Ongjin, Haeju, Kunsan, and Kwangju areas. Following the UNC
advance in September 1950, remnants of the brigade withdrew to North Korea
and began reorganizing and training in the Yongwon area northeast of
Tokch¹on.

In mid-December 1950 the brigade, still under strength and poorly equipped,
began moving south through Maengsan, Yangdok, Koksan, Singye, Sariwon, and
arrived in the Haeju area in mid-January 1951. Battalion elements of the
brigade then took up positions in the southwestern coastal areas of Hwanghae
Province from Chongdan south through Ongjin and east through Haeju to the
vicinity of Changyon. Here the brigade began preparing beach defenses, while
also training and adding personnel and equipment. In February 1951 the
brigade was placed under the command of VI Corps, which had then arrived in
the area.
 
In April 1951 the 23rd Brigade extended its zone of responsibility further
to the north to the vicinity of Ullyul. In late May 1951 the 36th
Division/VI Corps, which was located in the Haeju area, was inactivated and
the 63rd Regiment of the division was integrated into the brigade. At this
time, the brigade was apparently redesignated a division, at least for a
short period. 

When VI Corps displaced to the east in August 1951, the brigade remained
behind and was attached to I Corps which had assumed responsibility for the
area. Then in late November 1951 when I Corps also moved east, the brigade
again remained in the area and was subordinated IV Corps which, although
located north of the Taedong River, was now apparently also responsible for
the southwest coast of Hwanghae Province.

Although the brigade may have been redesignated a division in May of 1951,
it was again redesignated as a brigade and underwent some reorganization
during the summer of 1951. At this time the brigade was commanded by Major
General Oh Pack Yong, former commander of 8th Division. Although the brigade
was redesignated as the 23rd Mechanized Artillery Brigade in October 1951,
it retained its mission of coastal defense. The brigade was extremely active
during October 1951-March 1952, in the KPA west coast "island hopping
campaign."

This "island hopping campaign" consisted of a number of amphibious and
shore-to-shore (i.e. movement across the mud flats at low tide) assaults on
west coast islands held by UNC forces. The first major assault came on 9
October, when approximately 600 troops conducted an amphibious assault on
the Korea Bay island of Sinmi Do, using sampans and other small craft. This
initial assault force was later reinforced by troops arriving across the mud
flats. As a result of these actions, the island was evacuated by UNC forces
three days later, on 12 October. On the evening of 6 November, KPA units
attacked and capture the small islands of Ka-do and Tan-do by amphibious
assault. These islands were subsequently employed to provide artillery
support and 'jump-off' points for the successful 30 November amphibious
assault on the island of Taehwa-do. These actions were accompanied by
further shore-to-shore assaults which seized six small coastal islands in
Haeju Man. In mid-December, between the 16th and 18th, a force of 600
troops, believed to be from the 23rd, assaulted and captured two small
islands inboard of Sok To Island, at the mouth of the Tae-dong River.
Following this last assault UNC naval forces made a concerted effort to
prevent any other such occurrences, and as a result of these efforts there
were no further assaults for several months. During March 1952 the 23rd
attempted a number of assaults across the mud flats of Haeju Man against
Yongmae Do. All these raids, however, were unsuccessful due to overwhelming
UNC naval firepower. With the failure of these assaults, the west coast
"island hopping campaign" came to a close and the 23rd concerned itself
primarily with coastal defense, and only occasionally conducted small island
raids. [1]
 
In June 1952 it was redesignated once again as the 23rd Brigade after
supplying organic elements to the newly formed 21st Brigade. It continued in
its coastal defense mission of southwest Hwanghae Province at least until
the end of August 1953. However, by January 1956, it had been displaced by
the 26th Brigade, and was redeployed further south. It was now attached to I
Corps/II Army Group, and was responsible for coastal defense from Yesong
River - Haeju. Its headquarters was located near Haeju, and its commander
during this period was Senior Colonel Choe Hyck (1956).