The 43rd Infantry Division was a military formation of the

Korean People's Army The Korean People's Army (KPA; ) is the military force of North Korea and the armed wing of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Under the ''Songun'' policy, it is the central institution of North Korean society. Currently, WPK General Sec ...

. It defended the Yesong River crossing and the coastal area beyond the river that lies west of the

Kaesong Kaesong (, ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close t ...

Kumchon Kŭmch'ŏn County is a county in the North Hwanghae province of North Korea. It has a population of 68,216. Geography Kŭmch'ŏn is bordered to the west by Kaesong, Kaesŏng, to the south by Kaepung, Kaep'ung, to the northwest by Tosan County, T'o ...

line.The Korean War: The UN Offensive
/ref> During the outbreak of the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

Senior Colonel

O Jin-u O Jin-u (March 8, 1917 – February 25, 1995) was a North Korean general and politician. He served with Kim Il-sung's partisan unit and eventually rose through the ranks of the North Korean Army. He distinguished himself during the Korean War an ...

was placed as commander of the 43rd Infantry Division. The 1st Cavalry Division's

7th Cavalry Regiment The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment formed in 1866. Its official nickname is "Garryowen", after the Ireland, Irish air "Garryowen (air), Garryowen" that was adopted as its march tune. The regiment participated i ...

traversed the Yesong River and advanced north on the road from

Paekchon Paech'ŏn County is a county in South Hwanghae province, North Korea. Administrative divisions Paech'ŏn county is divided into 1 '' ŭp'' (town), 1 '' rodongjagu'' (workers' district) and 26 '' ri'' (villages): Transportation Paech'ŏn county ...

to the small town of Hanpo-ri, six miles north of Kumchon, where the main

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...

road crossed the Yesong River, and established a blocking position.

References

InfDiv0043 InfDiv0043NK {{NorthKorea-mil-stub