I Corps is a

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

of the

Korean People's Army Ground Force The Korean People's Army Ground Force (KPAGF; ) is the main branch of the Korean People's Army, responsible for land-based military operations. History The Korean People's Army Ground Force was formed on August 20, 1947. It outnumbered and out ...

. It is headquartered at Hoeyang-up,

Hoeyang County Hoeyang County is a ''kun'', or county, in Kangwŏn province, North Korea. It was established in a general reorganization of local government in 1952. Geography The county's area is primarily mountainous, with the Taebaek and Kwangju ranges bot ...

History

The Corps was activated in 1950 with a strength of 5,000 men. It took command of the North Korean divisions on the eastern sector, in the

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

area, with the

NK II Corps The II Corps is a corps of the Korean People's Army. It was created on June 12, 1950 with Lt. General Kim Kwang-hyop in command. During the Korean War the unit was composed of the 2nd Infantry Division, the 5th Infantry Division, and the 12th Inf ...

on its flank. It reportedly controlled the 1st,

3rd Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

, 4th, 6th, 13th Divisions in the initial attack. It advanced during the early phase 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 ...

, then fought in the

Battle of Pusan Perimeter The Battle of the Pusan Perimeter ( ko, 부산 교두보 전투) was a large-scale battle between United Nations Command (UN) and North Korean forces lasting from August 4 to September 18, 1950. It was one of the first major engagements of the ...

. Its headquarters is now reported as

, Kangwon Province.

Corps Organization

According to United States Far East Command Headquarters intelligence section as of 31 July 1952 a

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 ...

Corps was commanded by a lieutenant general. The commanding general had an aide and four officers reporting directly to him. The Chief of Staff headed the corps staff section, while the corps political commander, artillery commander and rear services commander directed the operations of their respective sections. Additionally, the corps headquarters had direct command of various

combat Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

combat support In the United States Army, the term combat support refers to units that provide fire support and operational assistance to combat elements. Combat support units provide specialized support functions to combat units in the following areas * Chemi ...

and combat service supports battalions and regiments. The corps chief of staff directed the staff section of the corps headquarters. The section was made up of: *Operations *Reconnaissance *Signal *Officer Personnel *Enlisted Personnel *History *Cryptographic *Administration *Finance *Documents *Engineers The corps artillery section, led the corps artillery commander was also divided up into different parts: *Operations *Reconnaissance *Communications *Personnel *Survey *Artillery Supply *Records The corps political commander, responsible for political education and loyalty had five different parts. *Political Training *NKDYML *Propaganda *Cultural *Civil Affairs The rear services commander had largest section as well as the staff officer with operational units compromising part of it. *Staff Sections **Organization & Planning **Administration **Provisions **Clothing **Ordnance **Food Service **Transportation **Intendance & Finance **Vehicle Maintenance **Road Maintenance **Medical **Fuel *Service Units **Transportation Battalion **Field Hospital **Evacuation Medical Battalion These independent assets were: *Artillery Regiment *Anti-Tank Battalion *Replacement and Training Regiment *Engineer Battalion *Reconnaissance Battalion *Signals Battalion As of 31 July 1952, the U.S Far East Command reported the composition of I Corps units as follows: * 8th Division **81st Regiment **82nd Regiment **83rd Regiment **Artillery Regiment *9th Division **85th Regiment **86th Regiment **87th Regiment **Artillery Regiment *47th Division **2nd Regiment **3rd Regiment **4th Regiment **Artillery Regiment

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:I Corps (North Korea) Corps0001 Corps0001NK Military units and formations established in 1950

History

Corps Organization

See also

References

Bibliography