The III 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 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 was created just before the North Korean invasion of 1950 with Lt. General Yu Kyong-su in command. During the initial North Korean invasion of the south, it was in reserve, comprising the 10th Infantry Division (organised April 1950), the 13th Division (organised March 1950), and the 15th Infantry Division (organised March 1950).

History

For the

First and Second Battles of Wonju The First and Second Battles of Wonju (french: Bataille de Wonju), also known as the Wonju Campaign or the Third Phase Campaign Eastern SectorThe Western Sector is the Third Battle of Seoul. (), was a series of engagements between North Korean a ...

, it was planned that the corps would act as casualty replacement pool for the KPA II and V Corps.. But like the South Koreans they were facing, the North Korean forces were also badly depleted and understrength. Although the North Koreans fielded more than 10 infantry divisions for the battle,. most of the divisions' strength were equivalent to an infantry regiment. By the time of the

Korean Armistice The Korean Armistice Agreement ( ko, 한국정전협정 / 조선정전협정; zh, t=韓國停戰協定 / 朝鮮停戰協定) is an armistice that brought about a complete cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. It was signed by United Sta ...

of July 1953, the corps was one of only two KPA corps on the line, holding the extreme eastern sector, with

VIII Corps 8th Corps, Eighth Corps, or VIII Corps may refer to: * VIII Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VIII Army Corps (German Confederation) * VIII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Ar ...

and the Chinese

60th Army The Red Army's 60th Army was a Soviet field army during the Second World War. It was first formed in reserve in the Moscow Military District in October 1941, but soon was disbanded. It was formed a second time in July 1942, and continued in servi ...

on the western flank. By that time it consisted of the 1st, 15th, 37th, and 45th Divisions.

Structure

In July 1951, the corps consisted of: * 1st Division, with 20th, 22nd, 24th Infantry and 1st Artillery Regiments * 13th Division with the 19th, 21st, 23rd Infantry Regiment and 13th Artillery Regiment * 27th Division with the 172nd, 173rd, and 174th Infantry Regiments and the 27th Artillery Regiment Joseph S. Bermudez reports that the corps is part of the KPA's third echelon and is deployed on the western coast of North Korea, around the Pyongyang area (surrounding the area of responsibility of the

Pyongyang Defense Command The Pyongyang Defence Command ( ko, 평양방위사령부), also known as the Pyongyang Defense Corps is a military area and corps of the Korean People's Army based out of the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. The PDC is composed of 70,000 ...

. He reports that as a rear corps it would contain two to five infantry divisions, a tank brigade, as well as artillery and other units.Bermudez, Shield of the Great Leader, Allen and Unwin, 2001, 58, 64.

References

Works cited

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History

Structure

See also

References

Works cited

Further reading