The Battle of the Chosin Reservoir begins (The famous Frozen Chosin). Today in Marine Corps history.

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Also on this day in History, 27 November 1950, the Battle of Chosin Reservoir begins.

The Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as the Chosin Reservoir Campaign or the Changjin Lake Campaign (Korean: 장진호 전투; Chinese: 长津湖战役; pinyin: Cháng Jīn Hú Zhànyì), was a decisive battle in the Korean War.

Shortly after the People's Republic of China entered the conflict, the People's Volunteer Army 9th Army infiltrated the northeastern part of North Korea and surprised the US X Corps at the Chosin Reservoir area. A brutal 17 day battle in freezing weather soon followed. In the period between 27 November and 13 December 1950, 30,000 United Nations (UN) troops (nicknamed "The Chosin Few") under the command of Major General Edward Almond were encircled by approximately 67,000 Chinese troops under the command of Song Shi-Lun. The units near the Chosin (Changjin) Reservoir included the 1st Marine Division and elements of the 7th Infantry Division.

Although Chinese troops managed to surround and outnumber the UN forces, the UN forces broke out of the encirclement while inflicting crippling losses on the Chinese. The evacuation of the X Corps from the port of Hungnam marked the complete withdrawal of UN troops from North Korea.

On the night of 27 November, the PVA 20th and 27th Corps of the 9th Army launched multiple attacks and ambushes along the road between the Chosin Reservoir and Koto-ri. At Yudam-ni, the 5th, 7th and 11th Marines were surrounded and attacked by the PVA 59th, 79th and 89th Division. Similarly, RCT-31 was isolated and ambushed at Sinhung-ni by the PVA 80th and the 81st Division. Finally, the PVA 60th Division surrounded elements of the 1st Marines at Kotor-ri from the north.Caught by complete surprise, the UN forces were cut off at Yudam-ni, Sinhung-ni, Hagaru-ri and Kotor-ri by 28 November.

Advancing quickly, the Ninth Army Group of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) blunted X Corps advance and swarmed around the UN troops at Chosin. Alerted to their predicament, Almond ordered the commander of the 1st Marine Division, Major General Oliver P. Smith, to begin a fighting retreat back towards the coast.

Smith's men endured extreme cold and severe weather. The next day, the 5th and 7th Marines attacked from their positions near Yudam-ni, on the west bank of the reservoir, with some success against the PLA forces in the area. Over the next three days the 1st Marine Division successfully defended their positions at Yudam-ni and Hagaru-ri against Chinese human wave assaults. On November 29, Smith contacted Colonel "Chesty" Puller, commanding the 1st Marine Regiment, at Koto-ri and asked him to assemble a task force to re-open the road from there to Hagaru-ri.

Complying, Puller formed a force consisting of Lieutenant Colonel Douglas B. Drysdale's 41 Independent Commando (Royal Marines Battalion), G Company (1st Marines), B Company (31st Infantry), and other rear echelon troops. Numbering 900 men, the 140-vehicle task force departed at 9:30 AM on the 29th, with Drysdale in command. Pushing up the road to Hargaru-ri, the task force became bogged down after being ambushed by Chinese troops. Fighting in an area that was dubbed "Hell Fire Valley," Drysdale was reinforced by tanks sent by Puller.

Pressing on, Drysdale's men ran a gauntlet of fire and reached Hagaru-ri with the bulk of 41 Commando, G Company, and the tanks. During the attack, the B Comapany, 31st Infantry, became separated and isolated along the road. While most were killed or captured, some were able to escape back to Koto-ri. While the Marines were fighting to the west, the 31st Regimental Combat Team (RCT) of the 7th Infantry was battling for its life on the eastern shore of reservoir.

While not a victory in the classic sense, the withdrawal from the Chosin Reservoir is revered as a high point in the history of the US Marine Corps. In the fighting, the Marines and other UN troops effectively destroyed or crippled seven Chinese divisions which attempted to block their progress. Marine losses in the campaign numbered 836 killed and 12,000 wounded. Most of the latter were frostbite injuries inflicted by the severe cold and winter weather. US Army losses numbered around 2,000 killed and 1,000 wounded. Precise casualties for the Chinese are not known but are estimated at 35,000 killed. Upon reaching Hungnam, the veterans of Chosin Reservoir were evacuated as part of the large amphibious operation to rescue UN troops from northeastern Korea.

Chest Puller made one of his more famous quotes a Chosin, "We're surrounded. That simplifies our problem of getting to these people and killing them." – November 1950, during Chosin Reservoir campaign.

PHOTO: Marine braving the cold at Chosin