Far Eastern Tour: The Canadian Infantry in Korea, 1950-1953

Roch Carrier is completing his honors degree in history at Laurentian
University. He was awarded the R.H. and Eva P. Murray Departmental
Scholarship for Classical Studies.

Okanagan University professor Brent Byron Watson sets out to examine the
experiences of the Canadian infantry (especially the 25th Canadian
Infantry Brigade) in the Korean War and the countless hardships that
plagued Canada’s Korean commitment before, during, and after the war.

Korea was but one of several Canadian armed forces commitments in the
1950s. Although it did not match either of the two world wars in size,
it has been Canada’s largest military expedition since the Second
World War. Despite this, military planers in Ottawa failed to give
Canada’s Korean commitment the attention it deserved, being more
concerned with the European threats of the day. The result was an
overextension of the Korean force that led, as Watson shows, to
appalling living conditions, rampant medical problems, inadequate
training and preparation, obsolete equipment, and countless preventable
Canadian casualties. The public indifference that confronted the Korean
veterans on their return is expressed through powerful firsthand
statements (“That’s the hard part about remembering ... knowing that
I did that and my country really didn’t give a shit”).

Watson makes use of newly declassified Central Registry Files at the
National Archives of Canada. He also draws on firsthand accounts from
noncommissioned members of the Canadian infantry, as well as his own
extensive travels in Korea while researching the infantry’s
experiences. His comprehensive and engaging book is recommended for
military/foreign affairs enthusiasts.