September 29th-Seoul
Return to Seoul

  
   Walker, who had been on stand by at Nakdong River, broke through the defense line and advanced northward.  The North Korean troops lost their wits at the news that Seoul was recaptured by the South, and they quickly began retreating.

  A special U.S. troop called Regiment 777 advanced to Seoul faster than any other troop, and on the 26th, they met with part of the troop that had landed at Inchon in Osan.  Osan , located south of Seoul, is also the place where the Smith troop  encountered North Korean forces during the early stages of the war.

   Seoul was reclaimed on the 29th, after 10 days of intense battling.  A triumphant celebration was held and attended by President Syng-man Rhee and Gen. MacArthur, and the evacuated Korean government was returned to Seoul.  President Rhee was speechless with joy, but he managed to utter words of thanks to the UN troops and the South Korean military force, which have fought so bravely.  The nation warmly welcomed President Rhee’s return to Seoul.   

  Unfortunately, Seoul was no longer the city it used to be.  Every last inch of the city was ravaged and war-stricken, reminiscent of the remains of Hiroshima.  One reporter who had witnessed postwar Japan claimed that conditions in Seoul were far worse than those of the war-torn cities of Tokyo and Yokohama.  But the most terrifying evidence of the war were the decaying bodies that littered the ground.  The North Korean soldiers had ruthlessly killed all those who stood in their way.