October 1st-38th Parallel - To the North

  The war had come full circle with Operation Chromite.  South Korean and UN troops had arrived at the 38th parallel and were awaiting further commands.

But there was a problem.  UN Commander in Chief Gen. MacArthur and South Korean president Syng-man Rhee declared that they would cross the 38th parallel and achieve reunification.  But UN  troops wanted to stop at this point. They did want to prolong the war.  

 While the UN debated on whether to cross the 38th parallel or not, a message arrived for Il-kwon Chung, the Chief of the General Staff.  

North Korean troops had started firing at the South about 500m in front of the 38th parallel.  But South Korean soldiers were standing on flat ground where defense was impossible.  They either had to advance 500km and face the North Koreans or retreat 500km. 

 The Chief of the General Staff was facing a major dilemma.  The U.S. government had ordered not to cross the 38th parallel without proper command, but President Rhee just told them to go ahead with the attack.  Chung asked Commander Walker to give them the go-ahead, and finally they were granted permission to attack the North.  

Today, on the first day of October, South Korean forces crossed the 38th parallel and charged northward.  The next day, Gen. MacArthur ordered UN troops to follow suit.  Also, Gen. MacArthur gave the North a final warning to surrender.  This is when China came into the picture.  China warned the UN it would enter the war if UN troops advanced any further to the north.