More than 30,000 British troops fought in Korea between 1950 and 1953 and more than 3,000 died, with over 1,000 being captured and held in atrocious conditions by the Chinese or Koreans. At least half of those captured died in prison camps. More than 70 per cent of those who fought were 18-19 year olds doing national service. They were poorly trained and ill-equipped, fighting much of their time in snowy trenches. This book, for the first time, tells the story of these ordinary soldiers, as well as sailors and airmen, in their own words. It has the full backing of the British Korean Veterans Association, which has over 5,000 members. Most of the veterans are now in their eighties and this will be the last chance for them to tell their tale. So soon after the Second World War, this was a war Britain did not need but she remained steadfast by the side of the Americans, fighting in a hostile environment more than 6,000 miles away in a country nobody could point to on a map. The ‘Special Relationship’ may be a joke to some now – it wasn’t then.
