Hello, I'm Mr. Marchin and I'll be your history teacher for today.

I'm really looking forward to starting our learning journey together, and my role will be to make sure that you can meet today's learning objective.

Welcome to today's lesson, which is part of our unit on the development of the Cold War, where we've been asking ourselves, how did the Cold War develop in Asia? By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to explain the causes and development of the Korean War.

There are four key words which will help us navigate our way through today's lesson.

Those are reunification, Domino Theory, escalate and stalemate.

Reunification is the process in which a country that was divided is joined together again as one country.

Domino theory was the belief that if one country became communist, others near it would more easily become communist too.

Escalate means to become or make something become greater or more serious.

And a stalemate is a situation in which neither group involved in a conflict can win or get an advantage.

Today's lesson will be split into three parts and we'll begin by thinking about North and South Korea.

It at the end of World War II, Korea was occupied by both the USA and the USSR.

The north of Korea was occupied by Soviet forces and the south by American forces.

The border between these two zones of occupation was the 38th parallel.

So thinking about what we've heard so far, where was the border between the American and Soviet zones of occupation in Korea located? Was it the Taebaek Mountains, the Yalu River, or the 38th parallel? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the border between the American and Soviet zones of occupation in Korea was located along the 38th parallel.

This split Korea between a northern and southern zone.

The occupation and division of Korea was only supposed to be temporary.

However, the U.

S.

and USSR failed to agree on what the reunification of Korea should look like.

In 1948, separate new governments were formed in the north and south of Korea, becoming known as the states of North Korea and South Korea.

So let's check our understanding of what we've just heard.

We have a statement on the screen that reads, Korean reunification took place in 1948.

Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was false, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So two justifications have appeared on the screen.

The first says that the U.

S.

and USSR were unable to agree upon the terms of reunification.

And the second says, a war between the U.

S.

and USSR began before talks over Korea could take place.

So which one of those two justifications is correct? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct justification was A.

The U.

S.

and USSR were unable to agree upon the terms of reunification and therefore Korea was not reunited as had been expected.

North Korea was a communist state led by Kim Il-Sung and supported by the USSR.

South Korea was a capitalist state led by Syngman Rhee and supported by the USA.

The border between the two new states was the 38th parallel.

In other words, north and south remained divided along the same lines as they had been when Korea was occupied by the Soviet Union and the USA.

So thinking about what we've just heard, I want you to write the missing word in the following sentence.

North Korea was a blank state.

So what's the missing word? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the missing word was communist.

North Korea was a communist state and backed by the Soviet Union.

Both North and South Korea hoped to reunify all of Korea under their own rule, and so relations between the two states were poor.

Border conflicts between the two states proved common.

Kim Il-Sung the North Korean leader even supported groups of communist fighters within South Korea who planned to overthrow the capitalist government there.

Kim Il-Sung hoped that this would help North Korea's reunification plans.

So which of the following events did not take place in Korea after 1948? Was it that North and South Korean soldiers fought along the 38th parallel, that elections took place to form a new government for all of Korea, or that Kim Il-Sung provided support to communist fighters in South Korea? Remember, you are looking for the event that did not take place.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the event which did not take place was B.

There were no elections to form a new government for all of Korea after 1948.

So we are now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about North and South Korea into practise.

I want you to study the following statements which say, South Korea was a communist state supported by the USA.

Kim Il-Sung was the leader of North Korea.

Korea was occupied after World War II and divided at the 38th parallel, and neither North Korea nor South Korea supported reunification.

I want you to do two things in response to these statements.

Firstly, identify whether each statement is true or false, and then secondly, I want you to correct any of the false statements and to add extra details which can support your corrections.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your responses.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that task.

So firstly, I asked you to identify whether each of our statements was true or false.

You should have said for our first statement that it was false.

The second statement was true, the third statement was true, and the fourth statement was false.

So we can now think about the second part of task B where I asked you to correct any of those statements which were false and to provide additional details to support those corrections.

Your answers may have included.

South Korea was a capitalist state founded in 1948 with the support of the USA and that both North Korea and South Korea supported reunification, but their leaders could not agree with one another.

Border conflicts between the two were common.

So really well done if your own answers looks something like those models, which we've just seen.

And now we're ready to move on to this second part of our lesson for today where we are going to think about the invasion of South Korea.

In June, 1950, north Korean forces crossed the 38th parallel and launched an invasion of South Korea.

The aim of this invasion was to reunify all of Korea under the control of Kim Il-Sung.

Kim Il-Sung's invasion took place with the approval of two other communist leaders, Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong.

Neither Stalin or Mao provided Soviet or Chinese troops to participate in the invasion, but did give North Korea their support.

So we have a statement on the screen that reads, Soviet and Chinese troops led the invasion of South Korea.

Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was false, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So two justifications have appeared on the screen.

The first says that Stalin and Mao provided a small number of troops, but the invasion was led by the North Korean army.

And the second says that Stalin and Mao approved the North Korean invasion but did not participate in it.

So which one of those two justifications is correct? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct justification was B.

Stalin and Mao approved the North Korean invasion of South Korea, but did not send Chinese or Soviet troops to participate in it.

North Korea had launched its invasion and received Soviet and Chinese support for the plans, in part because they believed that the U.

S.

would not get involved.

In 1949, the last U.

S.

troops in South Korea had been withdrawn.

Following this, at the start in 1950, the U.

S.

government had not mentioned South Korea amongst a list of Asian countries it promised to defend automatically in the event of any attacks.

However, in the summer of 1950, President Harry Truman surprised Kim Il-Sung, Stalin and Mao by declaring that 260,000 U.

S.

troops will be sent to defend South Korea.

The U.

S.

also won support at the United Nations otherwise known as the UN, for the defence of South Korea.

Meaning then international coalition of countries also sent forces to help resist the North Korean invasion.

So let's make sure we have a secure understanding of what we've just heard.

I want you to give one reason why Kim Il-Sung did not expect the U.

S.

to defend South Korea when he invaded in June, 1950.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to anybody who mentioned one of the following reasons.

That U.

S.

troops have been withdrawn from South Korea in 1949 and that the U.

S.

had not promised to automatically defend South Korea if it was attacked.

In part Truman's surprise decision to defend South Korea was based on domestic pressures he faced in the USA.

Since the victory of communists in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Truman had faced criticisms from American Republicans who argued that his Democrat government had gone soft on East Asian communism.

A tough response to the North Korean invasion was one way of disproving Republican criticisms to the American public.

Truman and his advisors were also worried about the international consequences if they failed to take action.

Although South Korea was not considered particularly important in its own regard, U.

S.

officials worried that failing to resist communist aggression there would encourage further attacks elsewhere.

This concern was heightened by an American belief that China and the Soviet Union were really responsible for the invasion.

This type of thinking followed the logic of Domino Theory and was accepted by President Truman himself.

At one point the president claimed that, "If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Asia after one another.

If we were to let Asia go, the Middle East would collapse and there would be no telling what would happen in Europe." So I want you to identify two factors which motivated Truman to send troops to South Korea.

We can choose from, to avoid accusations of being soft on communism, to prevent the spread of communism across Asia, to protect valuable sources of oil and steel, and to remove Kim Il-Sung, Mao, and Stalin from power.

So which two of those options were factors that motivated Truman to send troops to South Korea.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answers.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answers were A and B.

Truman wanted to avoid accusations that he was being soft on communism and to prevent the spread of communism across Asia.

This is why he sent 260,000 U.

S.

troops to South Korea in the summer of 1950.

So we're now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about the invasion of South Korea into practise.

I want you to study the remark from President Truman where he says, "If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Asia after one another.

If we were to let Asia go, the Middle East would collapse and there would be no telling what would happen in Europe." Based on that remark, how can you tell that President Truman supported U.

S.

military intervention against North Korea? Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to reflect on your response.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that task.

So I asked, how could you tell from President Truman's remark that he supported U.

S.

military intervention against North Korea and your answer may have included: In his remark, President Truman claimed that, "If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Asia after one another." This suggests that Truman supported U.

S.

military intervention of North Korea's invasion in South Korea in order to contain communism and prevent it from spreading to other countries.

Truman's remark reflects his belief in the Domino Theory, which said that if one country was allowed to fall to communism, others would be at risk.

Truman even went far as to say, a failure to defend South Korea could even put Europe at risk.

So really well done if your own response looked something like that model we've just seen.

And now we're ready to move on to the third and final part of our lesson for today where we are going to think about the U.

S, China and the Korean War.

In July, 1950, American-led UN forces began to push the North Korean army out of South Korea.

However, by October, 1951, the war had escalated into a much larger conflict than expected as China intervened on North Korea's side.

This escalation occurred in large part because of the decisions made by key American leaders.

North Korea's invasion initially went very well.

After crossing the 38th parallel, South Korean forces were pushed far south to just a small area around Pusan.

However, the intervention of American-led UN troops helped to transform this situation.

The UN forces were commanded by U.

S.

General Douglas MacArthur and succeeded in halting North Korea's advances.

Soon afterwards, the gains made by the North Korean army were reversed, and by late August, UN forces had pushed the North Koreans back across the 38th Parallel.

This success meant that American-led forces had quickly achieved their pre-war aim of liberating South Korea and containing the threat posed by the north.

So let's make sure we have a clear understanding of what we've just heard.

How had the Korean War developed by August, 1950? Was it that forces were defeated by North Korea's army, that UN forces pushed North Korea's army out of South Korea, or that UN forces and North Korea's army reached a stalemate.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was B.

UN forces had pushed North Korea's army out of South Korea by August, 1950, meeting their pre-war aim.

Having defended South Korea successfully, President Truman came under intense pressure to order UN forces to cross the 38th parallel and invade North Korea itself.

General MacArthur supported this escalation of the war, as did many Republican politicians and journalists in the USA who argued that stopping at the border would represent an appeasement of communism.

Under this pressure, and despite warnings from Chinese leaders, Truman authorised the invasion of North Korea and called for the reunification of Korea under the rule of South Korea's current leadership.

By the end of September, UN forces had rolled back the North Korean army to the Yalu River in the very north of the country, close to its border with China.

However, the presence of such a large American-led army on the border was considered unacceptable in China, as was the prospect of a non-communist Korean state being established by the U.

S.

Therefore, in October, 1950, China entered the Korean War and by December, communist armies had forced UN forces to retreat south of the 38th parallel.

Although General MacArthur advised President Truman to launch nuclear attacks against the Chinese mainland, the president refused.

Truman was convinced that nuclear attacks against China would bring the USSR into the war and transform it into another world war.

The president preferred to follow a limited war strategy which confined fighting to Korea itself.

By June, 1951, UN forces had successfully pushed the Chinese and North Korean forces to the region around the 38th parallel, though little further.

At this point, the Korean War entered a stalemate with neither side able to make any further significant gains.

So let's check our understanding of what we've just heard.

We have a statement on the screen that reads, UN forces crossing the 38th parallel helped to escalate the Korean War.

Is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was true, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So two justifications have appeared on the screen.

The first says that the presence of American-led troops close to its border triggered China's entry into the war.

And the second says that the presence of American-led troops close to its border triggered the USSR'S entry into the war.

So which one of those two justifications is correct? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct justification was A.

The presence of American-led troops close to its border triggered China's entry into the war in October, 1950.

And let's try another question.

Why did Truman reject General MacArthur's advice to launch nuclear attacks against China? Was it because China could respond with its own nuclear attacks, because the U.

S.

was suffering a nuclear weapon shortage, or because the USSR would join the war escalating the conflict? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was C.

Truman refused to use nuclear weapons during the Korean War because he believed this would bring the USSR into the war, escalating the conflict into a potential nuclear war between the two superpowers.

And let's try one more question.

I want you to write the missing word from the following sentence.

By June, 1951, the Korean War had reached a blank.

So what's the missing word? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the missing word was stalemate.

By June, 1951, the Korean War had reached a stalemate.

So we are now in a good position to put all of our knowledge from today's lesson into practise.

I want you to write an account that analyses the events of the Korean War between 1950 and 1951.

You should ensure that your account follows the correct chronology of the conflict, makes it clear how events linked together and includes specific details.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your response.

Okay, well done for all of your effort on that task.

So I asked you to write an account that analyses the event at the Korean War between 1950 and 1951.

And your answer may have included: In June, 1950, North Korean troops invaded South Korea.

The invasion was intended to reunify all of Korea under Kim Il-Sung's rule.

However, the invasion triggered an American-led intervention by UN forces to defend South Korea.

The U.

S.

believed it had to defend South Korea in order to prevent communism spreading to other countries.

UN forces quickly gained the advantage and by August, 1950, North Korea's army had been forced back across the 38th parallel.

This success led some Americans, including Douglas MacArthur, to demand that UN forces cross the 38th parallel and reunify Korea as a non-communist state.

Under pressure, in September, 1950, President Truman authorised General MacArthur to send his armies across the 38th parallel into North Korea.

However, when UN forces reached the Yalu River, China joined the war to ensure anti-communist forces would not be based so close to its borders.

After China's entry into the war, communist forces initially pushed UN forces into large retreats.

President Truman rejected advice to use nuclear weapons against China as he feared that this would escalate the conflict into a world war.

Instead, fighting remained limited to Korea where it reached a stalemate by mid-1951.

So really well done if your own response looked something like that model which we've just seen.

And that means we've now reached the end of today's lesson, which puts us in a good position to summarise our learning about the outbreak of the Korean War.

We've seen that by 1950, Korea was divided at the 38th parallel between communist North Korea and capitalist South Korea.

In June, 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea, triggering an American-led UN force to enter the war and defend the South.

UN forces crossed the 38th parallel in September, 1950 and aimed to reunify all the Korea under non-Communist rule.

But UN successes in rolling back North Korea's army triggered China's entry into the war eventually leading to a military stalemate.

So really well done for all of your effort during today's lesson.

It's been a pleasure to help guide you through our resources, and I look forward to seeing you again in future as we continue to think about the development of the Cold War and continue to ask ourselves, how did the Cold War develop in Asia?.