This is a ground-breaking re-examination of one of the most overlooked conflicts in modern history. Often labelled the forgotten war, this was, in fact, a conflict of profound importance that defined the latter half of the 20th century. Spanning three years of devastating combat, the book delves into the war's two distinct phases: the United Nations-led effort to repel North Korean aggression, and the subsequent, controversial invasion of the North that drew China into the conflict.

Through meticulous analysis of a wealth of source material, Richard Dannatt and Robert Lyman expertly detail the chaos of political decision-making at the war's outset and as it progressed. The Korean War was not planned as a communist offensive against the West. In turn, North Korea did not understand the principle at the core of the Western response to Kim Il-sung's invasion, namely a refusal to appease an aggressor, the key mistake the West considered to be at the heart of the rise of Nazi Germany and militaristic Japan in the 1930s. Moreover, while the war was a proxy one between rival ideologies, the people of Korea suffered immensely, with approximately 3 million war fatalities and a larger proportional civilian death toll than any country in the Second World War.

Korea: War Without End reveals the dual tragedy of a war fought to preserve peace but prolonged by political hubris. This definitive history unpacks the lessons of Korea, offering timeless insights into the complexities of war and the enduring quest for peace.

OSPREY PUBLISHING

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

First published in Great Britain in 2025

Richard Dannatt and Robert Lyman, 2025

ISBN: HB 9781472869753; PB 9781472869746

Maps by Bounford

Index by Fionbar Lyons

Typeset by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India

Printed and bound in Great Britain by Clays Ltd, Elcograf S.p.A.

Many of the photos in this book come from the huge collections of IWM (Imperial War Museums).

351 pages

6 x 9 x 1 inches

31 B/W photos

5 maps