They will chronicle their journey on their blog, Parallel Universe: 38º North, as they travel from the United States through Japa Over the years there have been occasional incidents and minor skirmishes but no significant conflicts. By 1950 tensions between the two zones had risen to the point that two increasingly hostile armies had built up along the 38th Parallel. Yet when Mr Bush visits the 38th parallel today, he will view the north through the darkest of spectacles as a current threat to the south - and a potential threat to US security. 38th parallel, popular name given to latitude 38° N that in East Asia roughly demarcates North Korea and South Korea. the line of latitude 38 degrees North (38° N), in East Asia, which roughly marks the border between North Korea and South Korea: set by the U.S. in 1945 as a military boundary, three years before these countries were officially established. both governments were still young then and fought as to who shall rule the nation and which one’s the correct system of government. It was also the location of where the war first started and now serves as a war memorial. A division at the 38th parallel made a lot of sense during the Cold War, and North Korean leaders were right to worry after their Soviet patron's collapse in 1991 that the peninsula might be reunited on American terms. The 38th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 38 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. 38th parallel, popular name given to latitude 38° N that in East Asia roughly demarcates North Korea and South Korea. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Pfc. The 38th parallel north formed the border between North and South Korea prior to the Korean War. The 38th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 38 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. _____ From the Carles’ blog, Parallel Universe 38° N: Marshes of Western Spain. Draft Position Paper for Meeting of Foreign Ministers in September. At the end of the Second World War, Korea – which had formerly been occupied by the Japanese – was divided along the 38th Parallel. Shortly after Joe Battaglia was drafted into the Army in November 1951, he found himself in a bunker a few hundred feet behind the “Main Line of Resistance,” the front line, along the 38th Parallel separating North and South where the fighting was taking place during the Korean War. It is a Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that separates Korea into the North and South Korea we know today. Show TV Channels Hide TV Channels TV ; Show Radio Channels General Bedell Smith raised the question as to why it would not be desirable to move immediately a cease-fire on the basis of the 38th parallel. The 38th parallel is important to Asia because it is the division between North and South Korea. It is 155 miles (248 km) long and approximately 2.5 miles (4 km) wide, and is the most heavily armed border in the world. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Battle of Kapyong, (April 23–25, 1951), Korean War battle in which vastly outnumbered United Nations forces checked the communist advance on the South Korean capital of Seoul. As soon as the invasion of North Korea came as an alarming surprise to the American officials, they feared this as the first step in a communist campaign to take over the world. A political system in which a country is ruled by an individua…. This division of Korea, after more than a millennium of being unified, was seen as controversial and temporary by both regimes. The United States was able to convince the United Nations to support South Korea, mostly because the Soviet Union was protesting the refusal to accept China’s entrance to the United Nations and was therefore not at the meeting to vote against the action. On 25 June 1950, after a series of cross-border raids and gunfire from both the Northern and the Southern sides, the North Korean Army crossed the parallel and invaded South Korea. Nam and the communists argued fervently for a demilitarized line on the 38th parallel in a wishful effort to reclaim lost terrain. Start studying the 38th parallel. The reason for it's name is because the line is located at the latitude 38 degrees north, of the Earth's equator. On April 22 we left Portugal for Huelva, in … Although the United States military was successful at driving the North Korean Army … Dividing line between North and South Korea. Janet and David Carle have completed their travels through Europe and Turkey, investigating water issues on the 38th parallel. When World War II ended, North Korea and South Korea were divided along an imaginary line separating the communist north and the anti-communist south. KOREA BORDER Vintage 1970's sign board The 38th parallel serving as a division between North Korea and South Korea. The DMZ cuts the Korean Peninsula in half, crossing the 38th parallel on an angle, with the west end of the DMZ lying south of the parallel and the east end lying north of it. North and South Korea were divided along a line generally described by the 38th parallel. In 1950, these conflicts escalated dramatically when North Korean forces invaded South Korea, triggering the Korean War. The Demarcation Line is often confused with 38th parallel, but as can be seen in the image of the map, the two are not the same. When Japan surrendered in August 1945, the 38th parallel was established as the boundary between Soviet and American occupation zones. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/place/38th-parallel, Investopedia - Why North Korea and South Korea Are Separated. Backed by the United Nations, with many of the troops furnished by the United States, South Korea resisted and fighting ebbed and flowed up and down the peninsula until the front stabilized just north of the 38th Parallel. With the intervention of Chinese troops in support of the North, the war came to a stalemate roughly along that parallel. The 38th parallel north formed the border between North and South Korea prior to the Korean War. Joe Battaglia Army communication specialist saw action along 38th Parallel in Korea by Don Moore. [1] As soon as the invasion of North Korea came as an alarming surprise to the American officials, they feared this as the first step in a communist campaign to take over the world. 38th Parallel was a Christian rock band formed in Ames, Iowa. 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