What was the history of the Korean War?

Answer 1

In simple terms:

Korea was occupied by the Japanese during WWII.

At the end of the war the country was arbitrarily divided into North and South to suit USSR and USA desires. An entire paper could be written simply on how, when and where the division was agreed and why the 38th parallel ended up being the demarcation line.

Following on from this there was widespread revolt in Korea against the division - they of course had not been consulted.

To appease the right wing protesters the US went back on agreements they had made with the USSR and gave autonomy to the South, who elected a capitalist government and declared themselves to be the Republic of South Korea.

In the North. Kim Il Sung rose to power in what became the People's Republic of Korea.

Both North and South wanted a united Korea but each under their own terms.

Having turned the country into a powder keg, the USSR and US withdrew in 1948-49 and left the Koreans to it.

There were then cross border incidents which eventually resulted in the North invading the South.

All of this must be considered in the context of the Cold War. Both the US and USSR had their political hands in the mix and both had reasons for supporting their ideology.

I have tried to be objective here as well as brief. It is a fascinating subject and deserves a more in depth answer.