The Glorious Glosters: How American Newspapers Portrayed the Actions of a British Regiment in Korea

Grayson Peoples

In April 1951, the Korean War was going badly for the UN coalition in their fight against communist expansion. The Chinese intervention had pushed UN forces from the Yalu River almost all the way to Seoul and threatened to retake the Korean capital. The Truman Administration was bombarded by letters from heartbroken loved ones as the number of allied war dead rose without an end in sight. Morale was at a critical low, but on the hills near the Imjin River, a defiant stand was by the British First Royal Gloucestershire Battalion, which was able to stall the communist advance and save the UN war effort. Their individuality, patriotism, and heroic manliness was praised by American newspapers, who credited these attributes with their victory against communism and who used the story of the Glosters to resurrect American morale.

• Grayson Peoples is a graduating senior Honors College member preparing to graduate with a B.A. in history. She is a member of the Alpha Chi National College Honor Society, the Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society, and the LU History Club. Grayson has participated in multiple history internships, with the most recent being with the Charleston Museum where she worked as a helper for the kids camp at the Dill Sanctuary and worked as a tour guide at the historic Joseph Manigault House.