This is Plymouth --ABOUT 50 ex-servicemen and their supporters gathered at a service on Plymouth Hoe to mark the 60th anniversary of the Korean War ceasefire, writes Keith Rossiter.
The 1950-53 war for control of the Korean peninsula saw British, American and allied forces under a United Nations banner ranged against North Korean forces supported by China and the Soviet Union.
An armistice was signed in July 1953, but there has never been a formal peace treaty.
Veteran Peter Bower, 87, described how they faced so many Chinese troops that "when they advanced it was like a hillside getting up and moving towards us".
Mr Bower, who served with 5 Battery, 14th Field Regiment Royal Artillery, said the Chinese came in three waves: the first fully armed, the second partially armed, and the third without weapons – picking up rifles from dead soldiers.
He said the winter was so cold that sentries had to move their unit's vehicles every hour to stop them freezing to the ground.
Bob Chitty was a 19-year-old lance corporal when he was injured in one of the early battles in the three-year war.
He was with 27 Infantry Brigade as they broke out of the so-called Pusan Perimeter, a battle which claimed the lives of more than 40,000 US and South Korean forces and their allies, including the British.
Maurice Bradshaw, 83, was captured at the Battle of Imjin River, in April 1951.
Mr Bradshaw served with the Gloucestershire Regiment – the Glosters – who were outnumbered and eventually surrounded by Chinese forces on Hill 235.
Plymouth-born Lieutenant Philip Curtis VC was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross for his gallantry in the same battle.
Mr Bradshaw was captured at dawn on April 24. He said: "We were overwhelmed that night and fell back."
He ran out of ammunition and was injured while he "slid down the hill on my backside".
Medics put a dressing on his wound and he set off on his own, eventually joining up with three other men.
"We crossed the valley floor and came across an abandoned ration tent," he said.
"We hadn't gone 100 yards when there was a burst of machinegun fire and about 12 Chinese came out of the bushes," he said.
Mr Bradshaw was one of about 500 men from the Glosters who were taken prisoner. The Chinese marched them for about four weeks to a PoW camp. Some 25 of the prisoners died on the journey.
Vice Admiral Sir Robert Gerken, former Flag Officer Plymouth, was a midshipman during the Korean War. He is president of the Devon and Cornwall branch of the British Korean Veterans' Association.
With increasing tension on the Korean peninsula, he said: "I hope the United Nations would once again stand up for South Korea against the aggression of the North."
Oliver Colvile, the MP for Plymouth Devonport, attended the service.
He said: "This is the forgotten war. We have to remember the veterans who gave their lives to maintain peace in the world."
He said many of them had suffered the same mental health issues which afflicted Service men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan now.
The service at the Belvedere on Plymouth Hoe on Saturday morning was conducted by the Rev Kevin Bridges.
The veterans were welcomed by Joe Guy, the branch chairman. Reported by This is 3 days ago.