Lt. Tahir Ün 1926 - 1950
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English Summary Lt. Tahir Ün, b. 1926 Akhisar, Turkey, graduated from the Turkish Military School in 1947 and joined the Turkish Brigade sent to Korea in October 1950 as a signals officer. He landed to Pusan on October 19, 1950 and moved North with the US Corps to reach Kunuri region. In addition to the worst wheather and land conditions, overwhelming Chinese attacks began on November 26, 1950. Chinese were numerically superior and US Corps were forced to withdraw while ordering the Turkish Brigade to engage with the enemy. Turks were only 5,455 men against tens of thousands of Chinese. However, they were successful in holding them for two days and providing a safe retreat frame for the Corps at the cost of losing 70% of their manpower.
The Battle of Kunuri/Chongchon in November 1950, has been described as one of the worst conditions experienced in the whole Korean War and it had tragic outcomes for the Turkish Troops. The Turkish Brigade suffered 3,514 casualties, of which 741 were killed in action, 2,068 wounded and 705 missing/taken prisoner/other. Lt. Tahir Ün is the first and the only signals officer killed in action in the entire military history of the Republic of Turkey so far. His name is listed in the UN Korean War Cemetery in Pusan, Korea. In his hometown, Akhisar, citizens have expressed their pride in Lt. Tahir Ün by giving his name to the main avenue, making his name live forever. Today, Tahir Ün Avenue is a busy downtown promenade connecting the city market to the train station. Korean War is a very important event in Turkish history, which has brought Turkish, American and South Korean peoples closer. We hereby express our respects and gratitude to Lt. Tahir Ün and all other Turkish soldiers whose bravery and fidelity are our monuments of honor. We shall never forget them. |
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(c) 1995-2023 Ün Family |
In
that terrible night of November 27, 1950, Lt. Tahir Ün was with US
liaison officer Capt. Michael J.
Lorenzo, a teacher in Mamak Communications School (Ankara) and a
friend, trying to turn a large radio truck back on a narrow mountain
pass. This truck mounted radio was critical in providing the main
communication between the Turkish Brigade
and the US Corps. The road was so narrow, it didn't allow the large
truck to maneuver. The truck's wheels
had run off the road. A very sudden Chinese attack at around 23:30
local time caught them trying to move the
truck back to the road. Numerically superior Chinese wiped off the
small signals squad.
Lt. Tahir Ün was killed in action. Capt. Lorenzo was taken prisoner to
be released 3 years later,
in Sept 1953. Unfortunately, the territory has been lost forever and
Lt. Tahir Ün's body has never been
recovered.
