General Ridgway’s Korea-U.S. Friendship Award Commemoration Visit Korea\nJulia McKnight Interview with U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Reserves\nGreat-granddaughter of the late General Ridgway who commanded the Battle of Jipyeong-ri

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Julia McKnight meets and interviews Maeil Business Newspaper at The Plaza Hotel in Seoul on the 6th. Lt. Col. McKnight is the great-granddaughter of the late commander of the Eighth U.S. Army, Matthew Ridgway, who led the victory in the Battle of Horizontal-ri against the Chinese military, which is considered an inflection point of the Korean War. At the bottom of the center of the robes is the glider insignia (the glider pilot insignia) that General Ridgway received during World War II. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hoon 사진 확대

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Julia McKnight meets and interviews Maeil Business Newspaper at The Plaza Hotel in Seoul on the 6th. Lt. Col. McKnight is the great-granddaughter of the late commander of the Eighth U.S. Army, Matthew Ridgway, who led the victory in the Battle of Horizontal-ri against the Chinese military, which is considered an inflection point of the Korean War. At the bottom of the center of the robes is the glider insignia (the glider pilot insignia) that General Ridgway received during World War II. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hoon

“If your great-grandfather saw Korea now, he would be surprised to see that freedom is in full bloom. You must have been very happy.”

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Julia McKnight, the great-granddaughter of the late former Eighth Army commander Matthew Ridgway, who is said to have stopped the Chinese military’s “human tactics” for the first time during the Korean War, said in an interview with the Maeil Business Newspaper in Seoul on the 6th.

Lieutenant Colonel McKnight visited Korea with his daughter for the first time this year when the Korea-U.S. Association selected General Ridgway as the winner of the Korea-U.S. Friendship Award.

Lieutenant Colonel McKnight said, “My great-grandfather came to Korea when the coalition was losing ground to Chinese troops in the Korean War. As soon as he took office, he reorganized the military, reviving the soldiers’ will to fight, and made them advance again north of the 38th parallel.”

General Ridgway was suddenly appointed to Korea during Christmas in 1950, when his predecessor died in an accident in the country. The end of 1950 was a time when the coalition forces retreated from Seoul due to the Chinese offensive. Nevertheless, General Ridgway accepted going to Korea as his fate without expressing his intention to refuse.

Lt. Col. McKnight said, “When he first came to Korea and met then-President Syngman Rhee, he said, ‘I’m happy to come to Korea. “To be exact, it’s an honor to stay here,” he said. “After that, I went straight to the front and told the soldiers why we had to fight and boosted my morale.”

“I hope you remember my great-grandfather’s field-oriented leadership,” he said. “He gained trust by paying attention to the details of each soldier.” This was as important as strategic judgment,” he said.

General Ridgway’s “sincere” soon became an accomplishment. The Battle of Jipyeong-ri in 1951, the turning point of the Korean War, is a representative example. General Ridgway, along with France, won a huge victory over 30,000 Chinese troops with 5,000 UN troops. General Ridgway ordered a full-blown counterattack, and U.N. forces retook Seoul after 70 days on March 14.

Lt. Col. McKnight visited Korea for the first time with his daughter Aubrey. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hoon 사진 확대

Lt. Col. McKnight visited Korea for the first time with his daughter Aubrey. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hoon

“The bond between Korea and the U.S., our comrades, is stronger than family.”

Lt. Col. McKnight visited the Jipyeong-ri Battle Memorial in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi-do on this visit. Looking at the actual data, I felt the horrors of war once again. “It has become solemn,” he said, having sent troops to Iraq twice. Nevertheless, he said, “If this was the 1950s and I had been ordered to take office in Korea, I would have done my best like my great-grandfather.”

He said, “There is a saying in the military that ‘combatants who have suffered together form a stronger bond than their families,’ and added, “This bond has been handed down between the U.S. and South Korea through generations.” “This is why the South Korea-U.S. alliance has been able to remain strong for 75 years without being significantly affected by changes in government or policy,” Lt. Col. McKnight explained.

Lt. Col. McKnight said, “Korea is an amazingly resilient country,” adding, “There are many similarities to the United States. It has been trained through war and is also a leading country in technological innovation and culture. Therefore, the friendship between Korea and the United States is very natural and is destined to last a long time, he said.

Lt. Col. McKnight said, “South Korea is strategically very important and has many pending issues, but the U.S. troops who have been assigned to South Korea want to stay in South Korea for a long time, and even after returning to the U.S., they want to go back to South Korea,” adding, “Many people cooperate with the government even after being discharged from the military.” This shows that the United States and South Korea have a special bond,” he said.

He stressed that the Korean and American people need to remember the importance of the Korea-U.S. alliance and its roots more. “Not only the leaders of society but also ordinary people should share the memories of our ancestors,” Lt. Col. McKnight said. “It is a very strong foundation for our relationship to not forget what we have achieved together and to reflect on common values.”