Remembering Hill 355 — a forgotten battle in an almost forgotten war

The moment from the Korean War that sticks with retired lieutenant-colonel Brian Simons happened at the beginning of the Battle of Hill 355 — a now largely forgotten struggle in an often overlooked war.

A young signaller attached to the Royal Canadian Regiment, Simons — a newly minted lieutenant at the time — was up on the rocky hillside at a battalion outpost when Chinese artillery and mortars opened up with their first deafening barrage.

"It was noisy," Simons, 92, told CBC News in an interview from his home in North Vancouver. "We were firing artillery and mortars as well, and machine guns and so on.

"During the day there was a heck of a lot of noise, but when the Chinese mortars landed, of course, not only was it noisy, but some of our boys were hurt and killed."

On his way back to headquarters, shells whistled overhead and pounded the hilltop, kicking up great gasps of dirt and dust, turning the hillside a chalky white.

Other soldiers, speaking years after the battle, swore the Chinese bombardment was so intense it shaved a foot off the top of the summit.

"It looked like the whole top of the hill exploded at once," said former lance corporal Gordon Bennett, who was with a company of soldiers that had just come off the hill and gone into reserve behind the lines.

Simons made his way down the hill under fire and ran into another young officer, just arrived from Canada, waiting for a jeep. They struck up a conversation before he continued on.

On duty at the headquarters half an hour later, the phone rang. Simons learned a mortar had landed at the spot where he'd been standing and the young officer, only a few hours at the front, had been mortally wounded in the head.

"It was upsetting," Simons said.

The Battle of Hill 355 raged over Oct. 23 and 24, 1952 — 70 years ago.

It took place at what the South Koreans call Kowang San, 40 kilometres north of Seoul. It represented a personal milestone for Simons — his first time in major combat.

Historians see the battle as an important turning point in the war, one that helped shape the perception of the conflict down the decades.

For Simons, the experience was far more vivid and personal than anything a history text could convey.