Scarborough National Service veteran urges people to remember those who lost their lives
89 year-old Ken Keld served in Korea
A National Service veteran from Scarborough is urging people to remember those who lost their lives.
89-year-old Ken Keld was part of the Duke Of Wellington's Regiment in the Third Battle of the Hook in Korea. The last main fight took place on this day in 1953.
He said: "When I was posted to the Green Howards at Richmond Barracks on my second day I was asked many questions with the last one being 'have I thought about signing up?' When my answer was 'no' they said 'you'll go to Korea.' When the Duke of Wellington was posted to Korea from Germany, I was sent with 30 colleagues to join them in Korea.
"Many 18 and 19 year-olds lost their lives in Korea. I'm one of the fortunate and in my platoon alone I lost quite a lot of friends so I've always tried to carry on to make sure they aren't forgotten.
"At first I wouldn't have joined up voluntarily but once you were called up you made the best of it. You met a lot of friends which I still have quite a few of today but not as many as I would like to have but that's life. It just goes on and I'm one of the fortunate people to still be here.
"The Hook covered the main supply route back to Seoul and if the Chinese had succeeded in getting the Hook, they'd have pushed the United Nations back down to Seoul and the Korean war would have gone on for a lot longer, but they had to sit back licking their wounds more than the British or Americans.
"Our first thoughts were that we were being sent to death row, we had no idea what to expect. I had never experienced anything like it and hope I never will again. I’ll never forget the collapsed fighting pits and bunkers and shallow trenches, due to the heavy bombardment. Most of all the stench of decaying flesh from buried limbs and bodies has stayed with me.
“Our last parade on Korean soil was at the United Nations Cemetery for a very emotional memorial service and to pay an everlasting farewell to our fallen comrades. I don’t think there was a dry eye on that parade and after the service we were allowed to visit the graves of our friends and colleagues.
“We’ve lost a lot of our lads - on May 28, 1953, there were more than 40 of us in our battalion, but only 17 walked away that day, eleven were taken prisoner and the rest were wounded. We were a very close-knit group, but only five of us are left now from that original platoon.”
Ken is still active in the Korean War Veterans Association, and secretary for two branches of the 2nd Battalion Green Howards. He also wrote a book about his experiences called 'You’re Going to Korea!'
National Service
National Service was completed between 1947 and 1963 by able bodied men aged 17-21 years old. More than two million men were conscripted following the end of the Second World War, with 395 National Servicemen killed during their service. The names of those killed are inscribed on the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum, and the service of all those who performed National Service is commemorated by the National Service Memorial.
While National Service ended in 1960, those who had deferred their service still needed to complete it. The last known National Serviceman to be demobbed was Second Lieutenant Richard Vaughan, Royal Army Pay Corps who was discharged 16th May 1963.