The Kagnew Battalions () were a number of military units from the Imperial Ethiopian Army which fought as part of  United Nations Command in the Korean War (1950–53). The battalions rotated yearly, with the First Kagnew Battalion arriving at the front in 1951. The Third Kagnew Battalion which arrived in 1953, stayed through the signing of the armistice into 1954. Over the next two years more Ethiopians guarded the stalemate in Korea as part of the Fourth Kagnew Battalion and the Fifth Kagnew Company. Even though some publications indicate Ethiopians remained in Korea until 1965, in fact they remained a part of the United Nations Command until 1975. Members of Kagnew Battalion were, with few exceptions, drawn from the Ethiopian Imperial Bodyguard Division.

Altogether, 3,158 Ethiopians served in Kagnew Battalions during the war.

Etymology
"Kagnew" (Amharic: Judge) was the name of Ras Makonnen's warhorse. Ras Makonnen was one of Emperor Menelik II's generals during the First Italo-Ethiopian War and Haile Selassie's father.

Background

At the outbreak of war in the Korean peninsula in 1950, the United Nations sent a plea to its member nations for military assistance. Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, an ardent supporter of collective security, pledged to dispatch an infantry battalion.

The Armed Forces of the Ethiopian Empire at that time consisted of the Imperial Bodyguard Division, three army divisions, a budding air force and a provincial/territorial/reserve army. The Imperial Bodyguard Division (Kebur Zabagna) was the most elite military force in the empire with responsibility for safeguarding the royal household and maintaining internal security. Therefore, the battalions destined to Korea were drawn mostly from the officers and men of the Imperial Bodyguard Division. They were then given intensive training in the mountains of Ethiopia for acclimatization.

Performance in the Korean War

The Kagnews served with great distinction, principally alongside the 7th Infantry Division, and by all accounts (including the enemy's) acquitted themselves well in battle, suffering 121 dead and 536 wounded during the course of the conflict.

One of the feats S. L. A. Marshall thought worth noting was an Ethiopian patrol at the Battle of Pork Chop Hill in 1953 when "...under full observation from enemy country, eight Ethiopians walked 800 yards across no-man's land and up the slope of T-Bone Hill right into the enemy trenches. When next we looked, the eight had become ten. The patrol was dragging back two Chinese prisoners, having snatched them from the embrace of the Communist battalion..."

British military historian John Keegan notes that the Ethiopian units drawn from the Imperial Guard  ("an over-privileged and somewhat pampered force") fought with some distinction in Korea between 1951 and 1954, although performing less competently in the Congo (1960–64).

At least nine Silver Star Medals and dozens of Bronze Star Medals were also awarded to the Ethiopians by the United States. Two members, Lieutenant Colonel Teshome Irgetu and 2nd Lt. Haptewold Mamo, were awarded the highest Ethiopian gallantry award, and became "Knights of the Order of Emperor Menelik II".

Post War 
When the US established a military base in the newly-federated Eritrea in 1953, they renamed the base Kagnew Station in honor of the officers and men who served so admirably in Korea.

Kagnew's exploits have been covered in detail in Pork Chop Hill by S.L.A. Marshall. Commenting on the fighting dogma of the Ethiopians Marshall states, "Like Horatius at the bridge or the screaming eagles at Bastogne, it was a classic fight, ending in clean triumph over seemingly impossible odds". Pointing out that war correspondents who were drawn to the headline values of such operations as Little Switch the 163 war correspondents overlooked the equally interesting and unrivaled Ethiopian feats.[...]

When the Communist Junta of Mengistu Hailemariam came to power in 1974, it did everything to erase the "embarrassing" record of the Kagnew's service against the communists.

The Imperial Bodyguard Association has existed quietly since the division was dissolved by the Derg military junta and continues to celebrate the accomplishments of the officers and men not only of the Kagnew Battalion but of the Guard at large. It is currently under the leadership of Brigadier General Desta Gemeda (Ret.). The Korean War Veterans Association is under the leadership of Colonel Melesse Tessema (Ret.).

Publications 
In 1954, Greek journalist Kimon Skordiles chronicled the exploits of the Ethiopian troops in his book Kagnew, the Story of the Ethiopian Fighters in Korea, even while his own countrymen were operating in the same theater of war. In 2008, the son of a Kagnew veteran translated that work into Amharic paying tribute to the officers and men of the three battalions, the Emperor who had the foresight to send them and authors S.L.A. Marshall and Kimon Skordiles for their efforts in ensuring that the feat of those that had served was not forgotten.

In 2019, Helion & Company published Emperor's Own: The History of the Ethiopian Imperial Bodyguard Battalion in the Korean War as part of their Asia@War series following the success of their Africa@War series. The book was distributed worldwide.

See also 
 United Nations Forces in the Korean War
 Medical support in the Korean War

References

Further reading
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-1 (Ethiopia, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1972 (E-BOOK) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-1 (Ethiopia, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1972 (PDF) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-6 (Summary) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1977 (E-BOOK) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-6 (Summary) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1977 (PDF) 

 The Korean War and the UN Forces - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 2015 (E-BOOK)  
 The Korean War and the UN Forces - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 2015 (PDF)  
 The Statistics of the Korean War - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 2014 (E-BOOK)  
 The Statistics of the Korean War - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 2014 (PDF)  
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1998 (E-BOOK)  
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1998 (PDF)  
 The Summary of the Korean War - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1986 (PDF)  
 The History of the Korean War-10:  The UN Forces (Australia, Belgium, Luxembourg, Canada, Colombia, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Netherlands) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1980 (E-BOOK)  
 The History of the Korean War-10: The UN Forces (Australia, Belgium, Luxembourg, Canada, Colombia, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Netherlands) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1980 (PDF)  

 Kimon Skordiles, Kagnew, the Story of the Ethiopian Fighters in Korea, 1954.
 S.L.A. Marshall, Pork Chop Hill, 1964
Dagmawi Abebe, Emperor's Own: The History of the Ethiopian Imperial Bodyguard Battalion in the Korean War, 2019
F. Ayele, The Ethiopian Army from Victory to Collapse, 2014, 21-22.

External links

 Ethiopian Korean War Veterans website
 An Ethiopian hero of the Korean War, bbc.co.uk
 Website with similar pictures of Kagnew Battalions

Kagnew Battalion Blog

Military units and formations of Ethiopia
Military units and formations established in 1951
United Nations Forces in the Korean War
Military units and formations disestablished in 1965
Ethiopia
1951 establishments in Ethiopia
에티오피아 제국의 칵뉴 대대()는 한국 전쟁 당시 국제 연합에 의해 편성된 유엔군의 병력 중 하일레 셀라시에 황제의 명령으로 한반도에 파병한 에티오피아의 파병부대로, 이들 중에는 황실 근위대에서 차출된 병사들도 포함되어 있었다. 이들은 1951년 6월부터 1954년 4월까지 활동했으며, 한국 전쟁이 끝난 이후에도 칵뉴 대대의 몇몇 병력은 1965년까지 대한민국에 남았다. 칵뉴 대대에서 모두 3,158명의 에티오피아인들이 활약했고, 이들은 싸우기만 하면 승리하는 대대로, 터키 여단과 함께 명성을 떨쳤다.

부대의 명칭 
"칵뉴"는 에티오피아어로 '혼돈에서 질서를 확립한다' 또는 '격파하라'는 뜻이며, 제1차 이탈리아-에티오피아 전쟁 당시 메넬리크 2세의 참모이자 하일레 셀라시에 황제의 아버지인 라스 마코넨이 타고 다녔던 전쟁 말의 이름이다.  당시 에티오피아 제국의 군부대 명칭은 유명한 군사령관의 전쟁 말의 이름으로 지어지게 되어있다.

부대의 편성 
한국전쟁 당시 한반도로 파병된 칵뉴 대대는 육군에 소속된 부대들이 지원했으며, 또한 황실 근위대인 메할 세파리에서 소속된 장교들과 병사들도 차출되어 칵뉴 대대에 소속된 경우가 많았다. 이들은 에티오피아의 산지에서 집중적으로 훈련을 받아왔기에 파병된 지역에 익숙해지려고 했다. 또한 이 밖에도 공군과 해군도 임시적으로  지원한 적도 있었다.

한국 전쟁에서의 활약 

칵뉴 대대는 미국 제7보병사단과 함께 탁월한 전투 능력을 발휘했다. 전쟁 기간 121명이 죽고 536명이 부상을 입었다. 전쟁이 끝날 무렵 에티오피아 정부는 북한에 포로를 석방하라고 요구할 필요가 없었는데, 그 이유는 칵뉴 대대 병사들이 항복을 하지 않았기 때문이었다. 칵뉴 대대는 전투에서 한번도 진 적이 없었다. 칵뉴 대대는 238번의 전투를 치렀고, 교전 때마다 승리했다. 그들은 자기 부대원의 시체를 두고 가지 않았으며, 이는 칵뉴 대대 병사들이 전투에서 죽었다는 것을 알리지 않기 위함이었다. 이러한 칵뉴 대대의 모습은 미군 동료들에게 존경심을 불러 일으켰다.

영국의 군 역사학자 존 키간은 황실 근위대에서 모집된 에티오피아의 파병부대가 1960년부터 1964년까지 콩고에서 싸운 것보다 1951년부터 1954년까지 한국에서 더 특별한 능력을 보여주었다고 말했다. 참전한 이들은 1개의 은성무공훈장과 18개의 동성훈장을 수여받았으며, 이르게투 중령과 합테울드 마모 중위는 에티오피아인들이 받은 것 중 가장 높은 등급의 수훈을 받은 것이었다. 또한, 추가로 대대는 메넬리크 황제의 기사장을 받았다.

같이 보기 
 6.25 전쟁 유엔군 파병 국가
 6.25 전쟁 의료지원단 파견 국가

참고 문헌 
 6.25 전쟁과 유엔군 - 국방부 군사편찬연구소, 2015 (E-BOOK) 
 6.25 전쟁과 유엔군 - 국방부 군사편찬연구소, 2015 (PDF) 
 통계로 본 6.25 전쟁 - 국방부 군사편찬연구소, 2014 (E-BOOK) 
 통계로 본 6.25 전쟁 - 국방부 군사편찬연구소, 2014 (PDF) 
 유엔군 지원사 - 국방부 군사연구소, 1998 (E-BOOK) 
 유엔군 지원사 - 국방부 군사연구소, 1998 (PDF) 
 한국전쟁 요약 - 국방부 전사편찬위원회, 1986 (PDF) 
 한국전쟁사 제10권 - 유엔군 참전편 (오스트레일리아, 벨기에, 룩셈부르크, 캐나다, 콜롬비아, 에티오피아, 프랑스, 그리스, 네덜란드) - 국방부 전사편찬위원회, 1979, (E-BOOK) 
 한국전쟁사 제10권 - 유엔군 참전편 (오스트레일리아, 벨기에, 룩셈부르크, 캐나다, 콜롬비아, 에티오피아, 프랑스, 그리스, 네덜란드) - 국방부 전사편찬위원회, 1979, (PDF) 

 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-1 (Ethiopia, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1972 (E-BOOK) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-1 (Ethiopia, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1972 (PDF) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-6 (Summary) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1977 (E-BOOK) 
 The History of the UN Forces in the Korean War-6 (Summary) - ROK Ministry of National Defense Institute for Military History, 1977 (PDF)

각주

외부 링크 
 Komon Skordiles, Kagnew, the story of the Ethiopian fighters in Korea, 1954.
 S.L.A. Marshall, Pork Chop Hill, 1964
 에티오피아 한국전 참전 기념관

1951년 설립
1965년 폐지
한국 전쟁에 참전한 대대
에티오피아의 군사사
나라별 한국 전쟁
한국 전쟁 유엔군 파병 국가
나라별 한국 전쟁의 부대 및 편성