Much about the Korean War still is hidden and much will long remain
hidden. Nevertheless, an attempt was made by the author to give a
historical account of the 7th Cavalry Regiment's activities during
Occupation Duty in Japan after World War II and combat actions within
the Korean War. This was accomplished by exploring all known official
existing records in the National Military Archives, which have been
quoted freely and very often verbatim to give a truthful view of events
as they existed at that particular time.
Throughout the years, the original records of the 7th Cavalry Regiment
have suffered from many disasters. On March 30, 1952, a fire destroyed
the regimental headquarters in Japan, and everything was burned except
the regimental colors. To further complicate the matter, but to comply
with orders, many valuable records were destroyed to accomplish what
they thought was "cleaning out useless files." What this actually caused
or created was the existence of incomplete and often inaccurate records.
Perhaps this book will have an eye-opening effect for the reader and
will stir memories and answer questions that still prevail or persist.
For those who were there, survived the many struggles and hardships, and
turned the tide of defeat to victory, I salute all of you. I apologize
and ask forgiveness for any errors or omissions that annoy all of those
who dare to analyze the confusion, the chaos of battle, to a smartly
phrased story. --from the Preface
