Ships lining up for battle, soldiers battling snow and tanks being fired: Extraordinary colorized pictures bring to life the bloody Korean War which claimed the lives of two million including 33,000 US troops

These stunning pictures include ships lined up on the shore at the Battle of Inchon and fierce battle shots
An electrician from Cardiff, Wales - 54-year-old Royston Leonard - expertly colorized the set of photographs
The Korean War started on June 25, 1950 and ended on July 27, 1953. It was a conflict that killed millions

Extraordinary colorized pictured have brought to life the bloody Korean War which claimed the lives of more than two million civilians and 33,000 troops.
The stunning pictures show ships lined up on the shore at the Battle of Inchon and troops boarding a plane ready for a drop behind enemy lines north of Pyongyang, Korea.
Other images show troops trekking through snow during winter and tanks being fired.
The photographs have been expertly colorized by electrician Royston Leonard, 54, from Cardiff, Wales.

Royston digitally paints over the black and white images and mixes his colours on screen.
'War is hell, no one really wins at the ground level of the battlefield,' said Royston.

Both sides governments could go home to dinner with loved ones, but the families of soldiers had empty plates and spaces in their homes and hearts and when the war finished, the talking started.
'When I was young, I asked if war was really needed and the answer I got was that it isn't but sometimes life gives you no other choice.
'I colour the war photos to show the hard choice made by brave people of that time.'
The Korean War started on June 25, 1950 and ended on July 27, 1953.
During the conflict, nearly five-million people died, almost all of which were from Korea.
More than 33,000 Americans were killed and more than 100,000 were wounded.
'The message is already there for all to see in the pictures themselves but I do feel it helps the younger generation to understand that what happened was real,' added Royston.
'I love giving more life to the pictures and I think that colour improves the story the photographs tell.'

South Korea estimated that the number of civilian deaths in the three-year conflict topped 373,599, and said nearly 138,000 of its troops died in the war.
It is estimated that more than 33,000 US troops were killed in battle, and there were a further 2,830 non-battle deaths.
The country was divided following its liberation from Japan at the end of the Second World War.
The Soviet Union defeated the Japanese army north of the 38th parallel - the division line between north and south - while the US forces fought in the south. In the build-up to the Korean War, the two regions had their own regions, both with their own governments, and both claimed to be the true government of the entire peninsula.
The cost of the Korean War to the US was around $67 billion.
It is estimated that 103,284 servicemen were wounded during the three-year conflict, and more than 7,800 US troops remain unaccounted for.
On June 25, 1950, the UN Security Council denounced North Korean aggression and called for troops to retreat.
The U.N. Security Council denounced North Korea's actions and called for a cessation of hostilities and withdrawal of the NKPA to the 38th parallel.
Five days later, President Harry S. Truman ordered troops into action.


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Marines of the US 1st Marine Division watch F4U Corsairs drop napalm on Chinese positions near the Chosin Reservoir; December 26th, 1950. A mushroom cloud spews into the air after US troops fired at their enemies. A vehicle fitted with a caterpillar track like the ones seen on a tank can be seen up ahead making its way towards enemy territory. The soldiers are all dressed in multiple layers and are carrying their bulky equipment which includes a rifle with a bayonet attached to the end of it

[b]Operation Chromite in action as American forces land in Inchon harbor one day after the Battle of Inchon began on September 16, 1950. Four LST ships unload men and equipment while high and dry at low tide on Inchon's Red Beach on the day after the initial landings there. LST-715 is on the right end of this group, which also includes LST-611, LST-845, and one other. Another LST is beached on the tidal mud flats at the far right. Note bombardment damage to the building in center foreground, many trucks at work, Wolmi-Do Island in the left background and the causeway connecting the island to Inchon. The ship in the far distance, just beyond the right end of Wolmi-Do, is the Lyman K. Swenson (DD-729). The landings at Inchon were General MacArthur's masterstroke. As Eight Army struggled to maintain fighting room in the southeast of Korea, he had his thoughts fixed upon a possible landing in the enemies rear to reverse the war. The biggest logistical challenge was to have all units, their equipment and supplies, as well as transports, landing ships and craft, and other ships, ready in time for D-day[/b]

Airborne troops of the 187th Regimental Combat Team 'Rakkasans'board a C-119 'Flying Boxcar' of 314th Troop Carrier Group for their drop behind enemy lines north of Pyonyang, Korea. It took place on 20th October, 1950 as part of an airborne assault on the North Korean towns of Sukchon and Sunchon which laid 48km north of Pyongyang. The mission objective was to cut off an estimated 30,000 retreating North Korean soldiers and rescue US Prisoners of War believed to be with those forces. Departing from Kimpo Airfield near Seoul, this was the first operation in the history of the airborne that paratroopers would be dropped from C-119, and the first time heavy equipment would be dropped into enemy territory. During this operation 4,000 men, 600 tons of equipment and supplies were dropped. These included twelve 105 mm howitzers, 39 jeeps, 38 1/4-ton trailers, four 90 mm antiaircraft guns, four 3/4-ton trucks, as well as ammunition, fuel, water, rations, and other supplies

A dozen or so American soldiers rush towards a US Army helicopter which landed in the battlefield of the Korean War. A second chopper can be seen behind the one the soldiers are bracing themselves to pile into. One of the troops' comrades can be seen inside the aircraft ready to help his platoon on board. The helicopter is Sikorsky H-19 and the infantry troops about to board helicopters to be transported to front lines, at the 6th transportation helicopter, are the eighth Army, in Korea in 1953

Both sides governments could go home to
dinner with loved ones, but the families
of soldiers had empty plates and spaces
in their homes and hearts and when the
war finished
Now this is something to ponder on.