Today is National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day.

The Korean War started on June 25, 1950, when North Korea suddenly started rolling tanks across the 38th parallel. The communist assault was initially successful. It ended at 10 a.m. on July 27, 1953.

More than 23,600 .S. service members had died during the fighting. Between 300,000 and 900,000 communist troops were killed, along with an estimated 2.5 million Korean civilians. South Korea's defense ministry estimates more than 137,000 South Korean troops died in the war. Relatively little territory changed hands, given the volume of the destruction the war caused.

The Korean War Veterans Memorial was confirmed on April 20, 1986. On Flag Day in 1992, then-President George H.W. Bush presided over the groundbreaking on the National Mall, where the memorial now stands.

Three years after the memorial was finished, U.S. Code Title 36 was amended to recognize Korean War Veterans Armistice Day in the United States every July 27. While not a federal holiday, the law asks Americans to recognize the day with appropriate activities and ceremonies.

Source: Military.com