SS Kimigayo Maru

Second Kimigayo Maru Photograph

SS Kimigayo Maru was a passenger and cargo ship that had been operating the Osaka and Jeju Island route, when Korea had been ruled by Japan lawfully, from 1922 through 1945. First and Second Kimigayo Maru were present. At that time, for he route between Japan and the Korean Peninsula, it was as one of the few available outside the ferry.

First Kimigayo Maru

First Kimigayo Maru was 669 tons of the ship (Swaerdecroon) which was built in the Netherlands in 1891 . And It had been available in Jeju route from 1922 . In the adjoining near seas of Oita Prefecture Himejima on May 23, 1945 , it was sinking in contact with the laid the underwater mine by the US military .

Second Kimigayo Maru

The commonly spoken as Kimigayo Maru was this Second Kimigayo Maru. Second Kimigayo Maru was purchased in 1925 as a surrogate ship when it ran aground in a typhoon in September 1925 , it was 919 tons and the total length 62.7 meters . The ship was originally a warship of the Soviet Union government , it had been renovated in Osaka after the purchase . After that , it began to be used as a passenger and cargo ship between Osaka and Jeju Island in 1926 . In Japan , in April 1945 , it had been recorded and sank received the air raid of US forces the place that was in the vicinity Ajigawa . On the other hand, according to the US Navy 's official chronology , it had become a sunk by B-29 bombers during the Osaka air raid of June 1 .

Voyage

Between Osaka and Jeju Island was a voyage of about two days. If the ship departed in the morning to Osaka , arriving in Jeju Island was scheduled to arrive in the evening of the next day . As it was on call at a total of 11 locations in around the Jeju Island over two days. However, since the berthing possible quay there were no , cargo handling was relied on barge . The ship had tourist class cabin under deck and first class cabin on the deck . At the time , when the white rice meal provided to passenger, it is said to have surprised Jeju islanders that was eating barley. it was said that it was a filthy environment has been packed with a lot of passengers and luggage to the tourist class cabin . However , as the immigrant ship of the time it was a common treatment , and it was a situation similar to the steerage of South America line .

Episode

• Although capacity was 365 people , there were nearly twice the number of capacity always on board .
• The ship carried the migrant people from many of the Korean Peninsula . Osaka Port of New Year that was full of Korean families of migrant people and send-off for homecoming .
• April 1928 , there was trouble for the fare between the Jeju Island residents and management company . At the time of the fare was 12.5 yen , migrant woman of daily wage was 1 yen . Therefore, , the demand for better conditions of price cuts and the passengers had happened . Although the company did not negotiate , at a later date other companies ( Toa transit union ) gave lower fare than that , but the company became bankrupt by deficits . So it was common sense fare to think that.

Footnote

Cressman, Robert. “Chapter VII: 1945”, The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II, Annapolis MD: Naval Institute Press, 1999.

References

• Shin Jaekyung (2007-01). "The historical discussion of Kimigayo Maru". The Kyoto Sosei University review (Seibi University) 7: 15–28. Check date values in: |date= (help)