Ōurasaki Special Attack Base (P Base) Monument
Kure City, Hiroshima Prefecture
Ōurasaki Park, located along the Inland Sea in Ondo-chō (part of Kure City
since 2005), has a monument to remember Ōurasaki Special Attack Base, a special
submarine base with the code name of P Base. The monument stands just off the
park's beach facing the Inland Sea, where special submarine crews trained during
WWII.
Special submarines are usually referred to as midget submarines outside of
Japan. Kohyoteki special submarines carried out attacks early in the war
at Pearl Harbor, Sydney, and Diégo Suarez in Madagascar.
The monument has the following inscription:
In October 1942, construction of a factory began in strict secrecy and opened
for production in the following March. This was the Kure Naval Arsenal factory
that specialized in production of Kōhyōteki special submarines. Crew
training also began here at the same time. The number of trainees, including
pilots and support personnel, totaled 2,600 men, and 439 of these men died during the
war.
The duties of this base included Kōhyōteki production, crew
training, and research and development of special attack weapons. In 1945, the
base completed Type D Kōhyōteki (Kōryū) special submarines, and it
achieved a useful level of Kaiten (human torpedo) production.
Preparations were made for the expected decisive
battle for the homeland, but on August 15 of the same year the war ended, and the
base was abolished. Now it has become a peaceful park that townspeople can enjoy
as a place of recreation and relaxation.
Erected February 1992
The Special Submarine Monument at Hachimanyama Jinja
is located about one kilometer from Ōurasaki Park.
|
