Hull (DD 945) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 73 text:

'1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 5 1 1 11 1 1 1 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 69 Y, , , m

Page 72 text:

Glover House 1 Nagasaki was originally called Fukaenoura or Tamanoura before the district was given as a fief to Kotaro Nagasaki by Yoritomo Mlnamoto. founder of the Kamakura shogunate government in the latter part of the twelfth century. lt did not develop until 1571, when it became an important center for foreign trade. . Many trading ships from Portugal, Spain and Holland constantly visited the port, while Japanese traders made it their home port for trade with China, Philippines and Thailand. The feudal lord of the area,.Sumitada Omura, expanded the city by developing new sections. These areas grew and prospered. Many streets were improved and harbor facilities were expanded as a result of international trade. ln order to exert authority over the Nagasaki area, Hideyoshi Toyotomi. Prime Minister, put Nagawaki directly under the control of the Edo QTokyoj government in 1588. ln 1639 the Tokugawa Shogun- 5 ate government closed all of Japan to any trade or communication with the rest of the world to pre- vent foreign powers from estab- lishing colonies. Only the Dutch and the Chinese were allowed to trade at Nagasaki, the former be- ing confimed to the small island of Denjima in the Bay of Nagasaki. All through the Policy of Seclu- sion, however, foreign learning fil- tered into Japan through Nagasaki particularly in the fields of medi- cine, botany and the military arts. When the country was opened in 1859, Nagasaki attained a major but only temporary importance: many ambitious youths flocked there to acquire Western learning. With the rise of other seats of learning, Nagasaki gradually lost is intellectual primacy and popu- larity. From. 1889 and up to the time of World War ll, Nagasaki experienced prosperity in both trade and communication as the most vital point to China. Nt 1102 on 9 August 1945, the second dropping of an atomic bomb, after Hiroshima, burst in the air 16,000 feet high above the Llrakami

Page 74 text:

District in Nagasaki and killed 73,800 people and wounded 72,900. About 80 percent of those wounded died from atomic disease. About onefthird of the houses in Nagasaki were burned to the ground. Since World War ll the City of Nagasaki has been outspoken in promoting peace. PEACE PARK AND THE STA TUE OF PEACE: Located near the Cultural Center, the Statue of Peace, next page, was placed here at the commemoration ceremony on the tenth anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb. This bronze sculpture of a nude male was made by the donation of the citizens of Nagasaki to console the departed souls of the victims of the atomic bomb and to promote eternal peace in the world. The statue's right hand points to the sky as a warning against further bombing while the left hand stretches out horizontally to symbolize peace. The lightly closed eyelids convey the idea of an earnest prayer for the souls of the war dead. The position of his right leg denotes meditation and quiteness and the left leg char- acteristics of God and Buddha. Located about five minutes from Oura Catholic Church is an old British residence with a beautiful garden overlooking the lovely harbor. lt is the former home of Mr. Thomas Blake Glover who had it built between 1863 and 1866. lt has been designated as an Important National Cultural Asset because of its unique- ness and because it is the oldest wooden western style building in Japan. Mr. Glover was an Englishman who came to Nagasaki in 1859. By taking advantage of the national unrest in Japan in the latter days of the Tokugawa era, he made a fortune by selling weapons and warships to the clans loyal to the government. He was decorated by the government for his contributions to the development of Japan in establishing the first railroad and open- ing a coal mine. He married a Japanese woman named Trurujo and had two children, a daughter Hana and a son Tomisaburo. His son took the Japanese surname Kuraba and was naturalized in Japan. The mansion is publicized as being the setting for the original story on which the opera Madame Butterf7y is based.