二次世界大戰資料庫 (WW2DB)

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Japanese Navy established the Kure Naval District (or Second Naval District) in Hiroshima Prefecture in southwestern Japan in 1889. In the following year, construction of a major shipbuilding and ship repairing facility began, under the direction of French engineer Louis-Émile Bertin; some of the equipment that would be installed at Kure were moved from the former Onohama shipyard near the city of Kobe to the east. In 1897, unprotected cruiser Miyako became the first ship to be launched at Kure. In 1903, after a naval reorganization, the shipyard was officially named Kure Naval Arsenal. In the early 1900s, Japan proclaimed Kure to be the most advanced shipyard in East Asia. Over the years, major steel works, ammunition works, and other heavy industrial plants were established to support the Kure Naval Arsenal, some with foreign expertise, namely British and French. By the 1930s, Kure had emerged as one of the four main warship-building shipyards of the Japanese Navy. Among the shipyard's well known productions were Japan's first fleet carrier Akagi, largest battleship in the world Yamato, and submarine I-168 which sank USS Yorktown during the Battle of Midway. Notable commanding officers of the Kure Naval District, who oversaw the operations of the naval arsenal from a high level, included future diplomat Admiral Kichisaburo Nomura (1930-1931), future Combined Fleet commanding officer Admiral Soemu Toyoda (1941-1942), and Pearl Harbor raider Admiral Chuichi Nagumo (1943), among others. The importance of the shipyard, as was the importance of the naval district overall, led to it being a main target for US attacks during the war. By the time the war ended, over 70% of the buildings and equipment of the Kure Naval Arsenal was deemed destroyed beyond repair; approximately 1,900 workers and other personnel stationed at Kure were killed. After the war, the shipyard was turned over to Ishikawajima Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, Limited, a civilian firm, while some of the naval facilities were taken over by the US Navy.

ww2dbaseToday the facilities formerly of the Kure Naval Arsenal are operated by IHI Corporation, a successor entity of Ishikawajima. The Kure Maritime Museum, nicknamed "Yamato Museum", opened its door in 2005 just to the north of the shipyard.

Ships Constructed at Kure Naval Arsenal

Kure Naval Arsenal 互動地圖

Photographs

Kure Naval Arsenal Timeline

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