Tatsuta Maru
Encyclopedia
The , also known as Tatuta Maru after 1938, was a Japan
ese ocean liner
owned by Nippon Yusen Kaisha
. The ship was built in 1927-1930 by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding & Engineering Co.
at Nagasaki, Japan
.
The Tatsuta Maru was built for the trans-Pacific Orient-California fortnightly service. Principal ports-of-call included Hong Kong, Shanghai, Kobe, Yokohama, Honolulu, Los Angeles & San Francisco.
The vessel was created as a twin of the Asama Maru
; and both ships were named after important Shinto shrines.
Both vessels were built by Mitsubishi at Nagasaki on the southern island of Kyushu. The Tatsuta Maru was launched on April 12, 1929. She undertook her maiden voyage on March 15, 1930, sailing from Yokohama to San Francisco.
The 16,975-ton vessel had a length of 583 feet (178 m), and her beam was 71 feet (22 m). The ship had 4 diesel motors, quadruple screws and an average speed of 21-knots. The Asama Maru was the second Japanese passenger liner to be propelled by diesel engines.
for the Imperial Japanese Navy
.
On February 8, 1943, Tatsuta Maru was torpedoed and sunk by an enemy submarine (USS Tarpon
) 42 miles east of Mikurajima
.
Some 1,400 Japanese soldiers on board were killed.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese ocean liner
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
owned by Nippon Yusen Kaisha
Nippon Yusen
Japan-based or NYK Line, is one of the largest shipping companies in the world. It is a core Mitsubishi company. The company has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo.-1870-1900:...
. The ship was built in 1927-1930 by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding & Engineering Co.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
, or MHI, is a Japanese company. It is one of the core companies of Mitsubishi Group.-History:In 1870 Yataro Iwasaki, the founder of Mitsubishi took a lease of Government-owned Nagasaki Shipyard. He named it Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, and started the shipbuilding business on a full scale...
at Nagasaki, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
The Tatsuta Maru was built for the trans-Pacific Orient-California fortnightly service. Principal ports-of-call included Hong Kong, Shanghai, Kobe, Yokohama, Honolulu, Los Angeles & San Francisco.
The vessel was created as a twin of the Asama Maru
Asama Maru
The was a Japanese ocean liner owned by Nippon Yusen Kaisha. The ship was built in 1927-1929 by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. at Nagasaki, Japan....
; and both ships were named after important Shinto shrines.
History
The shipyard number of the first passenger liner built by NYK was 450 (Asama Maru) and 451 was the yard number of her sister ship, the Tatsuta Maru.Both vessels were built by Mitsubishi at Nagasaki on the southern island of Kyushu. The Tatsuta Maru was launched on April 12, 1929. She undertook her maiden voyage on March 15, 1930, sailing from Yokohama to San Francisco.
The 16,975-ton vessel had a length of 583 feet (178 m), and her beam was 71 feet (22 m). The ship had 4 diesel motors, quadruple screws and an average speed of 21-knots. The Asama Maru was the second Japanese passenger liner to be propelled by diesel engines.
Pacific War
In 1941, the Tatsuta Maru was requisitioned as a troopshipTroopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
for the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
.
On February 8, 1943, Tatsuta Maru was torpedoed and sunk by an enemy submarine (USS Tarpon
USS Tarpon (SS-175)
USS Tarpon , second ship of this name, was laid down on 22 December 1933 at Groton, Connecticut, by the Electric Boat Corporation; launched on 4 September 1935; sponsored by Miss Eleanore Katherine Roosevelt, daughter of Assistant Secretary of the Navy Henry L. Roosevelt; and commissioned on 12...
) 42 miles east of Mikurajima
Mikurajima
is a volcanic Japanese island in the Philippine Sea, administered by Tōkyō Metropolis and located approximately south of Tokyo and south-southeast of Miyakejima. It is one of the Izu Seven Islands group of the seven northern islands of the Izu archipelago....
.
Some 1,400 Japanese soldiers on board were killed.
See also
- List by death toll of ships sunk by submarines
- List of ocean liners
- Tatsuta ShrineTatsuta Shrineis a Shinto shrine located in Sangō, Nara in Japan. The shrine is also known in Japanese as .The Shrine became the object of Imperial patronage during the early Heian period. In 965, Emperor Murakami ordered that Imperial messengers were sent to report important events to the guardian kami of Japan...
External links
- DerbySulzer: Tatsuta Maru