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Nagasaki (長崎市;
Nagasaki-shi) is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki
prefecture located at the south-western coast of Kyushu, Japan.
As of
2003, the city has an estimated
population of 418,901 and the
density of 1,736.74 persons per
km². The total area is 241.20 km².
History
Founded before
1500, it was originally a secluded harbor village with little historical
significance until contact with European explorers in the mid-16th
century, when a
Portuguese ship accidentally landed at
Kagoshima prefecture in
1542. The zealous
Jesuit
missionary
Francis Xavier arrived in another part of the territory in
1549, but although he left for
China in
1551 and died soon after departure his followers who remained behind
converted a number of daimyo (warlords). The most notable among them was
Omura Sumitada, who derived great
profit from his conversion through an accompanying deal to receive a portion
of the trade from Portuguese ships at a port they established in Nagasaki in
1571 with his assistance.
The little harbor village quickly grew into a diverse
port city, and Portuguese products imported through Nagasaki (such as
tobacco,
bread,
tempura, sponge-cake, and new clothing styles) were assimilated into
popular Japanese culture. The Portuguese also brought with them many goods
of
Chinese origin.
 In
1587 Nagasaki's prosperity was threatened when a new
shogun,
Hideyoshi Toyotomi, came to power. Concerned with the large
Christian influence in southern Japan, he ordered the expulsion of all
missionaries. Omura had given the Jesuits partial administrative control of
Nagasaki, and the city now returned to imperial control. Japanese and
foreign Christians were persecuted, with Hideyoshi crucifying 26 Christians
in Nagasaki in
1596 to deter any attempt to usurp his power. Portuguese traders were
not ostracized, however, and so the city continued to thrive.
When
Tokugawa Ieyasu took power almost twenty years later conditions did not
much improve. Christianity was banned outright in
1614 and all missionaries were deported, as well as daimyo who would not
renounce the religion. A brutal campaign of persecution followed, with
thousands across Nagasaki and other parts of Japan killed or tortured. The
Christians did put up some initial resistance, with the Nagasaki Shimabara
enclave of destitute Christians and local peasants rising in rebellion in
1637. Ultimately numbering 40,000, they captured Hara Castle and
humiliated the local daimyo. The shogun dispatched 120,000 soldiers to quash
the uprising, thus ending Japan's brief 'Christian Century.' Christians
still remained, of course, but all went into hiding, still the victims of
occasional inquisitions.
The
Dutch had been quietly making inroads into Japan during this time,
despite the shogunate's official policy of ending foreign influence within
the country. The Dutch demonstrated that they were interested in trading
alone, and demonstrated their commitment during the Shimabara rebellion by
firing on the Christians in support of the shogun. In
1641 they were granted
Dejima, an artificial island in Nagasaki Bay, as a base of operations.
From this date until
1855, Japan's contact with the outside world was limited to Nagasaki. In
1720 the ban on Dutch books was lifted, causing hundreds of scholars to
flood into Nagasaki to study European science and art.
 After
US Commodore
Matthew Perry landed in
1853 and the shogunate crumbled shortly afterward, Japan opened its
doors again. Nagasaki became a free port in
1859 and modernization began in earnest in
1868. With the
Meiji Restoration, Nagasaki quickly began to assume some economic
dominance. Its main industry was ship building.
This very industry would eventually make it a target in
World War II. At 11:02 am on
August 9,
1945, the American
B-29 Superfortress "Bockscar,"
in search of the shipyards, instead spotted the
Mitsubishi Arms Works through a break in the clouds. On this target, it
dropped the
nuclear bomb
Fat Man, the second nuclear weapon to be detonated over Japan (see
Hiroshima for an account of the first). Even though the "Fat
Man" missed by over a mile and a half, it still leveled nearly half the
city. 75,000 of Nagasaki's 240,000 residents were killed, followed by the
death of at least as many from resulting sickness and injury. However
another report issues a different residental number, speaking of Nagasaki's
population which dropped in one split-second from 422,000 to 383,000, thus
39,000 were killed, over 25,000 were injured. If taken into account those
who died from radioactive materials causing cancer, the total number of
casualties is to be believed at least 100,000 killed residents. (Estimates
from physicists who have studied each atomic explosion state that the bomb
that was used had utilized only 1/10th of 1 percent of their respective
explosive capabilities.)
The city was rebuilt after the war, albeit dramatically
changed, as any city would be after such colossal damage. New temples were
built, and new churches as well, since the Christian presence never died out
and even increased dramatically in numbers after the war. Some of the rubble
was left as a memorial, like the one-legged
torii gate and a stone arch near ground zero. New structures were also
raised as memorials, such as the Atomic Bomb Museum. Nagasaki remains first
and foremost a port city, supporting a rich shipping industry and setting a
strong example of perseverance and peace.
Additional WWII info to be
integrated into above
 Nagasaki lies at the head of a long bay which forms the
best natural harbor on the southern Japanese home island of Kyushu. The main
commercial and residential area of the city lies on a small plain near the
end of the bay. Two rivers divided by a mountain spur form the two main
valleys in which the city lies. This mountain spur and the irregular layout
of the city tremendously reduced the area of destruction, so that at first
glance Nagasaki appeared to have been less devastated than Hiroshima.
The heavily built-up area of the city is confined by the
terrain to less than 4 square miles out of a total of about 35 square miles
in the city as a whole.
The city of Nagasaki had been one of the largest sea
ports in southern Japan and was of great war-time importance because of its
many and varied industries, including the production of ordnance, ships,
military equipment, and other war materials. The narrow long strip attacked
was of particular importance because of its industries.
In contrast to many modern aspects of Nagasaki, the
residences almost without exception were of flimsy, typical Japanese
construction, consisting of wood or wood-frame buildings, with wood walls
with or without plaster, and tile roofs. Many of the smaller industries and
business establishments were also housed in wooden buildings or flimsily
built masonry buildings. Nagasaki had been permitted to grow for many years
without conforming to any definite city zoning plan and therefore residences
were constructed adjacent to factory buildings and to each other almost as
close as it was possible to build them throughout the entire industrial
valley.
Nagasaki had never been subjected to large scale bombing
prior to the explosion of a nuclear weapon there. On August 1st, 1945,
however, a number of high explosive bombs were dropped on the city. A few of
these bombs hit in the shipyards and dock areas in the southwest portion of
the city. Several of the bombs hit the Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works and
six bombs landed at the Nagasaki Medical School and Hospital, with three
direct hits on buildings there. While the damage from these few bombs were
relatively small, it created considerable concern in Nagasaki and a number
of people, principally school children, were evacuated to rural areas for
safety, thus reducing the population in the city at the time of the nuclear
attack.
On the morning of August 9, 1945, at about 7:50am,
Japanese time, an air raid alert was sounded in Nagasaki, but the "all
clear" signal was given at 8:30. When only two B-29 superfortresses were
sighted at 10:53 the Japanese apparently assumed that the planes were only
on reconnaissance and no further alarm was given. A few moments later, at
11am, the observation B-29 ("The Great Artiste" flown by Capt. Frederick C.
Bock) dropped instruments attached to three parachutes and at 11:02 the "Bockscar"
released the nuclear bomb.
The bomb exploded high over the industrial valley of
Nagasaki, almost midway between the Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works, in the
south, and the Mitsubishi-Urakami Ordnance Works (Torpedo Works), in the
north, the two principal targets of the city.
Despite its extreme importance, the first bombing mission
on Hiroshima had been almost routine. The second mission was not so
uneventful. Again the crew was specially trained and selected; but bad
weather introduced some momentous complications. These complications are
best described in the brief account of the mission's weaponeer, Comdr., now
Capt., F. L. Ashworth, U.S.N., who was in technical command of the bomb and
was charged with the responsibility of insuring that the bomb was
successfully dropped at the proper time and on the designated target. His
narrative runs as follows:
"The night of our take-off was one of
tropical rain squalls, and flashes of lightning stabbed into the darkness
with disconcerting regularity. The weather forecast told us of storms all
the way from the Marianas to the Empire. Our rendezvous was to be off the
southeast coast of Kyushu, some 1500 miles away. There we were to join with
our two companion observation B-29's that took off a few minutes behind us.
Skillful piloting and expert navigation brought us to the rendezvous without
incident. "About five minutes after our arrival, we were joined by the first
of our B-29's. The second, however, failed to arrive, having apparently been
thrown off its course by storms during the night. We waited 30 minutes and
then proceeded without the second plane toward the target area. "During the
approach to the target the special instruments installed in the plane told
us that the bomb was ready to function. We were prepared to drop the second
atomic bomb on Japan. But fate was against us, for the target was completely
obscured by smoke and haze. Three times we attempted bombing runs, but
without success. Then with anti-aircraft fire bursting around us and with a
number of enemy fighters coming up after us, we headed for our secondary
target, Nagasaki. "The bomb burst with a blinding flash and a huge column of
black smoke swirled up toward us. Out of this column of smoke there boiled a
great swirling mushroom of gray smoke, luminous with red, flashing flame,
that reached to 40,000 feet in less than 8 minutes. Below through the clouds
we could see the pall of black smoke ringed with fire that covered what had
been the industrial area of Nagasaki. "By this time our fuel supply was
dangerously low, so after one quick circle of Nagasaki, we headed direct for
Okinawa for an emergency landing and refueling".
Nagasaki in
Western music and song
Nagasaki is the title and subject of a 1928 song with
music by
Harry Warren and lyrics by
Mort Dixon. A popular success in its
day, the music remains a popular base for jazz improvisations. The lyrics
today are enjoyed for their ludicrous incongruity and their lack of
political correctness. The song asserts: "Hot ginger and dynamite/There's
nothing but that at night/Back in Nagasaki/Where the fellers chew tobaccy/And
the women wicky wacky woo."
Nagasaki is also the setting for
Puccini's opera
Madama Butterfly.
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