Tenryo Maru (Japanese: 天領丸) was a requisitioned Imperial Japanese Army cargo/transport ship during World War II.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Empire of Japan | |
| Name | Tenryo Maru |
| Builder | Kawanami Kōgyō, Nagasaki[1] |
| Laid down | 31 October 1936 |
| Launched | 10 August 1937 |
| Completed | 15 April 1938 |
| Acquired | Requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Army, 16 October 1941 |
| Identification | 44566[1] |
| Fate | Torpedoed by USS Sterlet, 29 May 1945 |
| Notes | |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Cargo ship |
| Tonnage | 2,231 grt (6,317 m3) standard[1] |
| Length | 77.5 m (254 ft 3 in) o/a[1] |
| Beam | 12.80 m (42 ft 0 in)[1] |
| Draught | 7.00 m (23 ft 0 in)[1] |
| Installed power | 294 nhp / 1,772 ihp (1,321 kW)[1] |
| Speed | 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)/ 12.58 knots (23.30 km/h; 14.48 mph) maximum[1] |
History
editIn September 1936, the Soviet Union ordered three ice-resistant freighters as payment for the purchase of the Southern Manchuria Railway.[2] She was laid down on 31 October 1936 at the Nagasaki shipyard of Kawanami Kōgyō K.K. (jp: 川南工業).[1][3] She was launched on 10 August 1937 as the Bolshevik (Большевики) and completed on 15 April 1938.[1] Due to a deterioration in the relations with the Soviet Union, the ship was never delivered and was renamed Tenryo Maru.[2] She was one of three ships in her class which included Minryo Maru (民領丸) (ex-Komsomolets) and Chiryo Maru (地領丸) (ex-Volochaevets).[4][5] On 18 April 1939, she was sold to Tatsunan Merchant Ship Co., Ltd. of Osaka.[1] On 1 February 1944, ownership was transferred to Tatsuma Kisen Co., Ltd. of Nishinomiya which had merged with her prior owner.[1]
On 16 October 1941, she was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Army.[3] She spent most of 1942 providing supplies to Japanese activities in Korea and China.[3] In 1943, her activities shifted to supplying troops in the Kurile Islands.[3]
On 13 April 1944, she departed Ominato for Matsuwa Jima in Convoy-Ru consisting of Taihei Maru, Rizan Maru, and Madras Maru escorted by the Shimushu-class escort ship, Kunashiri with the destroyers Akebono and Ushio; they arrived safely on 18 April 1944.[6] On 6 January 1945, she left Otaru, Hokkaido for Kataoka, Shumshu as part of Convoy KI-603 with transports Hokushin Maru, Banshu Maru No. 65, and supply ship Shirasaki being escorted by Kunashiri; the convoy arrived at Shumshu on 12 January 1945.[7] On 17 January 1945 she departed Shumshu as part of convoy O-702 with Hokushin Maru and Shirasaki again escorted by Kunashiri arriving at Ominato on 24 January 1945.[7]
On 26 May 1945, she departed Paramushiro for Otaru in convoy-Chi consisting of cargo/transport ships Kuretake Maru, Kasugasan Maru, and supply ship Shirasaki, escorted by Shimushu, Hachijo, Type C escort ships CD-47 and CD-205, and Type D escort ship CD-112.[8] Hachijo was lost in the fog around 50°00′N 146°00′E / 50.000°N 146.000°E and CD-205 left the convoy to search for her.[8] On 29 May 1945 at 2055, USS Sterlet fired two spreads of three torpedoes hitting two of the freighters. Tenryo Maru quickly sank at 46°46′N 144°16′E / 46.767°N 144.267°E killing 773 out of 947 men of the 23rd Air Defense Battalion, 26 gunners, and 83 sailors.[7] Sterlet also severely damaged Kuretake Maru which sank the following day with a death toll of 272 soldiers and six sailors.[7][9][10][11]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Nagasawa, Fumio (1998). "天領丸 TENRYO MARU (1938)". Nostalgic Japanese Steamships (in Japanese).
- ^ a b Hackett, Bob; Cundall, Peter; Casse, Gilbert; Kingsepp, Sander; Ruffato, Luke (2016). "IJN Soya: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
- ^ a b c d Toda, Gengoro S. "天領丸の船歴 (Tenryo Maru - Ship History)". Imperial Japanese Navy - Tokusetsukansen (in Japanese).
- ^ Nagasawa, Fumio (1998). "天領丸型 TENRYO MARU Class 3隻 (1938)". Nostalgic Japanese Steamships (in Japanese).
- ^ ""地領丸"の時代 (The era of "Jiryomaru")". The Nippon Foundation Library] (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
- ^ Hackett, Bob; Cundall, Peter; Kingsepp, Sander; Tatsuhiro, Higuchi; Donahoo, Jeff; Jones, Matthew; Cassee, Gilbert (2016). "IJN Kunashiri: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
- ^ a b c d Hackett, Bob; Cundall, Peter; Casse, Gilbert; van der Wal, Berend (2016). "IJN Shirasaki: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
- ^ a b Hackett, Bob; Cundall, Peter; Cundall, Peter; Kingsepp, Sander; Tatsuhiro, Higuchi (2016). "IJN CD-205: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
- ^ Silverstone, Paul (10 September 2012). The Navy of World War II, 1922-1947. Routledge; 1 edition. p. 139. ISBN 9781135864729.
- ^ "Chapter VII: 1945 - January". Hyperwar - The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy during World War II.
- ^ "Chronological List of Japanese Merchant Vessel Losses". Joint Army-Navy Assessment Committee.