Ural Maru (うらる丸, Uraru-Maru) was a 6,377-ton Japanese merchant vessel, used as a transport ship and hospital ship during World War II. She was torpedoed and sunk with the loss of some 3,700 lives[citation needed] on 27 September 1944.
Ural Maru was a combined cargo/passenger vessel owned and operated by Osaka Shosen (the predecessor to Mitsui OSK Lines). She was completed in 1929 by the Mitsubishi Nagasaki Shipyards and was in regularly scheduled service between Kobe and Osaka in Japan and the port of Dairen in the Kwantung Leased Territory on the Asian mainland. Ural Maru made her first voyage on 12 April 1929.
Her civilian career was relatively uneventful, although she was damaged in Osaka by a typhoon in 1934 [1]
In 1937, after the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Ural Maru was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Army and converted into a hospital ship from 13 October 1937 to February 1938, returning sick and wounded soldiers from the front back to Japan.
Ural Maru was briefly returned to commercial service, but was requisitioned again by the Imperial Japanese Army in November 1941, and used primarily as a military transport to carry troops and military supplies from the Army’s primary staging area of Hiroshima in Japan to various ports in southeast Asia, including Saigon, Singapore, the Philippines, Rabaul, Rangoon and Palau in the initial stages of the war. In February 1943, she was converted to a hospital ship again, and was painted white with a large red cross, as per international regulations.
On 3 April 1943, when evacuating 50 wounded soldiers from Guadalcanal, Ural Maru was bombed by USAAFBoeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers and lightly damaged. She managed to return to Osaka, where the damage was much publicized. [A differing record of the bomber type may be found in the Unit Diary (held in the Australian War Memorial Canberra) of 2/1 Australian Hospital Ship "Manunda". In the diary there is a "Special Report" received 5 April 1943 which stated that a USAAF B-24 (Liberator) bomber from 321st Squadron, 90th Bomber Group, had on 3 April bombed and damaged Hospital Ship "Ural Maru" off New Hanover Island in the Bismark Group (300 km N-W of Rabaul)]. Contemporary Japanese press labeled the attack on a clearly marked hospital ship carrying civilians as a war crime.[2] In response to the Australian protest against the sinking of the hospital ship Centaur, the Japanese had lodged a counter-protest about attacks on, and the sinking of a number of their own hospital ships, including the Ural Maru.
On her last voyage, Ural Maru had departed Singapore bound for Takao in Taiwan and had called on Kuching and Miri in Japanese-occupied Sarawak, where she loaded Japanese wounded, nurses and a number of "comfort women". In addition there were ten unusual passengers – Indian National Army cadets of Indian origin on their way to Japan for military training. Only one of them, Bishan Singh, died in the sinking. One of the survivors, Ramesh S. Benegal, went on to become an officer in the Indian Air Force in independent India and retired as an Air Commodore. He provided a first-person account of the sinking of the Ural Maru in his book "Burma to Japan with Azad Hind - A War Memoir". The complement of passengers is also based on his account.[3]
Jordan, Roger W (2006). The World's Merchant Fleets, 1939: The Particulars And Wartime Fates of 6,000 Ships Warship Losses of World War Two. Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-59114-959-2.
Earhart, David C. (2008). Certain victory: images of World War II in the Japanese media. ME Sharpe. ISBN978-0-7656-1776-7.
Benegal, Ramesh (2009). Burma to Japan with Azad Hind: A War Memoir 1941–1944. Lancer. ISBN978-1-935501-11-4.
External links
. "Burma to Japan with Azad Hind - A War Memoir" (Lancer Publishers, New Delhi, copyright Meera R. Benegal, 2009).
Tabular Record of Movement (Japanese)
Notes
^"JAPAN: Juggernaut of Air". Time. 1 October 1934.
^Earhart, D.C. (2008). Certain Victory: Images of World War II in the Japanese Media. M.E. Sharpe. p. 364. ISBN9780765617774. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
^Benegal; The INA cadets on board the Ural Maru were: (Malayans of Indian parentage) Narayanan, Bishan Singh, Navaratnam, Ghosh, Robert Prosper, Ranjit Das; (Burmese of Indian parentage) Benegal, Gandhi Das, Dutta, Bimol Deb.
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Ural Maru うらる丸 Uraru Maru was a 6 377 ton Japanese merchant vessel used as a transport ship and hospital ship during World War II She was torpedoed and sunk with the loss of some 3 700 lives citation needed on 27 September 1944 Postcard of Ural Maru in the 1930sHistory Empire of JapanNameUral MaruPort of registryJapanBuilderMitsubishi Nagasaki ShipyardsYard number1 452Laid down1 May 1928Launched15 December 1928Completed30 March 1929FateSunk 27 September 1944General characteristicsTypemerchantman hospital shipTonnage6 377 GRTLength123 32 m 404 6 ft p pBeam16 76 m 55 0 ft Draught10 05 m 33 0 ft Propulsionsteam turbines 2 screws 6 658 ihp 4 965 kW Speed13 31 knots 15 3 mph 24 7 km h cruising 17 42 knots 20 0 mph 32 3 km h flank NotesPassengers 65 1st class 130 2nd class 583 3rd class Interior of Ural Maru Contents 1 History 2 References 3 External links 4 Notes 5 See alsoHistory EditUral Maru was a combined cargo passenger vessel owned and operated by Osaka Shosen the predecessor to Mitsui OSK Lines She was completed in 1929 by the Mitsubishi Nagasaki Shipyards and was in regularly scheduled service between Kobe and Osaka in Japan and the port of Dairen in the Kwantung Leased Territory on the Asian mainland Ural Maru made her first voyage on 12 April 1929 Her civilian career was relatively uneventful although she was damaged in Osaka by a typhoon in 1934 1 In 1937 after the start of the Second Sino Japanese War Ural Maru was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Army and converted into a hospital ship from 13 October 1937 to February 1938 returning sick and wounded soldiers from the front back to Japan Ural Maru was briefly returned to commercial service but was requisitioned again by the Imperial Japanese Army in November 1941 and used primarily as a military transport to carry troops and military supplies from the Army s primary staging area of Hiroshima in Japan to various ports in southeast Asia including Saigon Singapore the Philippines Rabaul Rangoon and Palau in the initial stages of the war In February 1943 she was converted to a hospital ship again and was painted white with a large red cross as per international regulations On 3 April 1943 when evacuating 50 wounded soldiers from Guadalcanal Ural Maru was bombed by USAAF Boeing B 17 Flying Fortress bombers and lightly damaged She managed to return to Osaka where the damage was much publicized A differing record of the bomber type may be found in the Unit Diary held in the Australian War Memorial Canberra of 2 1 Australian Hospital Ship Manunda In the diary there is a Special Report received 5 April 1943 which stated that a USAAF B 24 Liberator bomber from 321st Squadron 90th Bomber Group had on 3 April bombed and damaged Hospital Ship Ural Maru off New Hanover Island in the Bismark Group 300 km N W of Rabaul Contemporary Japanese press labeled the attack on a clearly marked hospital ship carrying civilians as a war crime 2 In response to the Australian protest against the sinking of the hospital ship Centaur the Japanese had lodged a counter protest about attacks on and the sinking of a number of their own hospital ships including the Ural Maru On her last voyage Ural Maru had departed Singapore bound for Takao in Taiwan and had called on Kuching and Miri in Japanese occupied Sarawak where she loaded Japanese wounded nurses and a number of comfort women In addition there were ten unusual passengers Indian National Army cadets of Indian origin on their way to Japan for military training Only one of them Bishan Singh died in the sinking One of the survivors Ramesh S Benegal went on to become an officer in the Indian Air Force in independent India and retired as an Air Commodore He provided a first person account of the sinking of the Ural Maru in his book Burma to Japan with Azad Hind A War Memoir The complement of passengers is also based on his account 3 Ural Maru was torpedoed in the South China Sea and sunk on 27 September 1944 by the American submarine USS Flasher SS 249 approximinately 240 kilometres 150 mi west of Luzon at coordinates 15 40 N 117 18 E 15 667 N 117 300 E 15 667 117 300 Coordinates 15 40 N 117 18 E 15 667 N 117 300 E 15 667 117 300 4 References EditJordan Roger W 2006 The World s Merchant Fleets 1939 The Particulars And Wartime Fates of 6 000 Ships Warship Losses of World War Two Naval Institute Press ISBN 1 59114 959 2 Earhart David C 2008 Certain victory images of World War II in the Japanese media ME Sharpe ISBN 978 0 7656 1776 7 Benegal Ramesh 2009 Burma to Japan with Azad Hind A War Memoir 1941 1944 Lancer ISBN 978 1 935501 11 4 External links EditMaritime Disasters of World War II Burma to Japan with Azad Hind A War Memoir Lancer Publishers New Delhi copyright Meera R Benegal 2009 Tabular Record of Movement Japanese Notes Edit JAPAN Juggernaut of Air Time 1 October 1934 Earhart D C 2008 Certain Victory Images of World War II in the Japanese Media M E Sharpe p 364 ISBN 9780765617774 Retrieved 20 August 2015 Benegal The INA cadets on board the Ural Maru were Malayans of Indian parentage Narayanan Bishan Singh Navaratnam Ghosh Robert Prosper Ranjit Das Burmese of Indian parentage Benegal Gandhi Das Dutta Bimol Deb JordanSee also Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ural Maru ship 1929 List by death toll of ships sunk by submarines List of battles and other violent events by death toll Hikari Kikan Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title SS Ural Maru amp oldid 1093137472, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
