Tokyo - The former Naval Academy, on the island of Etajima in Hiroshima Bay, Japan, sent out its fair share of naval officers.
The Naval Academy was previously the Naval Training Centre, established in Tsukiji, Tokyo, in 1869. The name was changed to the Naval Academy in 1876.
Seeking an educational environment away from the hustle and bustle of the city, in 1888 the academy relocated to the rich natural environment of Etajima. Before the war, it earned a reputation as one of the three best naval academies in the world, together with the academies in Dartmouth in Britain and Annapolis in the United States.
After the war, US forces confiscated the Naval Academy, and it was not until the establishment of the Maritime Self-Defense Force, after Japan had regained its independence, that in 1957 the naval academy got a new start as the Maritime Officer Candidate School.
Although its history ended with Japan's defeat in World War II, the traditions of the old Naval Academy have been inherited by the Maritime Self-Defense Force, and continue to guide the development of those who protect the seas.
Approximately 440 men and women, selected from among the graduates of the National Defense Academy and other universities, and from within the Maritime Self-Defense Force, were enrolled at the Maritime Officer Candidate School as of October 2015. They stay on Etajima for a maximum of one year.
Inside the main gates of the school, almost at the Centre of the premises, is a massive two-story building - commonly known as “the red brick” - that stretches approximately 140 meters east to west, with the green Mt. Furutaka in the background.
Even after repair work from 2002 to 2004, the character of the building remains much as it was when built in 1893.
The layout of the campus invokes the ocean. Treated as a ship, the building has no door at its entrance, and strong winds howl down the corridors under bad weather conditions.
Interclass boat training, in which students compete on speed, occurs with no advance notice. The purpose is to develop sailors capable of working together and using good judgment in emergencies.
“The philosophy of 'learning from the sea' hasn't changed from the times of the old Naval Academy,” said Rear Adm. Takayuki Sugimoto, the current superintendent of the school.
Location shooting for NHK's special drama, “Saka no Ue no Kumo” (Clouds above the hill) was conducted in 2009 at the large lecture hall built in 1917 that stands beside “the red brick.”
In the drama, actor Masahiro Motoki played the part of Saneyuki Akiyama, who served with distinction in the 1905 Sea of Japan Naval Battle (also known as the Battle of Tsushima Strait).
Akiyama and the rest of the drama's protagonists, important officers in the Imperial Japanese Navy, all graduated from the old Naval Academy. The buildings from the era project a feeling of closeness to the historical figures.
A school tradition from the days of the old Naval Academy that has continued to the present is the “Gosei” (the five subjects for daily reflection).
The daily routine, created in 1932 on the proposal of the superintendent, consists of five phrases that students recite at the end of each day. One self-exhortation goes, “Did you not act against moral principles such as honesty and cordiality?”
On Aug. 15, 1945, the school's students listened to the “gyokuon-hoso” (Emperor's announcement) and learned of Japan's defeat.
Hisashi Inui in his book The End Of The Naval Academy recorded the words of one student on the occasion: “Half past nine in the evening. Who will play the patrol bugle? The lingering sounds sting me deeply inside. . . . Tears won't stop rolling down my cheeks.”
After the surrender, it is said the students left Etajima one by one and returned to their hometowns.
Since the end of the Cold War, the Maritime Self-Defense Force has taken on more urgent and dangerous tasks, including minesweeping in the Persian Gulf, anti-piracy activities off the coast of Somalia in Africa and surveillance activities around the Senkaku Islands. The range of activities is expected to expand.
The graduates of Etajima take command on site in these scenarios. The mission of the school, where the commanders learn the basics, remains significant.
The number of graduates and those currently enrolled at the Maritime Officer Candidate School, which started after the war, totalled 26 000 in March 2011, exceeding the total number of graduates of the old Naval Academy.
At the time of Japan's defeat, the 43rd superintendent set at the helm of the old Naval Academy.
Sugimoto is the 43rd superintendent of the current Maritime Officer Candidate School. “'Carrying on history' means to change what needs to be changed depending on the times,” Sugimoto said. “We must create a new tradition that looks ahead to 100 years from now.”
On the premises of the school, the Kyoiku Sankou Kan (Education reference museum), or naval history museum - a two-story reinforced concrete building resembling a Greek temple - was built in 1936 through a graduate reserve fund and company donations. Though it once housed a collection of nearly 40 000 items before and during the war, it is said that many of them were burned upon Japan's defeat out of fear of confiscation by the Occupation Army.
Currently, approximately 1 000 items out of the collection of approximately 16 000 are on display. The displays include a late Edo period (1603-1867) photo to memorialise Sakamoto Ryoma becoming a pupil of Katsu Kaishu, and farewell notes written by kamikaze pilots to their families during the war. It is forbidden to take photos inside the museum, where a solemn atmosphere prevails.
Exhibited beside the Naval History Museum is a submarine, 23.9 meters long and 1.85 meters wide, that was one of five used in the attack on Pearl Harbour. It was salvaged in 1960 and handed over to Japan the following year. A twin-seater that could be loaded onto a larger submarine, it was equipped with two torpedoes. Unlike Kaiten human torpedoes, these submarines were made to return to the larger submarine after making an attack - though all were sunk without managing the feat.
Guide to Etajima
The Maritime Officer Candidate School is about 10 minutes by bus from Etajima's Koyo Port. Koyo Port can be reached by ships from Kure Port (from 10 to 20 minutes) or Hiroshima Port (20 minutes). By car, it takes about an hour from the city of Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, via Hayase-ohashi bridge.
Former members of the Maritime Self-Defense Force lead free tours of “the red brick” and its museum three times daily on weekdays and four times on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Visitors may encounter cadets undergoing training. At the souvenir corner, “Gosei” T-shirts and mugs featuring red brick designs are available for purchase.
Japan News/Washington Post