The ("Place to commune with a noble soul") is a Japanese military and war

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make th ...

located within

Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Emperor Meiji in June 1869 and commemorates those who died in service of Japan, from the Boshin War of 1868–1869, to the two Sino-Japanese Wars, 1894–1895 and 1937–1945 resp ...

Chiyoda, Tokyo is a special ward located in central Tokyo, Japan. It is known as Chiyoda City in English.Profile< ...

. As a museum maintained by the shrine, which is dedicated to the souls of soldiers who died fighting on behalf of the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the ...

, the museum contains various artifacts and documents concerning Japanese war casualties and military activity from the start of the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

to the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The museum was established in 1882, and describes itself as the first and oldest war and military museum in Japan. It has attracted controversy for its revisionism of Japanese's wartime actions and militaristic past.

History

The museum was initially established in 1882 to preserve and display

-era artifacts of the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emper ...

. Following the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the p ...

and

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

, the

Meiji Emperor , also called or , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. Reigning from 13 February 1867 to his death, he was the first monarch of the Empire of Japan and presided over the Meiji era. He was the figure ...

issued his 192nd order in 1910, which ordered the preservation of military artifacts. The building was expanded when the number of documents and artifacts increased after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, but was demolished during the

1923 Great Kantō earthquake The struck the Kantō Plain on the main Japanese island of Honshū at 11:58:44 JST (02:58:44 UTC) on Saturday, September 1, 1923. Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes. Extensive firestorms an ...

. The structure was rebuilt by

Itō Chūta was a Japanese architect, architectural historian, and critic. He is recognized as the leading architect and architectural theorist of early 20th-century Imperial Japan. Biography Second son of a doctor in Yonezawa, present-day Yamagata Prefect ...

, reopening in 1932. During

, looted weaponry was also displayed on loan from the

Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to: * Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912) * Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946) * Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919) * Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999) * Ministry of War (Estoni ...

, but the museum itself was closed down during the postwar period. Yasukuni Shrine lost funding from the government under the

Shinto Directive The Shinto Directive was an order issued in 1945 to the Japanese government by Occupation authorities to abolish state support for the Shinto religion. This unofficial "State Shinto" was thought by Allies to have been a major contributor to ...

issued by the Occupation Authorities, and the shrine put the museum building up for rent in order to obtain funds. In November 1947 the Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Company signed a rent agreement with the shrine and began using it as its

Kudankita is a district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, consisting of four ''chōme''. It was a part of the former ward of Kōjimachi. As of March 1, 2007, its population is 1,404. Kudankita is a luxury and prestigious residential and business zone. The Yasu ...

office. The company left the building in 1980, and it reopened as the Yūshūkan museum on July 13, 1985. The building has undergone several renovations since then, and the outdoor exhibitions were moved indoors and re-exhibited on July 13, 2002. Yushukan02

Exhibitions

The museum's exhibitions are centered on the shrine's dedication to the spirits of deceased Japanese soldiers. The museum also contains weaponry used by the Imperial Japanese Army, as well as Allied documents and exhibitions related to the modern

Japan Self-Defense Forces The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, th ...

and United States Forces in Japan. A

cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...

of a war horse is also located within the museum grounds.

First floor

The first floor entrance hall can be entered free of admission, and contains an

A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-based fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. The A6M was ...

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

and a Class C56 steam locomotive number C56 31 used on the

Thai-Burma Railway The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam–Burma Railway, Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). It was built from 1940 to 1943 ...

(often known as the Death Railway). Simone, Giann
A trip around the Yushukan, Japan’s font of discord July 28, 2014
''

Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...

'' Retrieved March 16, 2016 A

Type 89 15 cm Cannon The Type 89 15 cm cannon was the main gun of the Imperial Japanese Army's heavy artillery units. The ''Type 89'' designation was given to this gun as it was accepted in the year 2589 of the Japanese calendar (1929).War Department Special Ser ...

and

Type 96 15 cm Howitzer The was a 149.1 mm calibre howitzer used by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. It was intended to replace the Type 4 15 cm howitzer in front line combat units from 1937, although it fired the same ammunition. It was first used ...

are also displayed in this area. The large exhibit room on the first floor contains a

Yokosuka D4Y The is a two-seat carrier-based dive bomber developed by the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1942 to 1945 during World War II. Development of the aircraft began in 1938. The first D4Y1 was com ...

bomber and

Type 97 Chi-Ha The was a medium tank used by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Battles of Khalkhin Gol against the Soviet Union, and the Second World War. It was the most widely produced Japanese medium tank of World War II. T ...

recovered from

Yap Island Yap ( yap, Waqaab) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federated States of Micro ...

, along with a

Kaiten were crewed torpedoes and suicide craft, used by the Imperial Japanese Navy in the final stages of World War II. History In recognition of the unfavorable progress of the war, towards the end of 1943 the Japanese high command considered s ...

-type torpedo and replicas of an Ohka Model 11 aircraft and Mutsu battleship. Mementos of deceased Japanese soldiers are also shown in this room, including a uniform worn by a paratrooper, and various letters left behind by deceased soldiers. Photographs and portraits of the "Spirits of Yasukuni Shrine" (deceased Japanese soldiers) are shown at the end of the hallway.

Second floor

The entrance hall escalator leads to the second floor exhibit room. Various war-related materials are exhibited in chronological order, including different types of swords, armor, guns, and a golden flag wielded by the Imperial Japanese Army during the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a clique seeking to seize political power in the name of the Imperi ...

. The

war flag A war flag, also known as a military flag, battle flag, or standard, is a variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land. The nautical equivalent is a naval ensign. Under the strictest sense of the term, few count ...

of the 321st Imperial Japanese Army division displayed in this room is the only one of its kind that has been recovered fully intact. The floor also contains a small cinema theater, which plays various documentaries related to the shrine and modern-day Japan.

Stores

The museum's gift shop sells regional souvenirs in addition to various books and documents concerning Yasukuni Shrine. Toy army flags and other military-related toys can also be purchased here, and English-language pamphlets are available for foreign visitors. The museum also houses a cafe where the items on the menu are created using ingredients and recipes resembling those actually used on Japanese Navy ships.

Revisionism

The museum contains revisionism in its accounts of Japan's actions in

, as well as glorifying Japan's aggressive militaristic past.Simone, Gianni,
A trip around the Yushukan, Japan’s font of discord
, ''

The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched b ...

'', 28 July 2014

Appearances in literature

Natsume Sōseki , born , was a Japanese novelist. He is best known around the world for his novels ''Kokoro'', ''Botchan'', ''I Am a Cat'', '' Kusamakura'' and his unfinished work '' Light and Darkness''. He was also a scholar of British literature and writer ...

. * Ryūnosuke Akutagawa.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yushukan Museums established in 1882 Buildings and structures demolished in 1923 Infrastructure completed in 1932 Museums in Tokyo Military and war museums in Japan Buildings and structures in Chiyoda, Tokyo World War II museums in Japan Military and war museums 1882 establishments in Japan Historical revisionism