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Nagasaki is located on the southern island of Kyushu, about 90 minutes flying time from Tokyo or about 10 hours by train. It is a port city that is small in size, but huge in History and with a populace that is by and large, open and friendly. Nagasaki has links with the outside world that go back many centuries, thus giving it an eclectic and varied atmosphere that is unparalleled in Japan. Influences include British, Portuguese and Dutch and are obvious in local language, local cuisine and more especially in architecture. It is most unlike any other city I have been to in Japan. Nagasaki is probably most remembered for being the second (and hopefully last) city to be attacked with a nuclear weapon. At 11.02 a.m. on August 9th 1945 Bock's Car, a USAF B29 dropped its load on the Urakami residential district, ironically directly over a Catholic cathedral. Nagasaki was not the first choice; bad weather forced the plane to change from its original target. Even when it reached Nagasaki, thick cloud obscured the target: the Mitsubishi shipyard, and the bomb was re-aimed and dropped. The fireball killed 75,000 immediately with over 100,000 subsequently succumbing to their injuries. This event, coming soon after the Hiroshima incident, prompted Japan's surrender. However, in complete contrast to Hiroshima's retention and promotion of the nuclear attack there, Nagasaki plays it down and concentrates more heavily on its varied past and potentially prosperous future. The first foreign contact was an off-course Portuguese trader in 1542, this was followed by St. Francis Xavier in 1560. Traders brought in guns which revolutionised warfare in Japan and forced not only the construction of stronger castles, but also brought an end to the chaos of civil war. However, by 1587 the government were worried about the effects of Christianity and viewed it as somewhat of a threat and promptly had them persecuted and crucified. The Shimabara peasant uprising of 1637 was perceived as being Christian led and resulted in all contact with foreigners being banned, and Japan entering a period of isolation lasting several centuries. The only point of contact was the small Dutch enclave of Dejima; a man-made island in Nagasaki through which a trickle of culture and technology continued to flow until Nagasaki was again linked to the outside in 1859. These events have shaped Nagasaki into the outward and welcoming city it is today. |
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