Lisbon Maru

"Lisbon Maru" was a Japanese freighter which was used as a troop and prisoner-of-war transport between China and Japan.

When she was sunk by USS "Grouper" (SS-214) on 1 October 1942, she was carrying, in addition to Japanese Army personnel, a large number of Allied prisoners of war captured after the fall of Hong Kong in December 1941. Over 800 of these men died either directly as a result of the sinking, or were shot or otherwise killed by the Japanese while swimming away from the wreck. The ship should have carried appropriate markings to alert Allied forces to the nature of its cargo but did not do so.

A reunion of survivors was held on board the HMS Belfast on October 2nd 2007 to mark the 65th anniversary of the escape. Six of the former prisoners attended, alongside many bereaved families of escapees.

External links

* [http://www.hamstat.demon.co.uk/HongKong/Lisbon_Maru.html Sinking of the "Lisbon Maru"]
* [http://www.lisbonmaru.com/ Sinking of "Lisbon Maru"]
* [http://www.zhoushan.cn/lsbw/english/ Time to Unseal the "Lison Maru" Incident, an incomplete documentation of the rescue effort made by local Chinese fishermen]