Yokosuka
Geography
Yokosuka occupies most of the Miura Peninsula, bordered by the mouth of Tokyo Bay to the east and Sagami Bay on the Pacific Ocean to the west. Mount Fuji can be seen from most places in Yokosuka.
History
Pre-modern period
The area around present-day Yokosuka City has been inhabited for thousands of years. Archaeologists have found stone tools and shell middens from the Japanese Paleolithic period and ceramic shards from the Jōmon and Kofun periods at numerous locations in the area. During the Heian period, local warlord Muraoka Tamemichi established Kinugasa Castle in 1063. He became the ancestor of the Miura clan, which subsequently dominated eastern Sagami Province for the next several hundred years. The Miura clan supported Minamoto no Yoritomo in the foundation of the Kamakura shogunate, but were later annihilated by Hōjō Tokiyori in 1247. However, the family name was reassigned to a supporter of the Hōjō clan, and the Miura continued to rule Miura Peninsula through the Muromachi period until their defeat at Arai Castle in a 1518 attack by Hōjō Sōun. Following the defeat of the Later Hōjō clan at the Battle of Odawara, Toyotomi Hideyoshi transferred Tokugawa Ieyasu to take control over the Kantō region, including Yokosuka in 1590.
The adventurer William Adams (inspiration for a character in the novel Shōgun), the first Briton to set foot in Japan, arrived at Uraga aboard the Dutch trading vessel Liefde in 1600. In 1612, he was granted the title of samurai and a fief in Hemi within the boundaries of present-day Yokosuka, due to his services to the Tokugawa shogunate. A monument to William Adams (called Miura Anjin in Japanese) is a local landmark in Yokosuka.
During the Edo period, Yokosuka tenryō territory was controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate, but administered through various hatamoto. Due to its strategic location at the entrance to Tokyo Bay, the Shogunate established the post of Uraga Bugyō in 1720, and all shipping into the bay was required to stop for inspection. As concerns over the increasing number of incursions by foreign vessels and attempts to end Japan's self-imposed national seclusion policy, the Shogunate established a number of coastal artillery batteries around Yokosuka, including an outpost at Ōtsu in 1842. However, despite these efforts, in 1853, United States naval Commodore Matthew Perry arrived in Tokyo Bay with his fleet of Black Ships and came ashore at Kurihama, in southern Yokosuka, leading to the opening of diplomatic and trade relations between Japan and the United States. The Kanrin Maru sailed from Yokosuka in 1860 with the first Japanese diplomatic embassy to the United States in 1860.
During the turbulent Bakumatsu period, the Shogunate selected Yokosuka as the site for a modern naval base and hired the French engineer Léonce Verny in 1865 to oversee the development of shipbuilding facilities, beginning with Yokosuka Iron Foundry. Yokosuka Naval Arsenal became the first modern arsenal to be created in Japan. The construction of the arsenal was the central point of a global modern infrastructure, proving an essential first step for modernizing Japan's industry. Modern buildings, the Hashirimizu waterway, foundries, brick factories, and technical schools to train Japanese technicians were established.
Meiji period to present
After the Meiji Restoration, the Imperial Japanese Navy took over the arsenal. The modern Yokosuka area was reorganized into Uraga Town and numerous villages within Miura District, Kanagawa Prefecture. Yokosuka Village was elevated to town status in 1878 and became Miura District's capital. In 1889, the Yokosuka Line railway was opened, connecting Yokosuka to Yokohama and Tokyo. Yokosuka was elevated to city status on February 15, 1907. From 1916, Oppama in Yokosuka was developed as the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal, and many of the combat aircraft subsequently operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service were developed or tested at Yokosuka. Yokosuka Naval Arsenal also continued to expand in the early 20th century, and its production included battleships such as Yamashiro, and aircraft carriers such as Hiryū and Shōkaku. Smaller warships were constructed at the privately owned Uraga Dock Company. Yokosuka Naval District was the home port of the IJN 1st Fleet.
The Great Kantō earthquake of 1923 caused severe damage to Yokosuka, including the naval base, which lost two years of oil supply operations. The city continued to expand in 1933 with the annexation of neighboring Kinugasa Village and Taura Town in 1933 and Kurihama Village in 1937. In 1943, the city also annexed the neighboring towns and villages of Uraga, Kitashitaura, Okusu, Nagai, Takeyama, and Zushi.
During World War II, Yokosuka was bombed on April 18, 1942, by American B-25 bombers in the Doolittle Raid with minor damage as a retaliation to the attack on Pearl Harbor. Aside from minor sporadic tactical air raids by United States Navy aircraft, it was not bombed again during the war; however, from 1938 to 1945, more than 260 caves in more than 20 separate tunnel/cave networks were built throughout the area, with at least 27 kilometers of known tunnels within the grounds of Yokosuka Naval Base. Many more tunnels are scattered throughout the surrounding areas. During the war, these tunnels and caves provided areas where work could be done in secrecy, safe from air attacks. A 500-bed hospital, an enormous electrical power generating facility, and a midget submarine factory and warehouse were among the many facilities built. American occupation forces landed at Yokosuka on August 30, 1945, after the surrender of Japan, and the US Navy has used the naval base since that time. The caves were used for storage and as an emergency shelter during the Korean War.
From the 1950s, United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka has been the home port for the United States Seventh Fleet and played a critical support role in the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Yokosuka was the site of many anti-war protests during the late 1960s and 1970s. The USS George Washington, formerly based at Yokosuka, was the first U.S. nuclear-powered ship permanently based in Japan. The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force also operates a military port next to the American base and numerous training facilities at scattered locations around the city. For those reasons, a few hundred Americans and a thousand Filipinos are in Yokosuka.
In 2001, Yokosuka was designated as a core city, with increased autonomy from the central government.
Economy
Aside from the economic impact of its various military facilities, Yokosuka is also an industrial city, with factories operated by Nissan Motors and its affiliated subsidiaries employing thousands of local residents. The Nissan Leaf, Nissan Cube, and Nissan Juke models are assembled in the 520,000-square-metre (5,600,000 sq ft) Oppama plant in Yokosuka. The factory began operations in 1961, when the Nissan Bluebird was initially built. Every May, there is a festival celebrating Japanese curry, which draws 50,000 attendees each year. The plant is adjacent to Nissan's Research and Development Center, the Oppama Proving Ground, and the Oppama Wharf. Nissan ships vehicles made at Oppama and Nissan's other two Japanese vehicle assembly plants to other regions of Japan and overseas.
The Yokosuka Research Park, established in 1997, is a major center for the Japanese telecommunications industry and is where many of the wireless and mobile communications-related companies have set up their research and development centers and joint testing facilities.
Demographics
According to Japanese census data, Yokosuka's population peaked around 1990 and has declined since then. Foreign citizens in Yokosuka are mainly Filipinos, Koreans, Chinese, and Americans.
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