Japanese Hell Ships of World War II
Initially, hell ships moved Allied POWs to areas where their labor was needed, such as the Japanese main islands and other recently conquered regions, but later, they also moved prisoners to prevent them from being liberated by advancing Allied forces.
最初，地狱船将盟军战俘转移到需要他们劳动力的地区，例如日本主岛和其他最近征服的地区，但后来，它们也转移囚犯，以防止他们被前进的盟军解放。
Top Photo: Aerial photo of the former U.S. Naval station, Olongapo, taken from a USS HANCOCK (CV-19) plane on December 15, 1944.
上图：1944 年 12 月 15 日从汉考克号航空母舰 (CV-19) 飞机上拍摄的前美国海军基地奥隆阿波的航拍照片。
The large ship is probably the S.S.
这艘大船可能是 S.S.
ORYOKU MARU, sunk in Subic Bay by Third Fleet planes on December 16, 1944.
ORYOKU MARU，1944 年 12 月 16 日在苏比克湾被第三舰队飞机击沉。
Naval History and Heritage Command
海军历史与遗产司令部
While the Japanese military was known for brutal treatment of Allied prisoners of war, captives transported on converted Japanese merchant vessels known as “hell ships” endured a unique torment.
虽然日本军队以残酷对待盟军战俘而闻名，但被称为“地狱船”的改装日本商船运送的俘虏却遭受了独特的折磨。
These ships, which also carried Japanese military supplies and soldiers, often while evacuating Japanese civilians, earned their name due to the intensely horrible conditions prisoners on these transports faced.
这些船只还运载日本军事物资和士兵，经常在疏散日本平民的同时，因其囚犯在这些运输工具上面临的极其可怕的条件而得名。
Allied prisoners spent the voyage in dark, cramped, filthy conditions without adequate food, water, sanitation, or medical treatment.
盟军囚犯在黑暗、狭窄、肮脏的条件下度过了整个航行，没有足够的食物、水、卫生设施或医疗。
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Initially, hell ships moved Allied POWs to areas where their labor was needed, such as the Japanese main islands and other recently conquered regions, but later, they also moved prisoners to prevent them from being liberated by advancing Allied forces.
最初，地狱船将盟军战俘转移到需要他们劳动力的地区，例如日本主岛和其他最近征服的地区，但后来，它们也转移囚犯，以防止他们被前进的盟军解放。
If prisoners could not be evacuated quickly enough, they were often executed.
如果囚犯不能足够快地撤离，他们往往会被处决。
These transports began in 1942 and continued into 1945.
这些运输始于 1942 年，一直持续到 1945 年。
Historian Gregory Michno estimates that over 125,000 prisoners traveled for more than 1,600 days on over 156 voyages on 134 different ships.
历史学家格雷戈里·米奇诺 (Gregory Michno) 估计，超过 125,000 名囚犯搭乘 134 艘不同的船只，进行了超过 156 次航行，历时 1,600 多天。
More than 21,000 prisoners died in the process.
超过 21,000 名囚犯在此过程中死亡。
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Some prisoners died from starvation, dehydration, heat stroke, and disease.
一些囚犯死于饥饿、脱水、中暑和疾病。
But even if prisoners survived the abysmal conditions, they might still be killed en route by Japanese guards or by Allied air and naval attacks.
但即使囚犯在恶劣的条件下幸存下来，他们仍然可能在途中被日本警卫或盟军的空中和海上袭击杀死。
Hell ships did not identify themselves as prisoner transports and often carried their own armament.
地狱船并不认为自己是囚犯运输工具，而且经常携带自己的武器。
Tragically, this meant that Allied attacks often hit vessels carrying their own people.
可悲的是，这意味着盟军的袭击经常袭击载有自己人员的船只。
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The circumstances surrounding the Oryoku Maru , Enoura Maru , and Brazil Maru illustrate the torment and danger POWs endured aboard hell ships.
Oryoku Maru、Enoura Maru 和 Brazil Maru 周围的情况说明了战俘在地狱船上所遭受的折磨和危险。
On December 13, 1944, 1,619 Allied POWs boarded the Oryoku Maru at Manila Harbor in the Philippines, and the ship set out along the coast to Luzon.
1944年12月13日，1619名盟军战俘在菲律宾马尼拉港登上“五六丸”号，沿着海岸出发前往吕宋岛。
The next day, aircraft from the carrier USS Hornet (CV-12) located and attacked the ship.
第二天，大黄蜂号航空母舰（CV-12）的飞机发现并攻击了这艘船。
After sustaining heavy damage, Oryoku Maru beached in Subic Bay.
在遭受严重破坏后，“五六丸”号在苏比克湾搁浅。
Overnight, the Japanese civilians on board evacuated.
一夜之间，船上的日本平民撤离。
On December 15, another American air attack further damaged the ship, causing an explosion and fire and forcing the Japanese to abandon ship.
12月15日，美国的另一次空袭进一步损坏了该船，引起爆炸和火灾，迫使日本弃船。
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The Japanese guards released the surviving prisoners and ordered them to jump over the side and swim for shore.
日本看守释放了幸存的囚犯，并命令他们跳到岸边游向岸边。
Guards shot at any prisoners they believed might be trying to escape.
警卫向任何他们认为可能试图逃跑的囚犯开枪。
When Japanese guards gathered the surviving prisoners at a tennis court in Olongapo, 286 were found to be missing or dead.
当日本看守将幸存的囚犯聚集到奥隆阿波的一个网球场时，发现有 286 人失踪或死亡。
Another 14 prisoners reportedly died over the next five days as they suffered from exposure to the elements.
据报道，另外 14 名囚犯在接下来的五天内因暴露在恶劣天气中而死亡。
The Japanese guards also allegedly executed another 15 prisoners deemed too injured or sick to survive the next leg of their journey.
据称，日本看守还处决了另外 15 名囚犯，他们被认为伤势过重或病重，无法在下一段旅程中生存。
From Olongapo, they went to San Fernando, La Union, where they boarded one of two hell ships, Enoura Maru and Brazil Maru .
从奥隆阿波出发，他们前往拉乌尼翁的圣费尔南多，在那里登上了两艘地狱船中的一艘，埃诺拉丸和巴西丸。
Those ships departed from the Philippines on December 27 and arrived on New Year’s Day 1945 in Formosa, modern-day Taiwan.
这些船只于 12 月 27 日从菲律宾出发，并于 1945 年元旦抵达福尔摩沙（今台湾）。
Additional prisoners likely died during the transit, and their bodies were thrown overboard.
其他囚犯可能在运输过程中死亡，他们的尸体被扔到海里。
Prisoners who died after the ships arrived in Formosa were brought ashore for burial.
船只到达福尔摩沙后死亡的囚犯被运上岸埋葬。
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For days the prisoners were held aboard the anchored Japanese ships.
囚犯们被关押在停泊的日本船上好几天。
On January 9, American aircraft once again spotted the transports and attacked.
1月9日，美国飞机再次发现运输船并发动攻击。
Enoura Maru took heavy damage, and around 300 POWs died.
江之浦丸遭受重创，约 300 名战俘死亡。
A few days later, Japanese guards allowed the surviving prisoners ashore to bury their dead.
几天后，日本看守允许幸存的囚犯上岸埋葬死者。
Then the survivors boarded Brazil Maru .
随后幸存者登上巴西丸号。
They left Formosa on January 13, and more prisoners died during the trip.
他们于 1 月 13 日离开台湾，更多囚犯在途中死亡。
Most of the deceased were likely removed from the ship while it was still in transit, but those who died during the final days of the journey may have been brought ashore for burial.
大多数死者可能是在运输途中从船上移走的，但那些在旅程最后几天死亡的人可能已被带上岸埋葬。
They arrived at Moji, Japan, on January 30.
他们于1月30日抵达日本门司。
Of the original 1,619 POWs, only about 500 reached Japan, where they were sent to labor camps for the remainder of the war.
最初的 1,619 名战俘中，只有约 500 人抵达日本，并被送往日本劳改营度过战争剩余时间。
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A few prisoners, like Ben Skardon, survived both attacks and a lengthy imprisonment in Japan and China.
像本·斯卡登这样的一些囚犯在日本和中国的两次袭击和长期监禁中幸存下来。
Skardon, who retired from the US Army in 1962 as a Colonel, received an honorary promotion to Brigadier General in 2021, days before he passed away at the age of 104.
斯卡登于 1962 年以上校身份从美国陆军退役，并于 2021 年荣誉晋升准将，几天前他去世，享年 104 岁。
In his oral history interview with The National WWII Museum , Skardon described the horrible conditions aboard hell ships, including watching the people around him die from wounds, disease, malnutrition, and dehydration.
在接受国家二战博物馆的口述历史采访时，斯卡登描述了地狱船上的可怕状况，包括看着周围的人死于伤口、疾病、营养不良和脱水。
They scavenged supplies from those who died in order to survive.
为了生存，他们从死者身上搜刮物资。
Skardon expressed his gratitude for the supplies and his recognition of the arbitrariness of the situation, saying of the death of a fellow prisoner, “I think maybe his death kept us alive.” Skardon would be among the very few to survive these ordeals.
斯卡登对物资的供应表示感谢，并承认局势的任意性，并谈到一名狱友的死亡，“我认为也许他的死让我们活了下来。”斯卡顿将是极少数能在这些磨难中幸存下来的人之一。
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Staff with the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC), work in conjunction with members of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), to exhume a casket during a disinterment at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM) in Manila, Philippines, March 1, 2023.
2023 年 3 月 1 日，美国战役纪念碑委员会 (ABMC) 的工作人员与国防部战俘/战俘会计局 (DPAA) 的成员合作，在菲律宾马尼拉的马尼拉美军公墓和纪念馆 (MACM) 的挖掘过程中挖掘出一具棺材。
22 of the individuals recovered from the disinterment are part of the “Enoura Maru” project, which includes three POW transport ships used by Imperial Japanese forces throughout the second World War, known as “Hell Ships”, and over 400 unidentified sets of remains.
发掘中找到的 22 具遗骸属于“Enoura Maru”项目的一部分，其中包括日本帝国军队在整个第二次世界大战期间使用的三艘战俘运输船（被称为“地狱船”）和 400 多具身份不明的遗骸。
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt.
（美国海军陆战队中士拍摄）
Zachary T.
扎卡里·T。
Beatty)
比蒂）
In 1946 and 1947, the American Graves Registration Service tried to locate prisoners who died aboard Japanese hell ships.
1946年和1947年，美国坟墓登记处试图寻找死于日本地狱船上的囚犯。
While these investigators had some success in finding and identifying the missing prisoners, many remained unaccounted for.
虽然这些调查人员在寻找和识别失踪囚犯方面取得了一些成功，但许多人仍然下落不明。
Some recovered remains could likely be associated with hell ship losses, but the individual could not be identified.
一些找到的遗骸可能与地狱船的损失有关，但无法识别该人的身份。
As a result, over 400 sets of remains were interred as unidentified individuals during the 1940s and 1950s.
结果，在 1940 年代和 1950 年代，有 400 多具身份不明的遗骸被埋葬。
In 2017, the DPAA disinterred one of the unidentified individuals and identified Captain Lester Albert Schade in 2018.
2017 年，DPAA 发掘了一名身份不明的人员，并于 2018 年确认了莱斯特·阿尔伯特·沙德上尉的身份。
In 2022, the agency began a larger project to disinter and identify the remaining unknown individuals associated with the Enoura Maru.
2022 年，该机构开始了一个更大的项目，以挖掘和识别与江浦丸号相关的剩余未知个体。
So far, DPAA has accounted for more than 25 missing individuals of 928 believed to be associated with the hell ship.
到目前为止，DPAA 已查明 928 名失踪人员中超过 25 名，据信与这艘地狱船有关。
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Adam Bisno, “The Japanese “Hell Ships” of World War II,” Naval History and Heritage Command, November 2019, https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/world-war-ii/1944/oryoku-maru.html (accessed January 22, 2026); Lee A.
Adam Bisno，“第二次世界大战中的日本“地狱船””，海军历史和遗产司令部，2019 年 11 月，https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/world-war-ii/1944/oryoku-maru.html（2026 年 1 月 22 日访问）；李A.
Gladwin, “American POWs on Japanese Ships Take a Voyage into Hell,” Prologue, vol. 35, no. 4, Winter 2003, https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2003/winter/hell-ships (accessed January 22, 2026).
格拉德温，“日本船上的美国战俘踏上地狱之旅”，序言，卷。 35，没有。 4，2003 年冬季，https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2003/winter/hell-ships（2026 年 1 月 22 日访问）。
Bisno, “The Japanese “Hell Ships;”’ and Gregory F.
Bisno，“日本的‘地狱船’”和 Gregory F.
Michno, Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War (Naval Institute Press, 2001): 1-86, 151-280, and 309-317.
米奇诺，《地狱舰上的死亡：太平洋战争中海上的囚犯》（海军学院出版社，2001 年）：1-86、151-280 和 309-317。
Bisno, “The Japanese “Hell Ships;”’ Gladwin, “American POWs on Japanese Ships.”
Bisno，“日本“地狱船”；格拉德温，“日本船上的美国战俘”。
Bisno, “The Japanese “Hell Ships;”’ Gladwin, “American POWs on Japanese Ships;” Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), “ Enoura Maru Identification Project,” https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/Projects/WWII/EnouraMaru/InfoSheet (accessed January 22, 2026); Brian MacArthur, Surviving the Sword: Prisoners of the Japanese in the Far East, 1942-1945 (Random House, 2005), 298-308; and DPAA, “ Enoura Maru Identification Project Information,” https://dpaa-mil.experience.crmforce.mil/Projects/s/wwii/enouramaru (accessed 15 May 2026).
Bisno，“日本“地狱船”；格拉德温，“日本船上的美国战俘；”国防战俘/MIA 会计局 (DPAA)，“Enoura Maru 身份识别项目”，https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/Projects/WWII/EnouraMaru/InfoSheet（2026 年 1 月 22 日访问）；布莱恩·麦克阿瑟，《刀剑下幸存：远东日本人的囚犯，1942-1945》（兰登书屋，2005 年），298-308；和 DPAA，“Enoura Maru 识别项目信息”，https://dpaa-mil.experience.crmforce.mil/Projects/s/wwii/enouramaru（2026 年 5 月 15 日访问）。
DPAA, “ Enoura Maru Identification Project;” DPAA, “Enoura Maru Identification Project Information,” and MacArthur, Surviving the Sword , 298-308.
DPAA，“Enoura Maru 鉴定项目”； DPAA，“江浦丸鉴定项目信息”，以及麦克阿瑟，《剑中幸存》，298-308。
DPAA, “ Enoura Maru Identification Project;” DPAA, “Enoura Maru Identification Project Information,” and MacArthur, Surviving the Sword , 298-308.
DPAA，“Enoura Maru 鉴定项目”； DPAA，“江浦丸鉴定项目信息”，以及麦克阿瑟，《剑中幸存》，298-308。
Ben Skardon, interview, The National WWII Museum, undated, https://www.ww2online.org/view/ben-skardon-0#sinking-of-the-oryoku-maru (accessed 27 January 2026); “Beverly ‘Ben’ Skardon, Class of ’38, decorated WWII veteran, passes away at 104,” Clemson News , November 16, 2021, https://news.clemson.edu/beverly-ben-skardon-class-of-38-decorated-wwii-veteran-passes-away-at-104/ (accessed 28 January 2026).
Ben Skardon，采访，国家二战博物馆，日期不详，https://www.ww2online.org/view/ben-skardon-0#sinking-of-the-oryoku-maru（2026 年 1 月 27 日访问）； “Beverly ‘Ben’ Skardon，38 届二战老兵，去世，享年 104 岁，”克莱姆森新闻，2021 年 11 月 16 日，https://news.clemson.edu/beverly-ben-skardon-class-of-38-decorated-wwii-veteran-passes-away-at-104/（2026 年 1 月 28 日访问）。
For further reading on POWs in the Pacific theater, see: Kim Guise, “Curator’s Choice: Pacific POW Witness,” April 28, 2021, https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/pow-witness-tokyo-war-crimes-trial (accessed January 29, 2026); “Profile: Ben Skardon,” National World War II Museum, June 19, 2020, https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/ben-skardon (accessed January 29, 2026); and Gregory F.
有关太平洋战区战俘的更多信息，请参阅：Kim Guise，“策展人的选择：太平洋战俘证人”，2021 年 4 月 28 日，https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/pow-witness-tokyo-war-crimes-trial（2026 年 1 月 29 日访问）； “简介：本·斯卡登”，国家二战博物馆，2020 年 6 月 19 日，https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/ben-skardon（2026 年 1 月 29 日访问）；和格雷戈里·F.
Michno, Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War (Naval Institute Press, 2001).
米奇诺，《地狱舰上的死亡：太平洋战争中海上的囚犯》（海军学院出版社，2001 年）。
Sarah Patterson, PhD is a World War II Military Historian at the Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War & Democracy at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans.
莎拉·帕特森博士是新奥尔良国家二战博物馆珍妮·克雷格战争与民主研究所的二战军事历史学家。
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League served as inspiration for young women across the country and opened the door further for women’s professional sports.
全美女子职业棒球联盟为全国年轻女性提供了灵感，并进一步为女子职业运动打开了大门。
Joseph R.
约瑟夫·R。
Beyrle's experience captures the initiative demanded of airborne soldiers, the brutality endured by prisoners of war, and the unlikely battlefield cooperation between American and Soviet soldiers during the final months of the war.
拜尔的经历体现了空降兵所需要的主动性、战俘所遭受的残酷以及战争最后几个月美国和苏联士兵之间不太可能的战场合作。
In the letter, Major Richard “Dick” Winters responded to Stephen Ambrose's request for his thoughts on the strain of command, the problems he faced during the war, and the living conditions his soldiers endured.
在信中，理查德·“迪克”·温特斯少校回应了斯蒂芬·安布罗斯关于他对指挥压力、他在战争期间面临的问题以及他的士兵所忍受的生活条件的看法的请求。
What emerged was also a concise explanation of Winters’s leadership philosophy.
随之而来的是对温特斯领导哲学的简洁解释。
At The National WWII Museum, remembering the anniversary of September 11 means remembering all those who perished that day and recognizing the many different stories they carried with them.
在国家二战博物馆，纪念 9 月 11 日的周年纪念意味着纪念那天所有遇难的人，并认识到他们所承载的许多不同的故事。
During World War II, ship names often referenced earlier eras of American history.
第二次世界大战期间，舰艇名称经常引用美国历史的早期时期。
Today, the US Navy continues its efforts to memorialize the country’s origins by upholding naming traditions that hark back more than 160 years.
如今，美国海军继续努力维护 160 多年前的命名传统，以纪念国家的起源。
A product of post Great War naval treaties and launched amid rising global tensions, the USS New Orleans forged a bond with its namesake city in the years before World War II
新奥尔良号航空母舰是一战后海军条约的产物，在全球紧张局势不断升级的情况下下水，在第二次世界大战前的几年里与同名城市建立了联系
A surplus of Army rations and goodwill helped improve the lives of many Europeans impoverished by World War II.
过剩的陆军口粮和善意帮助改善了许多因二战而陷入贫困的欧洲人的生活。
945 Magazine Street, New Orleans, LA 70130 info@nationalww2museum.org 504-528-1944
945 Magazine Street, 新奥尔良, LA 70130 info@nationalww2museum.org 504-528-1944