Kurume History Walks
No.23 平和への願い－久留米の戦争遺跡（２） War Remains 2

Army Cemetery at Nonakamachi, Kurume
The establishment of the Army Cemetery in Kurume started in 1939 and was accomplished by two years
and nine months of work, the total 12,000 people and 250,000 yens of expense. (At that time, a cup of coffee
used to cost about 0.15 yen.)
It was about 71,000 square meters. Today, most of the land was converted into the Kurume Bicycle Race
Track. However, there are still several remains: a cenotaph, a tower to bow toward the Imperial Court in Tokyo(yohaidai), an amphitheater, an Army Bridge, a Hojoike Pond for a Buddhist ritual (hojoike), an observatory(rinsendai), an approach to the cemetery, etc.
For the construction, the funds and the labor force were provided by several municipal governments of
Chikugo province and Saga prefecture. Workers, students, ladies’ societies, companies... various organizations
were mobilized or some of them voluntarily took part. The city of Kurume also bore 16,413 yens of theconstruction cost.

Open-air Auditorium

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Kurume History Walks / No.23 War Remains 2ApproachOpen-air Auditorium

Cenotaph for the deceased
German POWs
Yohai Tower
Hojoike Pond
Army Bridge

Shogenji Park
Kurume Bicycle Racetrack

Cenotaph
Rinsendai Observatory

Approach (参道) – The approach continues to the cenotaph today.
On either side of the entrance, there is a pair of stone lanterns thatwere copied from large lanterns of Yasukuni-jinja Shrine in Tokyo.
And the road is flanked with camphor trees which were planted by
the volunteer activity of members of a department store in 1940, andwith chestnut trees, ginkgo trees, bayberry trees bought by Kurume
Post Office workers.
And before passing the Army Bridge, there are again the groupedstone lanterns: 21 on the north side of the approach, 15 on the southside.

At the entrance, there is another monument inscribed with “Land for commemorating
the war dead”.

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Army Bridge over Hojoike Pond

Army Bridge

Army Bridge (陸軍橋)– It is constructed of concrete over the Hojoike Pond, and measures 15 meters in height,
8 meters in width, 21 meters in length. At the end of its railings, it was inscribed with “Army Bridge”“Completed in April 1942”.

Yohai Tower（遥拝台）– Made ofbricks, it measures
4.8 meters high, 6
meters across at thebase, and equippedwith spiral stairs. On
its top, there is astone pillar inscribedwith “Bow to theImperial Court” on
the west side. (Then,when facing theinscription, you arefacing to the east, the direction of Tokyo.)

Left: Yohai Tower
Above: Pillar

Open-air Auditorium (野外講堂）– It is 22 meters across and has a seating capacity of 500. Its stage andseats are made of cement brick and surrounded by a clay wall.
Its architectural design seems to be based around the circle: the stage is elliptical; the back wall has asemicircular recess in the center (slightly like a semi-dome of the church); the benches are arranged in a fanshape and its leg parts are arch-shaped… It is so rare that there are not any other remains of the early Showaera.
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Kurume History Walks / No.23 War Remains 2

Cenotaph

Cenotaph for the deceased German POWs

Water basin

Rinsendai Observatory

Cenotaph (忠霊塔) – It is a principal facility of the Army Cemetery. Its tower is 17 meters high (from theground inside of the fence), 3 meters wide. Its underground vault –under the tower – houses the ashes of 5,048
soldiers. At the entrance of this site, there is a water basin that was brought by a tank from Tanushimaru.
Cenotaph for the deceased German Prisons of War (ドイツ兵俘虜墓) –In 1914, Japanese forces captured
German soldiers in World War I at Tsingtao, China. A part of them were taken into the Kurume POW camp, and
1,319 people stayed there for five years and three months. During that time, eleven died. It was erected by theircomrades before their departure to the country.
Rinsendai Observatory (臨川台) –It is located currently in Shogenji park. There is a boundary marker
between the park and the Kora River which runs under the observatory.

Cultural Properties Protection Department of Kurume
Address: 15-3 Jonan Kurume Fukuoka Japan 830-8520
Tel: 0942-30-9225
Date of publication: March 31st, 2005 / Translated in August 2020
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