Ocean Newsletter

No.364 October 5, 2015

  • The Souls of the Frigate Ertuğrul Dwell in the Cherry Blossoms Ilker GULER
    Strategy-Defence & Force Planning Officer in Turkish Naval Forces Command/Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science and Public Administration, Bilkent University
  • On Toyama Bay, Member of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Koichi TAKAKUWA
    Director/Secretary, Beautiful Toyama Bay Club
  • Creating a Tidal Flat in the Kono Urafune Pond in Arai Hamakaze Park, Takasago City, Hyogo Prefecture Mari MAEDA
    Gata girl

The Souls of the Frigate Ertuğrul Dwell in the Cherry Blossoms

“Sakura (cherry blossoms)”… It is a symbol of the Japanese nation that is unalterable and eternal in the historical recollection of the world. The elegance and the sophistication in every expression of Sakura has the soul of being. The Sakura, with its magnificent beauty and emotional meaning, is a representation of the sensitive Japanese culture. And its stunning beauty makes people feel sorrowful. I witnessed the emotional meaning of Sakura in 2005 at the commemoration of the 115th anniversary of the frigate Ertugrul’s voyage to Japan. The saplings of Sakura sent from Japan were planted in a botanic garden that has a special area named the Ertugrul.
On 14th July 1889, the frigate Ertugrul set sail, signifying the diplomatic relationship between Turkey and Japan, but in an unfortunate incident the voyage ended in a dramatic way. The outward voyage started in Istanbul and finished in Yokohoma on the 7th of June in 1890. Her return journey began on 15 September 1890, but tragically she sank with her 600 sailors on the rocks of Kashinozaki’s lighthouse just of the Coast of Ohshima Island on 16 September 1890.
The search and rescue efforts of the Japanese authorities and nearby villagers resulted in the rescuing of 69 people from the Ertugrul. After this traumatic event, newspapers in Japan initiated humanitarian activities for the crewmembers’ families. An aid campaign was launched for the families of the martyrs on the ship. Dr. Kawaguchi Sanjuurou, Dr. Date Ichirou, and Dr. Matsu Shima did not accept any payment or compensation for the treatments and drugs they provided. In their letter to the clerk after the horrific accident they said, “We just thought that the wounded needed help and we wanted to help these people wholeheartedly.” The words of these doctors represent the philosophy of Sakura in the deep veins of the Japanese culture, where is a deeper, gentle sadness and empathy.

Greening Friendship between the Pincers of Orientalism and Colonialism

Although the foundation of the relationship between the Turkish and Japanese people was constituted on the axis of this tragedy, the factors that caused the Ottoman Empire to send the frigate Ertugrul to Japan are closely related to the historical experiences of the two nations ? the United Kingdom and Russia.
The Ottoman Emperor Sultan Abdulhamid II and the Japanese Emperor Meiji ruled their countries during this colonial era. The main interest between the Ottomans and the Japanese was to find a strategic ally in order to prevent attacks coming from Russia and to ensure their sovereignty against the United Kingdom’s colonial attitude and desires. On the one hand, the colonial movements appear to have been playing a vital role in the process leading up to the Ertugrul’s voyage to Japan, and on the other hand, the tragic accident crafted a brotherhood between Turks and the Japanese.

The Lesson of the Private Diplomacy from His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa

I would like to remind us of the lessons learned from the “private diplomacy” of His Imperial Highness Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, from his article of the same name. Prince Tomohito expressed his feelings in his article while looking at the two flasks sacred to him on a beautiful glass shelf, one filled with water and the other filled with earth - during his visit to the naval port in Mersin. These were the most affecting words of his article, which also shows the greatest example of private diplomacy in these two flasks. He said, “I was deeply moved at seeing for myself this bond, inexpressible in words, but born as two peoples, strangers to each other, struggled to snatch life out of the jaws of death. Although taking place more than one hundred years ago, the bond only grows stronger.”
As he said, the relationship between Japan and Turkey will live on eternally. In this context, Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko of Mikasa took over the honor and attended the commemoration of the 125th anniversary of the frigate Ertugrul’s voyage to Japan in order to keep “the soul of Ertugrul in the bosom of Sakura”.

Princess Akiko lays flowers for the Ertugrul’s martyrs.

In the framework of the commemoration ceremonies, the Turkish frigate TCG Gediz (F-495) simulates the voyage of the frigate Ertugrul between April 1st and July 31st in order to conduct port visits to Shimonoseki, Kushimoto, and Tokyo. On the 3rd of June, the frigate Ertugrul’s Tomb of the Martyrs and the Ertugrul Memorial Monument were visited. During the ceremonies, Princess Akiko said "I feel that my father, Prince Tomohito, who endeavored to further strengthen Turkish-Japanese relations, entrusted me with the duty of maintaining this friendship". She also stated that these ties were further strengthened at the time of the Iran-Iraq war, during which Turkey evacuated Japanese nationals from Tehran in 1985 before helping its own citizens. And she laid flowers at the memorial monument alongside the President of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Mr. Cemil Cicek, the Commander of the Turkish Naval Forces, Admiral Bulent Bostanoglu, the Commander of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Forces, Admiral Tomohisa Takei, a host of Turkish and Japanese officials and foreign mission representatives. During the period, over 600 Japanese and Turkish guests attended the ceremonies.

Admiral Bostanoglu gives Princess Akiko the medal of the frigate Ertugrul.

Indeed, the soul of Ertugrul will live in the bosom of Sakura, and having mutual memories of Ertugrul has become one of these beatific traditions between Turkey and Japan. This fidelity will continue to hold the two nations together under the peaceful spirit of Sakura.

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