Lisbon Maru
Lisbon Maru | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Japan | |
| Name | SS Lisbon Maru |
| Namesake | Port of Lisbon |
| Owner | Nippon Yusen Kaisha |
| Builder | Yokohama Dock Company, Yokohama |
| Laid down | 15 October 1919 |
| Launched | 31 May 1920 |
| Completed | 8 July 1920 |
| Fate | Sunk, 1 October 1942 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Cargo liner |
| Tonnage | 7,053 GRT |
| Length | 135.6 m (444 ft 11 in) |
| Beam | 17.7 m (58 ft 1 in) |
| Depth | 10.4 m (34 ft 1 in) |
| Installed power | 632 nhp |
| Propulsion | 2 × triple expansion steam engines |
| Speed | 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
Lisbon Maru (りすぼん丸) was a Japanese cargo liner built at Yokohama in 1920 for a Japanese shipping line. During World War II, the ship was requisitioned by the Japanese Army and turned into an armed troopship. On her final voyage, Lisbon Maru was being used to transport prisoners of war (POWs) between Hong Kong and Japan when it was torpedoed by the submarine USS Grouper on 1 October 1942.
Over 800 British POWs died in the sinking, either by drowning or being shot by Japanese soldiers as they attempted to escape from the sinking ship. About 384 British POWs were rescued by nearby Chinese fishermen.