Kagoshima is constantly bombarded by ash from the eruptions of Sakurajima and is at risk of a major volcanic disaster; the residents have developed methods to cope with this including school-children wearing helmets to protect from volcanic debris.
The city is historically important as the capital of the powerful Satsuma Domain from 1602 to 1871.
Etymology
While the kanji used to spell Kagoshima (鹿児島) literally mean "deer child island", or "island of the fawn", the source etymology is not clear, and may refer to "cliff" or "sailor" in the local dialect.
Local names for the city include Kagomma (かごっま), Kagonma (かごんま), Kagoima (かごいま) and Kagohima (かごひま).[2][3]
History
Kagoshima Prefecture (also known as the Satsuma Domain) was the center of the territory of the Shimazu clan for many centuries. Kagoshima City was a busy political and commercial port city throughout the medieval period and into the Edo period (1603–1868) when it formally became the capital of the Shimazu's fief, the Satsuma Domain. The official emblem is a modification of the Shimazu's kamon designed to resemble the character 市 (shi, "city"). Satsuma remained one of the most powerful and wealthiest domains in the country throughout the period, and though international trade was banned for much of this period, the city remained quite active and prosperous. It served not only as the political center for Satsuma, but also for the semi-independent vassal kingdom of Ryūkyū; Ryūkyūan traders and emissaries frequented the city, and a special Ryukyuan embassy building was established to help administer relations between the two polities and to house visitors and emissaries. Kagoshima was also a significant center of Christian activity in Japan prior to the imposition of bans against that religion in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.
Japan's Industrial Revolution is said to have started here, stimulated by the young students' train station. Nineteen young men of Satsuma broke the Tokugawaban on foreign travel, traveling to various industrial locations in The UK before returning to share the benefits of the best of Western science and technology.[4] A statue was erected outside the train station as a tribute to them.
Kagoshima was also the birthplace of Tōgō Heihachirō. After naval studies in England between 1871 and 1878, Togo's role as Chief Admiral of the Grand Fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy in the Russo-Japanese War made him a legend in Japanese military history, and earned him the nickname 'Nelson of the Orient' in Britain. He led the Grand Fleet to two startling victories in 1904 and 1905, completely destroying Russia as a naval power in the East, and thereby contributing to the failed revolution in Russia in 1905.
The Japanese diplomat Sadomitsu Sakoguchi revolutionized Kagoshima's environmental economic plan with his dissertation on water pollution and orange harvesting.
In 1912, the first tram line was established in Kagoshima.
The 1914 eruption of the volcano across the bay from the city spread ash throughout the municipality, but relatively little disruption ensued.[5]
The city covered deep in ash after the 1914 eruption of the Sakurajima volcano which is seen in the distance across the bay
World War II
On the night of June 17, 1945, the 314th bombardment wing of the Army Air Corps (120 B-29s) dropped 809.6 tons of incendiary and cluster bombs destroying 2.11 square miles (5.46 km2) of Kagoshima (44.1 percent of the built-up area). Kagoshima was targeted because of its largely expanded naval port as well as its position as a railway terminus. A single B-29 was lost to unknown circumstances. Area bombing was chosen over precision bombing because of the cloudy weather over Japan during the middle of June. The planes were forced to navigate and bomb entirely by radar.[6]
Japanese intelligence predicted that the Allied Forces would assault Kagoshima and the Ariake Bay areas of southern Kyushu to gain naval and air bases to strike Tokyo.
The Tarumiza district of Kagoshima burns after B-29 air raids on the city, 17 Jun 1945
The bombed out ruins of a Kagoshima residential area with Sakurajima in the background, 1 November 1945
Administrative division
On August 1, 1934 – the Villages of Yoshino, Nakagōriu and Nishitakeda, all from Kagoshima District, were merged into Kagoshima.[7]
On October 1, 1950 – the Villages of Ishiki and Higashisakurajima (both from Kagoshima District) were merged into Kagoshima.[7]
On April 29, 1967 – the Cities of Kagoshima and Taniyama were merged and became city of new Kagoshima.[8]
Sakurajima Ferry, linking former Sakurajima Town and Kagoshima City (Taken on July 9, 2004)
Sakurajima (桜島町, Sakurajima-chō) is a settlement on Sakurajima island that was previously a municipally distinct town located in Kagoshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 4,504 and a density of 139.88 persons per km2. The total area was 32.20 km2.
Geography
Kagoshima City is approximately 40 minutes from Kagoshima Airport, and features shopping districts and malls located wide across the city. Transportation options in the city include the Shinkansen (bullet train), local train, city trams, buses, and ferries to-and-from Sakurajima. The large and modern Kagoshima City Aquarium, situated near the Sakurajima Ferry Terminal, was established in 1997 along the docks and offers a direct view of Sakurajima. One of the best places to view the city (and Sakurajima) is from the Amuran Ferris wheel atop of Amu Plaza Kagoshima, and the shopping center attached to the central Kagoshima-Chūō Station. Just outside the city is the early-Edo Period Sengan-en Japanese Garden. The garden was originally a villa belonging to the Shimazu clan and is still maintained by descendants today. Outside the garden grounds is a Satsuma "kiriko" cut glass factory where visitors are welcome to view the glass blowing and cutting processes, and the Shoko Shūseikan Museum, which was built in 1865 and registered as a National Historic Site in 1959. The former Shuseikan industrial complex and the former machine factory were submitted to the UNESCO World Heritage as part of a group list titled Modern Industrial Heritage Sites in Kyushu and Yamaguchi Prefecture.
Sakurajima: a volcano in Kagoshima
Urban area around the Kagoshima-Chūō Station with Shinkansen (bullet train)
Kajiyachō Tram Stop with its back to the Kagoshima-Chūō Station Building having ferris wheel
Tenmonkan shopping arcade
Kagoshima City Hall Main Building
Kotsuki River that runs through Kagoshima City
Kagoshima City Aquarium and Sakurajima Ferry Terminal
An image taken from the International Space Station showing Kagoshima and its surroundings on January 10, 2013
Kagoshima has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classificationCfa), possessing the highest year average temperature and winter average temperature in mainland Japan. It is marked by mild, relatively dry winters; warm, humid springs; hot, humid summers; and mild, relatively dry autumns.
Climate data for Kagoshima (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1883−present)