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Japanese maps of East Asia- a historical resource
Secret Japanese Military Maps Could Open a New Window on Asia's Past
The recovered maps provided valuable intelligence for the United States after World War II.
5 MINUTE READ
BY GREG MILLER National Geographic Aug 2016
THESE MAPS WERE captured in the waning days of World War II as the U.S. Army took control of Japan. American soldiers confiscated thousands of secret Japanese military maps and the plates used to print them, then shipped them to the United States for safekeeping.
The maps covered much of Asia, and they went far beyond the local topography. They included detailed notes on climate, transportation systems, and the local people. It’s the kind of information that could be used to plan an invasion or an occupation, and some of it was gathered by spies operating behind enemy lines. To the Japanese, these maps are known as gaihōzu—maps of outer lands.
To the Americans, they were a valuable source of intelligence, not just on a recently defeated foe, but also on a newly emerging one—the Soviet Union. The Army Map Service considered it unwise to hold such an important strategic resource at a single location that could be wiped out in a nuclear strike, so it distributed the maps to dozens of libraries and institutions scattered across the country.
And there they remained, virtually forgotten, for decades.
The maps covered much of Asia, and they went far beyond the local topography. They included detailed notes on climate, transportation systems, and the local people. It’s the kind of information that could be used to plan an invasion or an occupation, and some of it was gathered by spies operating behind enemy lines. To the Japanese, these maps are known as gaihōzu—maps of outer lands.
To the Americans, they were a valuable source of intelligence, not just on a recently defeated foe, but also on a newly emerging one—the Soviet Union. The Army Map Service considered it unwise to hold such an important strategic resource at a single location that could be wiped out in a nuclear strike, so it distributed the maps to dozens of libraries and institutions scattered across the country.
And there they remained, virtually forgotten, for decades.
More:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2016/07/world-war-japanese-maps-discovered/
Tim Shorrock picked up this link from a tweet originally from Evan Feigenbaum. The National Geographic article by Greg Miller is from August 2016, but I hadn't seen it or any of this collection of Japanese charts before. Given the obvious military relationship of such map making, they have considerable historical significance. The article relied in part on the academic research of Shigeru Kobayashi. The National Geographic link includes a number of interesting charts with commentary. Kobayashi's article is very interesting as well.
Cross Currents
East Asian History and Culture Review
Japanese Mapping of Asia-Pacific Areas, 1873–1945: An Overview
Shigeru Kobayashi, Osaka University March 2012
Introduction
The study of cartography in imperial and colonial expansion is one of the most important
subjects today for scholars who are interested in the intersection of modern history and the
history of cartography. For modern states, maps have been fundamental tools, serving
multiple purposes in construction projects, public administration, land registration, and
military operations. Likewise, maps were also important instruments for the exploration and
administration of overseas areas that were incorporated into these modern states.
Scholars have studied the roles of these maps in international politics, the applications
of modern surveying to colonies, and the cartographic representation of empire...
The study of cartography in imperial and colonial expansion is one of the most important
subjects today for scholars who are interested in the intersection of modern history and the
history of cartography. For modern states, maps have been fundamental tools, serving
multiple purposes in construction projects, public administration, land registration, and
military operations. Likewise, maps were also important instruments for the exploration and
administration of overseas areas that were incorporated into these modern states.
Scholars have studied the roles of these maps in international politics, the applications
of modern surveying to colonies, and the cartographic representation of empire...
Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review
E-Journal No. 2 (March 2012) • (http://cross-currents.berkeley.edu/e-journal/issue-2)
It's interesting that military map making efforts of overseas locations in Asia began not to long after the Meiji Restoration. Map making before and during military campaigns is not so surprising. As Miller points out some charts were labelled top secret. Kobayashi mentions various means of Japanese chart making efforts over different periods including the use of undercover surveyors operating in mainland China. Copying western charts, and acquiring western surveying techniques are also described in the early periods. Formal military surveys followed Japanese military campaigns and the establishment of colonial enclaves eventually leading to "full-scale instrumental photogrammetry" as early as 1929 in Korea.