태평양전쟁기 군산 지하군사시설 현황 연구

Abstract

Gunsan became a major base for food robbery throughout the Japanese colonial period due to its favorable conditions for rice production and transportation, such as wide plains and ports. However, towards the end of the Pacific War, the Japanese army was on the defensive and suffered repeated defeats, leading the Japanese headquarters to prepare for a decisive battle on Japan’s main island. At that time, Operation Gyeol 7 was assigned to the 17th Area Army stationed in Joseon, and according to the preparation guidelines for Operation Gyeol 7, Gunsan was mentioned as one of the main landing points for the United States. forces. In April 1945, the Japanese newly established the 160th Division to defend Gunsan and the Jeollabukdo region, and Japan's new war efforts transformed into the forefront of the battlefield. Preventing the landing of U.S. troops in Gunsan and the Jeollabuk-do region became one of the most crucial tasks of the Japanese forces. Gunsan was a key point for the Japanese military that must be defended on the west coast. The fact that the Japanese military stationed alert fighters early on and nearly 10,000 Japanese troops, including the army and aviation units, when the war was over shows that Gunsan was very important as a defense base. In accordance with Japanese Government General of Korea’s Joseon Military Construction Plan, large-scale constructions of military bases began with the active contribution from not only the Japanese Government General of Korea but also the administrative agencies of each region in Korea. Koreans of all ages, from young students to the elderly, participated in the construction work. Gunsan's large-scale underground military facilities were created as a part of such large-scale constructions. Such underground military facilities were used for defensive training and also served to deter and defend against the U.S. military's landing operation. Some facilities were left unfinished until the Korean liberation and were left unattended for 80 years. Considering and analyzing aerial photos, testimonies, and historical survey data, the number of underground military facilities dug and established by the Japanese military between 1944and 1945 appears to be well over 50. However, many have disappeared over a long period due to development and collapses. Despite this, the authors were able to identify 30 underground military facilities through field investigations. What distinguishes Gunsan's underground military facilities is that underground military facilities of each region are categorized and characterized by their unique missions and roles. The underground military facilities were largely divided into four districts: a command center to link with Gunsan Port, hospital, railroad, and airfield; a communication unit; an intensive combat training center; and units and facilities to defend the airfield and major roads. If the Korean liberation had not occurred, Japan would have continued to prepare Gunsan at the end of the Pacific War to use Gunsan as a wartime front line to protect the Japanese mainland from the United States. Although many of such facilities have disappeared due to developments and collapses, it is also the time to start discussing the preservation and analysis of such underground military facilities. In the future, we hope to accumulate more data and derive significant research analysis through continuous research, including recording and collecting oral data, on the remaining underground military facilities that are relatively well-preserved. This paper may have many shortcomings in that it is the first study on the underground military facilities in Gunsan during the Japanese colonial period, but we believe it is a meaningful beginning.