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    You are at:Home»March»March 2»March 2, 1657: Great Fire Kills More Japanese than Atom Bomb!
    March 2

    March 2, 1657: Great Fire Kills More Japanese than Atom Bomb!

    Major DanBy Major DanMarch 2, 2017Updated:February 16, 202015 Comments3 Mins Read
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    A Brief History

    On March 2, 1657, the city of Tokyo, Japan, then known as Edo, suffered a catastrophic fire that lasted 3 days and killed 100,000 Japanese people, a death toll greater than either of the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

    Digging Deeper

    The carnage caused by the Great Fire of Meireki (or sometimes known as the Furisode Fire) combined to destroy about 60 to 70% of the buildings in Edo.  The legendary cause of the fire was a priest attempting to burn a cursed kimono that had been owned by 3 girls, one after the other, that died before getting a chance to wear the cursed clothing.  A great gust of wind is said to have taken the burning cloth and spread the fire.

    Historically, wind did play a major role in spreading the fire, as gales of hurricane force were said to have been blowing.  Whatever the source, the wind spread the flames across a city that was built almost entirely of wood and paper buildings, firefighters unable to keep up with the rapid spread of flames caused by the wind.  The fire brigade established in Edo was a novel idea, but the force was nowhere near large enough to deal with a conflagration of this magnitude.  The fire lasted 3 days until the winds subsided, but the incredible amount of smoke persisted for a few more days and hampered recovery efforts.  Reconstruction of the city lasted the next 2 years.

    Tokyo has been no stranger to massive catastrophe, as evidenced by Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, a natural disaster that cost about 100,000 lives and precipitated another great fire that actually caused most of the fatalities.  The 7.9 magnitude quake lasted only 4 to 10 minutes, but broke the water mains stifling fire fighting efforts.  Compounding the problems, a typhoon and tsunami struck Tokyo Bay at the same time!  This disaster was shamefully compounded by people as well, with false rumors of Koreans in Tokyo being responsible for the fire and looting, resulting in vigilante groups pursuing and killing Koreans in Tokyo, necessitating the Army being sent to Tokyo to restore order and protect Koreans, although police and army personnel had killed a few thousand Koreans themselves!  The devastation and chaos was so great thoughts of moving the capital to a different city were considered.

    Another disaster of similar scope, this time cause by humans, occurred in 1945 when the United States Army Air Forces bombed Tokyo with incendiary bombs, once again burning the city on a massive scale and killing around 100,000 Japanese.  The physical destruction and cost of lives eclipsed either of the atom bomb attacks that occurred later.

    Question for students (and subscribers): Can you think of a city that has suffered 3 catastrophes of the scale of the Tokyo catastrophes?  If you know of any city that has possibly suffered worse than Tokyo, please share that information with your fellow readers in the comments section below this article.

    If you liked this article and would like to receive notification of new articles, please feel welcome to subscribe to History and Headlines by liking us on Facebook and becoming one of our patrons!

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    Historical Evidence

    For more information, please see…

    1657 by Country: 1657 in Denmark, 1657 in England, 1657 in Ireland, 1657 in Japan, Second Protectorate Parliament, Great Fire of Meirek.  Books LLC, 2010.

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    Major Dan

    Major Dan is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.

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    <span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="15378 https://www.historyandheadlines.com/?p=15378">15 Comments

    1. Amanda Miller on March 12, 2017 5:29 pm

      Japan has seen some real devastation of the years.

      Reply
    2. MIA on April 4, 2017 1:24 pm

      I feel so bad for the innocent civilians in Japan!

      Reply
    3. H J on September 2, 2017 12:47 pm

      a cursed kimono, a gust of wind, a city burned to the ground almost. sounds like that kimono had something against fire. It still is pretty neat how weather plays such an important role in historical events and is rarely talked about. weather plays the biggest part in everything we do. want to swim? not in December. want to go to the beach? watch for sharks in early spring and summer. Why? weather plays a part in the migration and mating habits of sharks. the same goes for historical events as well. i wonder if they investigated weather in some of histories biggest mysteries if that would solve some?

      Reply
    4. J.K. on September 9, 2017 10:52 am

      I have not realized all the catastrophes Japan has face.

      Reply
    5. Ian Helwagen on September 9, 2017 3:37 pm

      Its sad how much Japan has gone through

      Reply
    6. Olivia Easterday on September 9, 2017 9:07 pm

      They need a break from all the stuff they go through.

      Reply
    7. MR on September 11, 2017 2:38 pm

      i never really realized how much japan has went through

      Reply
    8. Emily Pfouts on September 11, 2017 3:16 pm

      I would enjoy to learn more about the 3 little girls.

      Reply
    9. Leslie U on September 11, 2017 10:27 pm

      I wonder what happened to the 3 girls that caused this kimono to be labeled as cursed. Goodness, 1923 was an awful year for Japan. Even with all the natural disasters going on in America right now, I’d say Japan had it worse.

      Reply
    10. Madison Tietz on September 11, 2017 11:18 pm

      I was never taught about this catastrophic fire. In high school we focus so much on World War II that events like this get surpassed even if the number of fatalities is higher

      Reply
    11. Blake Hefner on September 12, 2017 12:31 pm

      This occurrence killed more than the atomic blasts in Hiroshima, and Nagasaki.

      Reply
    12. Alex Leighton on September 12, 2017 4:54 pm

      Japan has always been getting beat up for a long time, a lot longer than I realized. It’s sad that the earth quake, fire, tsunami, and bombs have all been such destructive forces aimed right at Japan. I can’t believe that a city in the country of Japan, surrounded by water, was nearly wiped out by a fire.

      Reply
    13. Samantha Novak on September 12, 2017 10:45 pm

      It saddens me greatly to type this number but.
      Auschwitz: 1.5 million deaths.
      Although it was over an extended period of time, it was caused by, once again, differences in belief systems. Mother nature may be brutal, but I think humans are worse.

      Reply
    14. Jarrett M on September 13, 2017 8:44 pm

      It’s hard to believe that a fire could do so much more damage than an atom bomb. I mean we’re talking modern technology compared to natural occurrence.

      Reply
    15. Kailawyn Flugum on September 14, 2017 2:00 pm

      I cannot think of a specific city or region, but this has inspired me to research it!

      Reply

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