Wreck of Montevideo Maru Found
Japanese passenger-cargo ship Montevideo Maru, launched in 1926, was pressed into military service during WW2. On 1 Jul 1942, while transporting 1,054 prisoners, most of which Australian, she was torpedoed and sunk by submarine USS Sturgeon in the South China Sea. All prisoners died in the sinking, as did 68 of the 88 Japanese crew members and armed guards aboard. The wreck was discovered by an autonomous underwater vehicle from mothership Fugro Equator on 18 Apr 2023 at the depth of more than 4,000 meters (13,000 feet). The wreck was made a war grave site.
For more information:
CNN: World War II shipwreck of SS Montevideo Maru, which sank with over 1,000 POWs, found in South China Sea
Back to Main | Back to 2023 News Index
Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Please help us spread the word: Stay updated with WW2DB: |

- » The Emperor of Japan Planned to Honor WW2-era Japanese POWs in Mongolia (4 Jul 2025)
- » US State Lawmaker John Winter Caught Using Racial Slur "Jap" and Apologized (11 Jun 2025)
- » Köln/Cologne Evacuated After Discovery of WW2 Bombs (4 Jun 2025)
- » Race, Holocaust, and African-American WW2 Histories Removed from the US Naval Academy Library (7 Apr 2025)
- » US Government Plans to Purge WW2 Information (17 Mar 2025)
- » See all news
- » 1,179 biographies
- » 337 events
- » 45,089 timeline entries
- » 1,245 ships
- » 350 aircraft models
- » 207 vehicle models
- » 376 weapon models
- » 123 historical documents
- » 261 facilities
- » 470 book reviews
- » 28,479 photos
- » 365 maps
James Forrestal, Secretary of the Navy, 23 Feb 1945