{{Short description|Preserved C56 class locomotive}} {{Infobox locomotive | name= C56 31 | powertype= Steam | gauge={{Track gauge|1067mm|lk=on}} (JGR)<br/>{{Track gauge|1000mm|lk=on}} (IJA, SRT) | driverdiameter = 1,400 mm | image= File:Japanese-national-railways-C56-31-20110622.jpg | caption= C56 31 at the Yushukan in June 2011 | whytetype= {{whyte|2-6-0}} | designer= | length= 14,325 mm | locoweight= | locotenderweight= 65.53 t | builder= [[Nippon Sharyo]] | builddate= 1936 | maxspeed = | tractiveeffort= 8,290 kg |operator=[[Japanese Government Railways]]<br/>[[Imperial Japanese Army]]<br/>[[State Railway of Thailand]] |retiredate=1977 |currentowner=[[Yūshūkan|Yūshūkan Museum]], [[Tokyo]] |disposition=Static display }}
'''C56 31''' was the 31st of the [[JNR Class C56|Class C56]] steam locomotives produced by [[Japanese Government Railways]] (JGR). It was manufactured by [[Nippon Sharyo]] in 1936 and was operated on the [[Nanao Line]] in [[Ishikawa Prefecture]] before [[Pacific War|the war]].<ref name="Royal Library"> Royal Library [http://royallibrary.sakura.ne.jp/ww2/photo/C56_31.html 泰緬鉄道C56型蒸気機関車31号車] Retrieved March 22, 2016 {{in lang|ja}} </ref> C56 31 was the first locomotive to run on the [[Thai-Burma Railway]], also known as the Death Railway. It operated there during the war, after which it was used in Thailand. After the war it was brought back to Japan and restored, and is now displayed in the [[Yūshūkan]], the museum attached to [[Yasukuni Shrine]] in Tokyo. It is displayed without reference to the deaths during the construction of the railway, which are estimated at around 100,000.<ref> McNeill, David [http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2005/10/09/to-be-sorted/building-a-bridge-to-forgiveness/ Building a bridge to forgiveness October 9, 2005] ''[[The Japan Times]]'' Retrieved March 17, 2016 </ref><ref> [http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/07/27/commentary/yasukuni-shrine-ground-zero-for-unrepentant-wartime-remembrance/ Yasukuni Shrine: ground zero for unrepentant wartime remembrance July 27, 2013] ''[[The Japan Times]]'' Retrieved March 16, 2016 </ref><ref> Lim, Robyn [http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2006/05/17/commentary/taro-aso-has-a-history-problem-with-australia/ Taro Aso has a history problem with Australia May 17, 2006] ''[[The Japan Times]]'' Retrieved March 16, 2016 </ref><ref> Simone, Gianni [http://www.japantimes.co.jp/community/2014/07/28/issues/trip-around-yushukan-japans-font-discord/ A trip around the Yushukan, Japan’s font of discord July 28, 2014] ''[[The Japan Times]]'' Retrieved March 16, 2016 </ref>
==Wartime use== In 1942, C56 31 was shipped to Thailand.<ref> American POWs of Japan website [http://americanpowsofjapan.blogspot.jp/2011/08/nippon-sharyo.html Nippon Sharyo August 6, 2011] Retrieved March 23, 2016</ref> It was one of 90 Japanese steam locomotives sent south to regions occupied by Japan. It was used in the opening ceremony for the Thai-Burma railway and was the first locomotive to officially run on the railway.<ref name="Royal Library"/>
==Postwar use and return to Japan== After the war it was used by the [[State Railway of Thailand]] who renumbered it from its original Japanese number of C5631 to 725. It was allocated to [[Thung Song district|Thungsong]] Depot in [[Nakhon Si Thammarat]] alongside classmates 702, 705 and 718 (C564, 7 and 21 respectively) for a time until it was withdrawn from service in 1977, when plans were made to return it to Japan by an association of Southern Army Field Railway Corps officials. In 1979, it was returned to Japan alongside classmate number 735 (Ex- C5644) which is now preserved in running order on the [[Ōigawa Railway|Oigawa Railway]] in [[Shizuoka Prefecture|Shizuoka]], Japan.
==Display at Yūshūkan museum== It has been displayed at the Yūshūkan museum at Yasukuni Shrine since 1979, where there is a volunteer group dedicated to preserving it.<ref> [https://www.facebook.com/c5631locomotive/timeline Burma Railway JNR Class C56-31 Steam Locomotive Preservation Association (泰緬鉄道―C5631機関車保存会) Facebook page] Retrieved March 17, 2016 {{in lang|ja}} </ref> The fact that it is displayed without references to the [[Burma_Railway#Death rates and causes|atrocities carried out on the Thai-Burma railway]] has attracted criticism, particularly from people from Australia and the US.<ref> A Social Nomad [http://asocialnomad.com/thailand/hellfire-pass/ Hellfire Pass and the Death Railway] Retrieved March 23, 2016 </ref><ref> Flanagan, Richard [https://books.google.com/books?id=57VZAwAAQBAJ&dq=death+railway+train+c5631&pg=PT35 The Narrow Road to the Deep North] Retrieved March 23, 2016 </ref><ref> Flanagan, Martin [http://www.theage.com.au/comment/dark-chapters-in-japanese-history-20140228-33r7i.html Dark Chapters in Japanese History March 1, 2014] ''[[The Age]]'' Retrieved March 23, 2016 </ref><ref> [[Goodreads]] [https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1405176136 Richard's Reviews > The Narrow Road to the Deep North February 16, 2016] Retrieved March 23, 2016</ref>
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
[[Category:Metre-gauge steam locomotives]] [[Category:Steam locomotives of Japan]] [[Category:2-6-0 locomotives]] [[Category:Preserved steam locomotives of Japan]] [[Category:Individual locomotives of Japan]] [[Category:Nippon Sharyo locomotives]]