Japanese flag associated with the 6th Battalion, 5th Mahratta Light Infantry, 1945

This flag was captured by the 6th Battalion during World War Two in the Far East (1941-1945). It originally belonged to a Japanese soldier called Ishikawa Hisaz? and was presented to him by his friends and colleagues at Kurotori National School, in Kurosaki-mura, Nishikanbara-gun, Niigata Prefecture.

These National Schools (Kokumin Gakk?) were established by law in March 1941 for children from the ages of 6 to 14, so the flag must date from 1941 or later. Apart from the dedication and the school's name on the right-hand side of the flag, all the other text consists of personal names.