Japanese battleship Yamashiro
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| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Laid down | November 20, 1913 |
| Launched | November 3, 1915 |
| Commissioned | March 31, 1917 |
| Fate | Sunk, October 25, 1944 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 39,154 tons (39,782 t) |
| Length | 213 m (698 ft) |
| Beam | 30.6 m (100 feet 5 inches) |
| Draft | 9.7 m (31 feet 9 inches) |
| Propulsion | Four-shaft geared turbines, 24 boilers (40,000 shp) as built. Four-shaft geared turbines, 6 boilers (75,000 shp) as converted. |
| Speed | 25 knots (46 km/h) |
| Range | 8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h) as built. |
| Complement | 1,400 |
| Armament | list error: <br /> list (help) twelve 14-inch (356 mm) guns sixteen 6 inch (152mm) |
Yamashiro (山城) was the Imperial Japanese Navy's second Fusō-class battleship, and was laid down at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal on November 20, 1913, launched on November 3, 1915, and commissioned on March 31, 1917. She was the first Japanese vessel equipped with aircraft catapults. The ship was named after the Japanese province where Kyoto is located.[citation needed]
The Yamashiro was reconstructed from December 1930 to March 1935. The original 24 coal-fired Mijabara boilers producing 40,000 hp were replaced with six new Kanpon oil-fired boilers producing 75,000 hp. Torpedo bulges were fitted, increasing beam from 94 feet (29 m) to 100 feet (30 m), 6 inches. The stern was lengthened by 24 feet (7 m) to improve the fineness ratio and restore lost speed. Deck armor was thickened to a total of 7 inches on three decks. Elevation of the main armament was increased from 30 degrees to 43 degrees. The forefunnel was removed, but converted later, the Yamashiro differed slightly from its sister ship Fusō in the arrangement of gun turrets; by altering the "dead angle" of "C" turret from forward training to aft, deck space was left for a larger superstructure (see picture above.) Eight 5-inch (127mm)/40 heavy anti-aircraft guns were fitted, one twin mount on each side of the bridge forward, and the other pair of twin mounts high up on the tower structure aft. [citation needed]
At the Battle of Surigao Strait on October 25, 1944, she came under attack and was sunk by U.S. naval forces, lead by the battleship that was damaged by the same carriers that Yamashiro escorted during Pearl Harbor, USS Tennessee (BB-43) receiving four hits from destroyer torpedoes and numerous 14" and 16" shells from U.S. battleships. There were only around 10 survivors.
See also
Media related to Battleship Yamashiro at Wikimedia Commons
External links
- Tabular record of movement from combinedfleet.com
- Yamashiro's wreck is at coordinates 10°22′14″N 125°21′20″E / 10.37056°N 125.35556°E
- A diary of Cedric Verdier's successful attempt in July 2006 to dive on Yamashiro. *.pdf edition here