The History of Four Representative Battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy: Yamato, Musashi, Kongo-class, and the Kongo Replacement Plan
From the Meiji to the Showa era, the Imperial Japanese Navy developed some of the world's leading battleship construction technologies.
Among them, the most famous are the "Yamato" and "Musashi," as well as the "Kongo-class," which supported the Imperial Japanese Navy for a long period.
Additionally, the "Kongo Replacement" plan, known as a phantom battleship project, is also an important existence for understanding what kind of battleships Japan was seeking.
In this article, we will look back at the history of these four battleships.
History of the Kongo-class Battleships
The Imperial Japanese Navy's First Super-Dreadnought Battleships
The Kongo-class battleships were four battlecruisers built by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
The ship names are:
・Kongo
・Hiei
・Haruna
・Kirishima
These four ships.
At the time of construction, Japan needed large, high-speed battleships to catch up with the naval power of the world's major powers.
The first ship, "Kongo," was built by Vickers in the United Kingdom to incorporate the world's highest level of technology at the time.
Afterward, Japan learned construction techniques domestically and built the Hiei, Haruna, and Kirishima.
The Kongo-class were fast for battleships, reaching a maximum speed of about 30 knots.
Therefore, they were active as the main capital ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy from after World War I until the Pacific War.
The Kongo-class in the Pacific War
The Kongo-class participated in many operations during World War II.
Major operations include:
・Support for the Attack on Pearl Harbor
・Southern Operations
・Battle of Midway
・Guadalcanal Campaign
・Battle of Leyte Gulf
and others.
Rather than being giant battleships like the Yamato-class, they utilized their high speed to serve in roles such as escorting aircraft carrier task forces and shelling enemy bases.
However, as the era of aircraft arrived, the value of battleships declined, and the Kongo-class were gradually forced into difficult battles.
Ultimately, they were lost in the order of:
Hiei (November 13, 1942)
・Kirishima (November 15, 1942)
・Kongo (November 21, 1944)
・Haruna (July 28, 1945)
with all four ships being sunk in action.
History of the Kongo Replacement Plan
The Next-Generation Battleship That Remained a Phantom
The "Kongo Replacement" was planned as a successor to the Kongo-class.
Due to the Washington Naval Treaty signed in 1922, Japan was restricted from building new battleships.
Therefore, how to update the aging Kongo-class became a major issue.
The Imperial Japanese Navy planned a next-generation battleship more powerful than the Kongo-class.
This plan called for a battleship with:
・High defensive capability
・Powerful main guns
・High-speed performance
However, due to the influence of the naval disarmament treaty and budget issues, this plan was never realized.
If it had been built, it might have become a high-speed battleship different from the Yamato-class.
The Kongo Replacement plan is a phantom existence that shows how the Imperial Japanese Navy thought about "fast and powerful battleships."
History of the Battleship Yamato
One of the World's Largest Battleships
The Yamato-class battleships are the largest battleships ever built by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
The ships built were:
・Yamato
・Musashi
These two ships.
Additionally, the Shinano, which became an aircraft carrier, was a Yamato-class carrier, and Ship No. 101, which was only planned, was also Yamato-class.
Considering the difference in national power with the United States, Japan judged that it would be difficult to win by numbers.
Therefore, they proceeded with a plan to build battleships that would have overwhelming combat power even in small numbers.
The Yamato-class had the following features:
・46cm main guns
・Heavy armor
・Large hull
The 46cm guns were the largest naval guns in the world at the time.
Battle Record of the Yamato
The battleship Yamato was commissioned in December 1941.
However, the era in which it was commissioned had already shifted to a war centered on aircraft.
The Yamato participated in:
・Battle of Midway
・Battle of the Philippine Sea
・Battle of Leyte Gulf
and others.
In 1945, the Yamato sortied for "Operation Ten-Go" aimed at the Battle of Okinawa.
However, it was sunk on April 7, 1945, after receiving large-scale bombing and torpedo attacks by U.S. naval aviation.
Although it was one of the world's largest battleships, it could not fully demonstrate its power in the face of the era of aircraft.
History of the Battleship Musashi
The Second Ship of the Yamato-class
The Musashi was built as the second ship of the Yamato-class battleships.
It was launched in 1938 and commissioned in 1942.
The Musashi had almost the same performance as the Yamato and had solid anti-aircraft capabilities from the time of completion, and was equipped with:
・46cm main guns
・Powerful armor
・A massive hull
The End of the Musashi
The Musashi was also used as the flagship of the Combined Fleet.
In the 1944 Battle of Leyte Gulf, it sortied as the main force of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
However, it received a massive amount of air attacks from the U.S. military, taking numerous bombs and torpedoes.
Although the Musashi was an extremely sturdy ship, it could not withstand the prolonged attacks and sank on October 24, 1944.
The battle of the Musashi became an event that demonstrated that even giant battleships are difficult to counter against air attacks.
Changes in the Imperial Japanese Navy Seen Through Four Battleships
The Kongo-class was born as "all-purpose battleships that could fight at high speed."
The Kongo Replacement plan aimed for "even more powerful next-generation battleships."
And the Yamato and Musashi were completed as "battleships that overwhelm the enemy with massive shelling power."
However, the center of the war had shifted from battleships to aircraft carriers and aircraft.
While the Yamato-class were the pinnacle of technology, they are also symbols of the changing times.
The history of the Imperial Japanese Navy's battleships reflects both the "effort to build stronger ships" and the "reality that the form of war was changing."