Japanese cruiser Hashidate
| Hashidate (1904) Hashidate in a 1904 postcard. | |
| Career | Japanese Navy Ensign |
|---|---|
| Name: | Hashidate |
| Ordered: | 1886 Fiscal Year |
| Builder: | Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, Japan |
| Laid down: | 6 August 1888 |
| Launched: | 24 March 1891 |
| Completed: | 26 June 1894 |
| Struck: | 1 April 1922 |
| Fate: | Scrapped 1927 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Matsushima-class cruiser |
| Displacement: | 4,278 long tons (4,347 t) |
| Length: | 91.81 m (301 ft 3 in) w/l |
| Beam: | 15.6 m (51 ft 2 in) |
| Draft: | 6.05 m (19 ft 10 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft reciprocating; 6 boilers; 5,400 hp (4,000 kW), 680 tons coal |
| Speed: | 16.5 knots (19.0 mph; 30.6 km/h) |
| Complement: | 360 |
| Armament: |
• 1 × 320 mm (12.6 in) Canet gun • 11 × 120 mm (4.7 in) guns • 6 × 6-pounder guns • 2 × 3-pounder guns • 4 × 360 mm (14 in) torpedo tubes |
| Armor: |
Deck: 50 mm (2 in) Turret: 300 mm (12 in) Gun shield: 100 mm (4 in) |
Hashidate (橋立) was the 3rd (and final vessel) in the Matsushima-class of protected cruisers in the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was the only one of the class constructed in Japan. Like its sister ships, (the Matsushima and Itsukushima) its name comes from one of the three most famous scenic spots in Japan, in this case, the Ama-no-hashidate in northern Kyoto prefecture on the Sea of Japan.
Contents
Background
Forming the backbone of the Imperial Japanese Navy during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Matsushima-class cruisers were based on the principles of Jeune Ecole, as promoted by French military advisor and naval architect Emile Bertin.
The Japanese government did not have the resources or budget to build a battleship navy to counter the Imperial Chinese Navy; instead, Japan adopted the radical theory of using smaller, faster warships, with light armor and small caliber long-range guns, coupled with a massive single 320 mm Canet gun. The design eventually proved impractical, as the recoil from the huge cannon was too much for a vessel of such small displacement, and the reloading time on the cannon was impractically long; however, the Matsushima-class cruisers served their purpose well against the poorly-equipped and poorly-led Chinese fleet. There were originally plans to build a fourth vessel in this class, and its cancellation due concerns over the design was one of the factors that led to Bertin's resignation and return to France.
Service life
The Hashidate was completed just prior to the start of the First Sino-Japanese War and saw combat in the Battle of the Yalu River and the subsequent attack on Weihaiwei.
The Hashidate was reclassified as a 2nd class cruiser on 21 March 1898.
On 25 February 1901, the Hashidate, and the Itsukushima, departed Yokosuka on a tour which took it to Manila, Batavia, Hong Kong, Chelumpo, Pusan, Gensan, and Vladivostok, returning to Yokosuka on 14 August 1901.
During the Russo-Japanese War, the hopelessly obsolete Hashidate and her sister ships were assigned to the 5th squadron of the reserve Japanese 3rd Fleet, together with the equally outdated ironclad battleship Chin'en under the command of Admiral Shichiro Kataoka. It was present at the blockade of Port Arthur, the Battle of the Yellow Sea and the final Battle of Tsushima. Later assigned the Japanese 4th Fleet, the Hashidate was part of the flotilla that provided protection for the Japanese invasion of Sakhalin.
On 28 August 1912, the Hashidate was re-classified as a 2nd class Coastal Defense Vessel. It was struck from the active list on 1 April 1922, and sent to the breakers in 1927.
The cruiser Hashidate should not be confused with the Pacific War era river gunboat of the same name.
Gallery
- IJN Hashidate in 1916.jpg
In 1916 at Yokosuka
References
- Evans, David. Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941. US Naval Institute Press (1979). ISBN 0870211927
- Howarth, Stephen. The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945. Atheneum; (1983) ISBN 0689114028
- Jane, Fred T. The Imperial Japanese Navy. Thacker, Spink & Co (1904) ASIN: B00085LCZ4
- Jentsura, Hansgeorg. Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945. Naval Institute Press (1976). ISBN 087021893X
- Schencking, J. Charles. Making Waves: Politics, Propaganda, And The Emergence Of The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1868-1922. Stanford University Press (2005). ISBN 0804749779
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