Satsuma class battleship
Encyclopedia
The was a two-ship class
of semi-dreadnought
battleship
s of the Imperial Japanese Navy
. The Satsuma class vessels were the first battleships to be built for Japan exceeding 20,000 tons displacement
, and marked a transitional stage between the pre-dreadnought
and true dreadnought
design.
under the 1905 Emergency Fleet Expansion Program. Unlike the previous Katori class battleship
s, the Satsuma class vessels were ordered from Japanese naval shipyards, and consequently their production took time as the Japanese naval engineers and builders had a steep learning curve
to follow. Both ships were completed too late to participate in the Russo-Japanese War.
's new Lord Nelson class battleship
s. Naval strategists felt that future battles would be fought at longer ranges with bigger guns
than ever before. As a result, less attention was paid to secondary and tertiary armaments
, which might never be put into use. Armor protection
on the other hand was seriously considered since larger projectiles were anticipated.
Satsuma was differentiated from her sister ship
Aki by the location of its smokestacks. Akis third stack was further apart from her second. Due to a delay in construction, Aki was completed with turbine engines, one of the world's first capital ship
s to be so equipped.
. However, the cost of the Russo-Japanese War nearly ruined Japan, so it was completed with only four Type 41 12-inch 45 caliber naval guns as its main battery
and the amidships guns were reduced in size to the Type 41 10 inch 45 caliber naval guns as a cost saving measure. These guns were mounted two per turret
; one centerline forward, one centerline aft and six in amidship turrets, three to port and starboard.
Secondary armament
was light, as per the previous Aki class design, with 12 Type 41 3-inch /40-caliber naval gun
s, commonly known as "twelve pounders" to counter torpedo boat
attacks, plus an additional four Type 41 3-inch /25-caliber naval guns.
-fired Brown Curtiss turbine engines with 16 Miyabara water tube boilers. The engines produced 20000 shp, yielding a design speed of 20.5 knots (40 km/h).
Commissioned on 1910-03-15, Satsuma played a minor role in World War I
, patrolling sea lanes in the South China Sea
and Yellow Sea
, assisting in the occupation of the Caroline Islands
, and in the Battle of Tsingtao
. She was expended as a target in 1924 to comply with the provisions of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty
.
Commissioned on 1912-07-01, Aki played a minor role in World War I
. She was disarmed as part of Japan's compliance with the Washington Naval Agreement and was expended as a target in 1924.
Ship class
A ship class is a group of ships of a similar design. This is distinct from a ship-type, which might reflect a similarity of tonnage or intended use. For example, the is a nuclear aircraft carrier of the Nimitz class....
of semi-dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s of the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
. The Satsuma class vessels were the first battleships to be built for Japan exceeding 20,000 tons displacement
Displacement (fluid)
In fluid mechanics, displacement occurs when an object is immersed in a fluid, pushing it out of the way and taking its place. The volume of the fluid displaced can then be measured, as in the illustration, and from this the volume of the immersed object can be deduced .An object that sinks...
, and marked a transitional stage between the pre-dreadnought
Pre-dreadnought
Pre-dreadnought battleship is the general term for all of the types of sea-going battleships built between the mid-1890s and 1905. Pre-dreadnoughts replaced the ironclad warships of the 1870s and 1880s...
and true dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
design.
Background
Satsuma and Aki were ordered during the height of the Russo-Japanese WarRusso-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
under the 1905 Emergency Fleet Expansion Program. Unlike the previous Katori class battleship
Katori class battleship
The was a two-ship class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Katori class ships were the last battleships to be built for Japan at overseas shipyards, and the last to be equipped with a ram.-Background:...
s, the Satsuma class vessels were ordered from Japanese naval shipyards, and consequently their production took time as the Japanese naval engineers and builders had a steep learning curve
Learning curve
A learning curve is a graphical representation of the changing rate of learning for a given activity or tool. Typically, the increase in retention of information is sharpest after the initial attempts, and then gradually evens out, meaning that less and less new information is retained after each...
to follow. Both ships were completed too late to participate in the Russo-Japanese War.
Design
The basic design of the Satsuma-class followed that of the Royal NavyRoyal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
's new Lord Nelson class battleship
Lord Nelson class battleship
The Lord Nelson class was a two-ship class of pre-dreadnought battleships built by the Royal Navy between 1905 and 1908. Although they were the last British pre-dreadnoughts, both were completed and commissioned after HMS Dreadnought had entered service. and were serving in the Channel Fleet when...
s. Naval strategists felt that future battles would be fought at longer ranges with bigger guns
Naval artillery
Naval artillery, or naval riflery, is artillery mounted on a warship for use in naval warfare. Naval artillery has historically been used to engage either other ships, or targets on land; in the latter role it is currently termed naval gunfire fire support...
than ever before. As a result, less attention was paid to secondary and tertiary armaments
Battleship secondary armament
The secondary armament of a capital ship are smaller, faster-firing weapons that are typically effective at a shorter range than the main weapons...
, which might never be put into use. Armor protection
Belt armor
Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated on to or within outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and on aircraft carriers converted from those types of ships....
on the other hand was seriously considered since larger projectiles were anticipated.
Satsuma was differentiated from her sister ship
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
Aki by the location of its smokestacks. Akis third stack was further apart from her second. Due to a delay in construction, Aki was completed with turbine engines, one of the world's first capital ship
Capital ship
The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they generally possess the heaviest firepower and armor and are traditionally much larger than other naval vessels...
s to be so equipped.
Armament
When the Satsuma was laid down in 1905, it was intended to be the first "all big-gun" battleship in the world, predating the British DreadnoughtHMS Dreadnought
Several ships and one submarine of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Dreadnought in the expectation that they would "dread nought", i.e. "fear nothing, but God"...
. However, the cost of the Russo-Japanese War nearly ruined Japan, so it was completed with only four Type 41 12-inch 45 caliber naval guns as its main battery
Main battery
Generally used only in the terms of naval warfare, the main battery is the primary weapon around which a ship was designed. "Battery" is in itself a common term in the military science of artillery. For example, the United States Navy battleship USS Washington had a main battery of nine guns...
and the amidships guns were reduced in size to the Type 41 10 inch 45 caliber naval guns as a cost saving measure. These guns were mounted two per turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
; one centerline forward, one centerline aft and six in amidship turrets, three to port and starboard.
Secondary armament
Battleship secondary armament
The secondary armament of a capital ship are smaller, faster-firing weapons that are typically effective at a shorter range than the main weapons...
was light, as per the previous Aki class design, with 12 Type 41 3-inch /40-caliber naval gun
QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun
The QF 12 pounder 12 cwt gun was a common calibre naval gun introduced in 1894 and used until the middle of the 20th century. It was produced by Armstrong Whitworth, Elswick and used on Royal Navy warships, and exported to allied countries...
s, commonly known as "twelve pounders" to counter torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
attacks, plus an additional four Type 41 3-inch /25-caliber naval guns.
Propulsion
The engines on Satsuma were four cylinder VTE steam engines with water tube boilers and two screws. The engines produced 17300 shp horsepower, yielding a design speed of 18.5 knots (36 km/h); The engines on Aki were coalCoal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
-fired Brown Curtiss turbine engines with 16 Miyabara water tube boilers. The engines produced 20000 shp, yielding a design speed of 20.5 knots (40 km/h).
Ships in class
- SatsumaJapanese battleship Satsuma|-External links:**...
Commissioned on 1910-03-15, Satsuma played a minor role in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, patrolling sea lanes in the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
and Yellow Sea
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is the name given to the northern part of the East China Sea, which is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It is located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula. Its name comes from the sand particles from Gobi Desert sand storms that turn the surface of the water golden...
, assisting in the occupation of the Caroline Islands
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
, and in the Battle of Tsingtao
Battle of Tsingtao
The Siege of Tsingtao was the attack on the German-controlled port of Tsingtao in China during World War I by Imperial Japan and the United Kingdom....
. She was expended as a target in 1924 to comply with the provisions of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
.
- AkiJapanese battleship Aki|-External links:*...
Commissioned on 1912-07-01, Aki played a minor role in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. She was disarmed as part of Japan's compliance with the Washington Naval Agreement and was expended as a target in 1924.
External links
- http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0117.htm Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy]
- Global Security site