Japanese cruiser Naniwa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 The cruiser Naniwa |
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Builder: | Armstrong Whitworth, Great Britain |
| Ordered: | 1883 fiscal year |
| Laid down | 27 March 1884 |
| Launched: | 18 March 1885 |
| Completed: | 1 December 1885 |
| Fate: | Grounded 5 August 1912 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 3,650 tons |
| Length: | 91.4 meters |
| Beam: | 14 meters |
| Draught: | 6.1 meters |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft reciprocating engines; 6 boilers; 7,604 HP |
| Speed: | 18.5 knots |
| Range: | 9,000 nautical miles @ 13 knots |
| Complement: | 357 |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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IJN Naniwa (浪速 防護巡洋艦 Naniwa bōgōjunyōkan?) was the first protected cruiser built specifically for the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was the lead ship of the Naniwa class cruisers, built in the Armstrong Whitworth shipyard in Great Britain. The name Naniwa comes from an ancient province of Japan, now part of Osaka-fu. The Naniwa had a sister ship, the IJN Takachiho.
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[edit] Background
The Japanese naval architect General Sasō Sachū (佐双左仲; 1852-1907) based on the design on the best features of several contemporary cruisers, but with superior specifications, and the design was ordered to Great Britain. When completed, Naniwa was considered the most advanced and most powerful cruiser in the world.[citation needed]
[edit] Service Life
Naniwa arrived at Shinagawa, Tokyo on 26 June 1886. It was the first warship purchased by Japan overseas to be brought to Japan with an entirely Japanese crew. Soon after reaching Japan, it main battery of 260 mm guns was replaced with smaller 150 mm guns, for stability and for standardization of ammunition with other ships in the Japanese navy.
During the naval review of February 1887, Emperor Meiji boarded Naniwa in Tokyo, and rode it to Yokohama.
In 1893, Naniwa made two voyages to Honolulu in Hawaii, to provide protection for Japanese citizens and to indicate Japanese concern during the Overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy by American marines and colonists.
Prior to the official declaration of war in First Sino-Japanese War, and under the command of Captain (later Admiral) Togo Heihachiro, Naniwa sank the British transport ship Kowshing at the Battle of Pungdo. The Kowshing was working under contract for the Imperial Chinese Navy ferrying Chinese reinforcements towards Korea. The sinking caused a major diplomatic incident between Japan and Great Britain, but it was recognized by British jurists as being in conformity with International Law of the time.
Later in the First Sino-Japanese War, Naniwa was in combat during the critical Battle of the Yalu River and in operations off of Port Arthur.
Naniwa was again sent to Hawaii from 20 April to 26 September 1897, when the new Republic of Hawaii banned Japanese immigration and anti-Japanese sentiment appeared to endanger the Japanese population.
Naniwa was re-designated a 2nd-class cruiser on 21 March 1898, and was based in Taiwan, partly as a counter point to the build-up of American forces in Asia during the Spanish-American War. From 1898-1900, its role was primarily to patrol the sea lanes between Taipei and Manila. However, it was assigned to help cover the Japanese landings in China during the Boxer Rebellion of late 1900.
During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 Naniwa was based at Tsushima, and participated in the Battle of Chemulpo Bay. It was subsequently assigned to the Fourth Division of the Combined Fleet, where it served as the flagship for Rear Admiral Uryu Sotokichi and was thus present at most major encounters of the war, including the crucial final Battle of Tsushima.
After the war, Naniwa was assigned to patrol of the northern sea lanes around Hokkaidō. On 26 July 1910, while on a surveying mission Naniwa ran aground on the coast of Urup, in the Kurile Islands, and sank [46.30N, 150.10E].
[edit] Gallery
 IJN Naniwa in 1887 |
 Japanese cruiser Naniwa in 1898 |
 The Naniwa Brief Side View |
[edit] References
- Marie Conte-Helm (1989). Japan and the North East of England. The Athlone Press. ISBN 0-485-11367-8.
- 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
[edit] External links
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