 Haruna in 1934, following her second reconstruction | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Japan | |
| Name | Haruna |
| Namesake | Mount Haruna |
| Ordered | 1911 |
| Builder | Kawasaki Shipyards |
| Laid down | 16 March 1912 |
| Launched | 14 December 1913 |
| Commissioned | 19 April 1915 |
| Fate | Sunk at her moorings on 28 July 1945; raised and scrapped in 1946[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Kongō-classbattlecruiser |
| Displacement | 36,600 long tons (37,187 t) |
| Length | 222 m (728 ft 4 in)[1] |
| Beam | 31 m (101 ft 8 in)[1] |
| Draft | 9.7 m (31 ft 10 in) |
| Installed power | 64,000 shp (48,000 kW) |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | |
| Complement | 1,360[1] |
| Armament |
|
| Armor | |
| Aircraft carried | 3 ×reconnaissancefloatplanes[3] |
| Notes | Unless otherwise noted, all statistics apply to after the second reconstruction. |
Haruna (Japanese:榛名; named afterMount Haruna) was a warship of theImperial Japanese Navy duringWorld War I andWorld War II. Designed by the British naval engineerGeorge Thurston, she was the fourth and lastbattlecruiser of theKongō class, amongst the most heavily armed ships in any navy when built.Laid down in 1912 at theKawasaki Shipyards inKobe,Haruna was formallycommissioned in 1915 on the same day as her sister ship,Kirishima.Haruna patrolled off the Chinese coast during World War I. During gunnery drills in 1920, an explosion destroyed one of her guns, damaged thegun turret, and killed seven men.
During her career,Haruna underwent two major reconstructions. Beginning in 1926, the Imperial Japanese Navy rebuilt her as abattleship, strengthening her armor and improving her speed and power capabilities. In 1933, her superstructure was completely rebuilt, her speed was increased, and she was equipped withlaunch catapults forfloatplanes. Now fast enough to accompany Japan's growing carrier fleet,Haruna was reclassified as afast battleship. During theSecond Sino-Japanese War,Haruna transportedImperial Japanese Army troops to mainland China before being redeployed to the 3rd Battleship Division in 1941. On the eve of the Japaneseattack on Pearl Harbor, she sailed as part of the Southern Force in preparation for theBattle of Singapore.
Haruna fought in almost every major naval action of thePacific Theater during World War II. She covered theJapanese landings in Malaya (in present-day Malaysia) and theDutch East Indies (now Indonesia) in 1942 before engaging American forces at theBattle of Midway and during theGuadalcanal campaign. Throughout 1943,Haruna primarily remained atTruk Lagoon (Micronesia),Kure Naval Base (nearHiroshima),Sasebo Naval Base (nearNagasaki), and theLingga Islands (in present-day Indonesia), and deployed on several occasions in response to American carrier airstrikes on Japanese island bases.Haruna participated in theBattle of the Philippine Sea and theBattle of Leyte Gulf in 1944, engaging American vessels in the latter.
In 1945,Haruna was transferred toKure Naval Base, where she was sunk by aircraft ofTask Force 38 on 28 July 1945.
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Haruna was the fourth and last of theImperial Japanese Navy'sKongō-classbattlecruisers, a line ofcapital ships designed by the British naval engineerGeorge Thurston.[3] The class was ordered in 1910 in the Japanese Emergency Naval Expansion Bill after the commissioning ofHMS Invincible in 1908.[5] The four battlecruiser s of theKongō class were designed to match the naval capabilities of the other major powers at the time; they have been called the battlecruiser versions of the British (formerlyTurkish) battleshipHMS Erin.[1][2] Their heavy armament and armor protection (which contributed 23.3 percent of theirdisplacement) were greatly superior to those of any other Japanese capital ship afloat at the time.[1][2]
Thekeel ofHaruna was laid down atKobe byKawasaki on 16 March 1912, with most of the parts used in her construction manufactured in Japan.[2] Due to a shortage of availableslipways,Haruna and her sister shipKirishima were the first two capital ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy to be built in private shipyards.[2] Launched on 14 December 1913,Haruna'sfitting-out began in early 1914.[1] She was completed on 19 April 1915.[2]
Haruna's main battery consisted of eight 14 in (36 cm) heavy-caliber main guns in four twin turrets (two forward, two aft).[3] The turrets were noted by the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence to be "similar to the British 15-inch turrets",[6] with improvements made inflash-tightness. Each of her main guns could fire high-explosive or armor-piercing shells a maximum of 38,770 yd (19.14 nmi; 35.45 km) at a firing rate of two shells per minute.[7] In keeping with the Japanese doctrine of deploying more powerful vessels before their opponents,Haruna and her sister ships were the first vessels in the world equipped with 14 in (36 cm) guns.[8] The main guns carried ammunition for 90 salvoes, and had an approximate barrel life of 250 to 280 rounds.[6] In 1941, separate dyes (used to distinguish between shells fired from multiple ships) were introduced for the armor-piercing shells of the fourKongō-class battleships, withHaruna's armor-piercing shells using black dye.[6]
Hersecondary battery was originally sixteen 6 in (15 cm) 50-caliber medium guns in singlecasemates (all located amidships),[1] eight 3 in (7.6 cm) guns and eight submerged 21 in (53 cm)torpedo tubes.[3] The six-inch guns could fire five to six rounds per minute, with a barrel life of 500 rounds.[9] The 6"/50 caliber gun was capable of firing both anti-aircraft and anti-ship shells, though the positioning of the guns onHaruna made antiaircraft firing impractical.[1] During her second reconstruction, the older 3-inch guns were removed and replaced with eight 5 in (13 cm) dual-purpose guns. These 5"/40 caliber guns could fire between 8 and 14 rounds per minute, with a barrel life of 800 to 1,500 rounds.[10] The 5"/40 had the widest variety of shot types ofHaruna's guns, being designed to fire antiaircraft, antiship, and illumination shells.[10] She was also armed with a large number of 1 in (2.5 cm) antiaircraft machine guns. In 1943, her secondary armament was reconfigured to eight 6 in (15 cm) guns, twelve 5 in (13 cm) guns, and finally by the end of 1944 one hundred and eightType 96 antiaircraftautocannon in 30 triple and 18 single mounts.[4]
On 19 April 1915,Haruna was formally commissioned at Kobe. On 13 December 1915, after eight months of trials, she was assigned to the 3rd Battleship Division of the2nd Fleet. On 9 April 1916, she departedSasebo Naval Base for operations in theEast China Sea, returning to Japan 10 days later. On 1 December 1916, Captain Saburo Hyakutake assumed command ofHaruna until 15 September 1917, when Captain Naomi Taniguchi replaced him. On 1 December 1917, she was placed in reserve, as hostilities in the Pacific theatre of World War I concluded.[5]
On 12 September 1920,Haruna was involved in gunnery drills offHokkaidō when abreech explosion destroyed the starboard gun of the No. 1 turret, killing seven men and badly damaging the armored roof of the turret. A later investigation by the Imperial Japanese Navy concluded that a faulty fuse ignited the gunpowder bags in the breech, detonating the shell while still in the barrel. The turret was repaired atYokosuka Naval Arsenal, where the elevation of her 14-inch guns was also increased by seven degrees. Three months later, she was once again placed in reserve.[5]
With the conclusion of World War I and the signing of theWashington Naval Treaty, the size of the Imperial Japanese Navy was significantly lessened, with a ratio of 5:5:3 required between the capital ships of the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan.[11] The treaty also banned Japan from building any new capital ships until 1931, with no capital ship permitted to exceed 35,000long tons (35,562 t).[12] Provided that new additions did not exceed 3,000 long tons (3,048 t), existing capital ships were allowed to be upgraded with improvedanti-torpedo bulges and deck armor.[12] By the time the Washington Treaty had been fully implemented in Japan, only three classes of World War I-era capital ships remained active: theIse-class battleships, theKongō-class battlecruisers, and one of theFusō-class battleships (Yamashiro).[13]
Unable to construct new capital ships until 1931, Japan resorted to upgrading battleships and battlecruisers. In July 1926,Haruna became the first of Japan's vessels to undergo extensive modernization and modification, in drydock at Yokosuka Naval Arsenal.[1] Over the next two years, her horizontal armor near her ammunition magazines was strengthened, and the machinery spaces within the hull were increased.[5] Anti-torpedo bulges were added along the waterline, as permitted by the Washington Treaty.[1] She was refitted to accommodate three Type 90 Model 0 floatplanes.[5] To increase her speed and power capacities, all 36Yarrow boilers were removed and replaced with 16 newer boilers, and Brown-Curtis direct-drive turbines were installed.[1]Haruna's forward funnel was removed, and her second funnel was enlarged and lengthened. The modifications to her hull increased her armor weight from 6,502 to 10,313 long tons, directly violating the terms of the Washington Treaty.[1] In July 1928,Haruna—now capable of speeds of 29 kn (54 km/h; 33 mph)—was reclassified as a battleship.[4]
Following new sea trials,Haruna was assigned on 10 December 1928 to the 4th Battleship Division of the 2nd Fleet as the Emperor's special ship.[note 1] For the next 12 months, she operated between Sasebo,Port Arthur, and the East China Sea. On 1 February 1929,Prince Takamatsu, the younger brother ofEmperor Hirohito, was assigned to the crew. On 20 November 1929, she was reassigned to the 1st Battleship Division. She was placed in reserve on 1 December 1930.[5]
On 22 April 1930, Japan signed theLondon Naval Treaty, placing further restrictions on its maritime forces. In addition to the scrapping of several older battleships, Japan would not be permitted to construct new capital ships until 1937.[14] After minor fitting-out work, her reconstruction begun in 1926 was declared complete on 1 October 1931.[5] On 8 November 1931, she served as the Emperor's ship during his official visit toKumamoto prefecture.[5]
In September 1931, Japaninvaded Manchuria. On 25 February 1933, based on the report by theLytton Commission, theLeague of Nations agreed that Japan's invasion had violated Chinese sovereignty.[14] Refusing to accept the organization's judgment, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations the same day.[14] By the end of 1934, Japan would also announce that it would withdraw from the Washington and London Naval Treaties, thus removing all restrictions on the number and size of its capital ships.[15]
Haruna was reactivated and assigned to the 1st Battleship Division on 20 May 1933.[5] However, on 1 August 1933,Haruna was drydocked atKure Naval Arsenal in preparation for upgrades that would enable her to escort Japan's growing fleet of aircraft carriers.[5] Her stern was lengthened by 26 ft (7.9 m), and her bridge was completely reconstructed according to Japan'spagoda mast style of forward superstructure.[4] Her 16 older boilers were removed and replaced with 11 oil-fired Kampon Boilers and newer geared turbines.[1]Catapults and rails were added to support threeNakajima E8N orKawanishi E7Kreconnaissance and spotterfloatplanes.[16]
Haruna's armor was also extensively upgraded. Her main belt was strengthened to a uniform thickness of 8 inches (up from varying thicknesses of 6 to 8 inches), while diagonal bulkheads of depths ranging from 5 to 8 in (127 to 203 mm) now reinforced the main armored belt.[17] The turret armor was strengthened to 10 inches (254 mm), while 4 in (102 mm) were added to portions of the deck armor.[17] Her ammunition magazine protection was also strengthened to 4.0 inches (10 cm).[1] The reconstruction was finished on 30 September 1934.[2] Capable of more than 30 kn (56 km/h; 35 mph) despite the significant increase in hull displacement,Haruna was now reclassified as a fast battleship.[4]
On 28 October 1935, CaptainJisaburō Ozawa assumed command ofHaruna. On 1 June 1936, she was assigned to the 3rd Battleship Division of the 1st Fleet.[5] Throughout 1937,Haruna conducted extensive gunnery drills and patrols off the coast of China, primarily in the vicinity ofQingdao. On 7 July 1937, Japan officially declared war on China, thus beginning theSino-Japanese War.[18] One month later,Haruna transported Japanese Army forces to mainland China in preparation for campaigns intoChinese Nationalist territory. On 1 December 1937, she was again placed in reserve.[5] On 2 April 1940, she was transferred from Sasebo to Taiwan. She was redesignated as a "special service ship" on 15 November 1940, and five months later was attached to the 3rd Battleship Division of the 1st Fleet, based in Hashirajima.[5]
Haruna andKongō departed theHashirajima fleet anchorage on 29 November 1941, to participate in the opening stage of thePacific War as part of the Southern (Malay) Force's Main Body, under the overall command of Vice-AdmiralNobutake Kondō.[19] On 4 December 1941, the Main Body arrived off the coast of SouthernSiam and NorthernMalaya, in preparation forthe invasion of Siam and the Malayan Peninsula four days later.[20] When Britain's "Force Z"—consisting of the battleshipHMS Prince of Wales and the battlecruiserHMS Repulse—wasquickly defeated by Japan's land-based and carrier aircraft,Haruna's battlegroup withdrew from Malayan waters. The battlegroup subsequently sortied from Indochina for three days in mid-December to protect a reinforcement convoy traveling to Malaya and again on 18 December to cover the Army's landing atLingayen Gulf in thePhilippines. The Main Body departedCam Ranh Bay inFrench Indochina on 23 December bound for Taiwan, arriving two days later.[5]
On 11 December 1941, an erroneous report was published in the U.S. media that an AmericanB-17heavy bomber had bombed and mortally damagedHaruna during battle off Lingayen Gulf off the Philippines. No Japanese battleships were present, andHaruna was 1,500 nmi (2,800 km; 1,700 mi) away in the Gulf of Siam at the time.[21][22]
On 18 January 1942, Kondō's Main Force arrived inPalau alongside two fast carriers, with the intention of covering Japan's invasion ofBorneo and the Dutch East Indies.[19]Haruna,Maya, and the fleet carriersHiryū andSōryū operated to the east ofMindanao until 18 February 1942, when the Main Body departed Palau in preparation for "Operation J", Japan's invasion of the Dutch East Indies. On 25 February, the 3rd Battleship Division provided cover for air attacks onJava.[1]Harunabombarded Christmas Island on 7 March 1942, then returned toStaring-baai for 15 days of maintenance and rest.[5] In April 1942,Haruna joined five fleet carriersin attacks onColombo inCeylon.[23] Following the destruction ofHMS Dorsetshire on 5 April 1942,Haruna was sent southwest to locate the remainder of theBritish Eastern Fleet, under the command of AdmiralJames Somerville.[24] On 9 April, one of her floatplanes spotted the carrierHMS Hermes south ofTrincomalee; Japanese airstrikes sank the carrier the same day.[24] Having crippled the offensive capability of Britain's Eastern Fleet, the 3rd Battleship Division returned to Japan on 23 April.Haruna was drydocked throughout May 1942 for general repairs and refits.[5]
On 29 May 1942,Haruna joined her sister shipKirishima as part of Vice-AdmiralChūichi Nagumo's carrier strike force during theBattle of Midway.[25] On 4 June, she was attacked in multiple airstrikes by Americantorpedo bombers, but she took no hits and succeeded in shooting down five American aircraft.[5] On 5 June, she took on survivors from the four destroyed Japanese aircraft carriers before returning to Japan.[19] She remained in Japan until September 1942, undergoing minor refits in August of that year.[1] On 6 September,Haruna transferred to Truk Lagoon alongside the rest of the 3rd Battleship Division, and on 10 September the ship sortied as part of Admiral Kondō's 2nd Fleet into theSolomon Islands.[26] On 20 September, the fleet was ordered to return to Truk.
In the aftermath of theBattle of Cape Esperance, the Japanese Army opted to reinforce their positions onGuadalcanal. To protect their transport convoy from enemy air attack, Admiral Yamamoto sentHaruna andKongō, escorted by one light cruiser and nine destroyers, to bombardHenderson Field. Because of their high speed, the two battleships could bombard the field and withdraw before being subjected to air attack from aircraft carriers.[27] On the night of 13–14 October, the two battleships shelled Henderson Field from a distance of 16,000 yards (15,000 m), firing 973 14-inch shells. In the most successful Japanese battleship action of the war,[19] the bombardment heavily damaged both runways, destroyed almost all available aviation fuel, incapacitated 48 of the airfield's 90 aircraft, and killed 41 men.[28] The Japanese troop convoy reached the island the next day.[27]
During theBattle of the Santa Cruz Islands on 26 October 1942,Haruna was attacked by aPBY Catalinaflying boat but received no damage. In mid-November, the battleship and other warships provided distant cover for the ultimately unsuccessful efforts to bombard Henderson Field again and land reinforcements on Guadalcanal. On 15 November 1942, following the Japanese defeat and loss ofHiei andKirishima during theNaval Battle of Guadalcanal, the 3rd Battleship Division returned to Truk, where it remained for the rest of 1942.[5]
Haruna engaged no enemy targets during 1943.[1] In late January 1943, she participated in "Operation Ke", as part of a diversionary force and distant cover supporting Japanese destroyers that were evacuating personnel from Guadalcanal.[29] During 15–20 February 1943, the 3rd Battleship Division transferred from Truk to Kure Naval Base. From 23 February to 31 March 1943,Haruna was drydocked inKure Naval Arsenal for upgrades, receiving additional Type 96 25 mm (0.98 in) antiaircraft guns and armor. On 17 May 1943, in response to the American invasion ofAttu Island,Haruna sortied alongsideMusashi, the 3rd Battleship Division, two fleet carriers, two cruisers and nine destroyers. Three days later, the submarineUSS Sawfish discovered the task group, but was unable to attack. On 22 May 1943, the task force arrived in Yokosuka, where it was joined by an additional three fleet carriers and two light cruisers; the force was disbanded when Attu fell before the necessary preparations were finished. Throughout June 1943,Haruna was refitted at Yokosuka. On 18 September 1943,Haruna left Truk as part of a counterattack force in response to American raids on the Brown Islands in Micronesia, but no contact was made and the ship returned to the base.[5]
On 17 October 1943,Haruna again left Truk as part of an even larger force—five battleships, three fleet carriers, eight heavy cruisers, three light cruisers and numerous destroyers—in response to American raids onWake Island. When no contact was made the force returned to Truk on 26 October 1943. On 16 December 1943, she arrived at Sasebo for refits and inland-sea training.[1]
On 25 January 1944, Captain Kazu Shigenaga assumed command ofHaruna while the ship was stationed at Kure. The 3rd Battleship Division departed Kure on 8 March 1944. Arriving at Lingga on 14 March 1944, the division remained for training until 11 May 1944.[5] On 11 May 1944,Haruna and Admiral Ozawa's Mobile Fleet departed Lingga forTawi-Tawi, where they were joined by Vice-AdmiralTakeo Kurita's "Force C". On 13 June, Ozawa's Mobile Fleet departed Tawitawi for theMariana Islands.[30] During theBattle of the Philippine Sea,Haruna escorted Japanese fast carriers, and was hit by two 500 lb (230 kg) armor-piercing bombs on 20 June 1944 from U.S. carrier aircraft.[31] On 24 June, she was drydocked in Kure for repairs and refitting. In August 1944 she transferred to Lingga.[5]
In October 1944,Haruna departed Lingga in preparation for "Operation Sho-1", Japan's counterattack during theBattle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval engagement in history, as part of Admiral Takao Kurita's center force, consisting of herself and her sister shipKongō, the battleshipNagato, and the "super battleships"Yamato andMusashi, the largest and most powerful battleships ever built, supported by ten heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and fifteen destroyers. The plan immediately had its hiccups. On the 23rd, the submarineUSS Darter sank the heavy cruiserAtago, followed by the submarineUSS Dace torpedoing and sinking the heavy cruiserMaya, thenDarter crippled the heavy cruiserTakao, forcing her out of the battle alongside two destroyers to escort her.[32] The next day, air attacks from USaircraft carriers persisted.Haruna survived with only minor damage from bomb splinters, butMusashi was sunk and the heavy cruiserMyōkō was crippled and forced out of the battle alongside two more destroyers to escort her.[33]
A false retreat tricked the US into believing the Japanese center force was well out of the battle, leading toAdmiral Halsey chasingAdmiral Ozawa's decoy force. On the 25th, the diminished center force locatedTaffy 3, a small US task force of six escort carriers, three destroyers, and four destroyer escorts, promptingHaruna to fire away. She initially targeted the destroyerUSS Johnston with her 6-inch (152 mm) secondary guns, but missed her shots before reengaging the escort carriers. At 7:54,Haruna hit the escort carrierUSS Kalinin Bay with a 14-inch (356 mm) shell to her hangar bay from a distance of 16,400 yards (15,000 meters), disabling her aircraft elevator.Haruna was then targeted by destroyer-launched torpedoes, but they all missed. At 8:10,Haruna (probably) hit the escort carrierUSS Gambier Bay with a 14-inch (356 mm) shell to her stern, causing negligible damage, as almost simultaneouslyYamato hit her with an 18.1-inch (46 cm) shell that punched through her hangar bay.[34]Haruna failed to hitGambier Bay again asYamato caused the majority of the fatal damage which sank the flat top.[35][5]
After a fierce defensive action by the American ships, Admiral Kurita elected to withdraw, ending the battle.[36]
Following the Japanese Navy's defeat at Leyte Gulf,Haruna returned to Brunei and Lingga for repairs. On 22 November 1944, she ran aground on a coral reef near Lingga, suffering serious damage to her watertight compartments and forcing her to return to Sasebo, where the hull was patched and repaired.[5] On 2 December 1944, while returning to Japan from Southeast Asia as part of a task group, she evaded torpedoes fired by an American submarine. On 9 December, three more American submarines—USS Sea Devil,Plaice, andRedfish—intercepted the task group and they proceeded to permanently cripple the aircraft carrierJunyō with three torpedo hits. Unharmed,Haruna arrived at Sasebo the following day. At the end of 1944, she transferred to Kure for full repairs and upgrading, having survived a year in which four other Japanese battleships had been lost.[37]
On 1 January 1945,Haruna was removed from the deactivated 3rd Battleship Division and transferred to the 1st Battleship Division of the 2nd Fleet. On 10 February,Haruna was assigned to theKure Naval District. On 19 March 1945, American carrier aircraftattacked the remainder of the Japanese Navy at Kure. The base was defended by veteran Japanese fighter instructors flyingKawanishi N1K-J "Shiden" or "George" fighters, led by the man who planned theattack on Pearl Harbor,Minoru Genda.[38] These fighter planes were superior in some respects to America's main fighter, theF6F Hellcat.[38] They surprised the attackers, destroyed several American aircraft, and defended the base from the brunt of the attack.[39]Haruna sustained light damage from a single bomb on the starboard side,[5] and remained at Kure.[40]
On 24 July 1945, the U.S. Navy'sTask Force 38 began a series ofaerial attacks on Kure Naval Base to destroy the last remnants of Japan's navy. The same day, the battleshipHyūga was sunk,[41] andHaruna was hit by a single bomb which caused light damage.[42] Four days later, she sustained eight bomb hits from Task Force 38's aircraft and sank at her moorings at 16:15.[41] In two days of attacks, 65 officers and men ofHaruna were killed. Her remnants were raised from the sea floor in 1946 andbroken up over the course of two months.[42]
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in July 1945 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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