 Katori at anchor | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Japan | |
| Name | Katori |
| Namesake | Katori Shrine |
| Builder | VickersBarrow-in-Furness,UK |
| Laid down | 27 April 1904 |
| Launched | 4 July 1905 |
| Commissioned | 20 May 1906 |
| Decommissioned | 20 September 1923 |
| Out of service | April 1922 |
| Stricken | 23 October 1923 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1924–25 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Katori-classpre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement | 15,950long tons (16,210 t) (normal) |
| Length | 456 ft 3 in (139.1 m) |
| Beam | 78 ft (23.8 m) |
| Draught | 27 ft (8.2 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | 2 shafts, 2triple-expansion steam engines |
| Speed | 18.5knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph) |
| Range | 12,000 nmi (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) at 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph) |
| Complement | 864 |
| Armament |
|
| Armour |
|
Katori (香取 (戦艦)) was thelead ship of the twoKatori-classpre-dreadnought battleships built in the first decade of the 20th century, the last to be built by British shipyards for theImperial Japanese Navy (IJN). Ordered just before the start of theRusso-Japanese War of 1904–1905, the ship was completed a year after its end. She saw no combat duringWorld War I, although the ship was present when Japan joined theSiberian Intervention in 1918.Katori was disarmed andscrapped in 1923–1925 in accordance with the terms of theWashington Naval Treaty of 1922.
TheKatori-class ships were ordered just before the start of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904 as improved versions of theRoyal Navy’sKing Edward VII-classbattleships.[1]Katori was 456 feet 3 inches (139.1 m)long overall and had abeam of 78 feet (23.8 m). She had a full-loaddraught of 27 feet (8.2 m) and normally displaced 15,950long tons (16,210 t) and had a crew of 864 officers and enlisted men. The ship was powered by twovertical triple-expansion steam engines using steam generated by 20Niclausse boilers. The engines were rated at 16,000indicated horsepower (12,000 kW), usingforced draught, and were designed to reach a top speed of 18.5knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph).Katori, however, reached a top speed of 19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph) from 18,500 indicated horsepower (13,800 kW) on hersea trials. She carried a maximum of 2,150 long tons (2,180 t) of coal and 377 long tons (383 t) offuel oil which was sprayed on the coal to increase their power. This allowed her to steam for 12,000nautical miles (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) at a speed of 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph).[2]
The ship'smain battery consisted of four12-inch guns mounted in two twin-gun turrets, one forward and one aft. Thesecondary armament consisted of four10-inch guns mounted in four single-gun turrets positioned on each side of thesuperstructure.Katori also carried twelveQF 6-inch guns, mounted incasemates on the sides of the hull and in the superstructure. A number of smaller guns were carried for defence againsttorpedo boats. These included a dozen12-pounder guns and three 47-millimetre (1.9 in)3-pounderHotchkiss guns. She was also armed with five submerged18-inch (450 mm)torpedo tubes, two on eachbroadside and one in the stern.
Katori'swaterlinearmour belt consisted ofKrupp cemented armour and was 3.5–9 inches (89–229 mm) thick. The armour of her main gun turrets had a maximum thickness of 9 in (229 mm) and herdeck ranged from 2 to 3 inches (51 to 76 mm) in thickness.[1]
Katori, named for aShinto shrine inKatori City, was ordered in January 1904 fromVickers.[3] The ship waslaid down at theirBarrow-in-Furness shipyard on 27 April 1904.[4] She waslaunched on 4 July 1905,Prince and Princess Arisugawa were on hand for the official launching ceremony.[5][6] and completed on 20 May 1906.[2]Katori departed Britain on 7 June on her maiden voyage andshakedown cruise and arrived atYokosuka on 15 August.[7]
In a naval review off Yokosuka on 10 November 1913, she served as the flagship for theTaishō Emperor.[8]Katori occupied the German colony of Saipan, shortly after the start of World War I, on 14 October 1914.[9] Afterward the ship began a refit in 1914 that lasted until late 1916 and was assigned to the 2nd Battleship Squadron upon its completion.[10] During this refit, two 12-pounderanti-aircraft guns were replaced two of the low-angle 12-pounders.[1] She became the flagship of the 5th Battleship Squadron in 1917–18 and served as the flagship for the Japanese commander-in-chief atNikolayevsk-on-Amur in late 1918 as Japandecided to intervene in theRussian Civil War.[10]
On 3 March 1921,Katori, escorted byKashima, departedYokohama bound for Great Britain carryingCrown PrinceHirohito, the first Japanese crown prince to travel abroad. The ships arrived atPortsmouth on 9 May and Hirohito left the ship to tour Europe; he boarded the battleship again in Naples several months later for the voyage home.[11] The ship was disarmed in April 1922,[1] stricken from theNavy List on 20 September 1923 and scrapped atMaizuru Naval Arsenal by 29 January 1925 to comply with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty.[3] Her guns were turned over to theImperial Japanese Army for use as coastal artillery; one main-gun turret was emplaced nearTokyo Bay in 1925–1932 and another was installed onIki Island in theStrait of Tsushima in 1929.[12] The remaining guns were placed in reserve and ultimately scrapped in 1943.[13]