 Settsu at anchor | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Japan | |
| Name | Settsu |
| Namesake | Settsu Province |
| Ordered | 22 June 1907 |
| Builder | Kure Naval Arsenal |
| Laid down | 18 January 1909 |
| Launched | 30 March 1911 |
| Completed | 1 July 1912 |
| Recommissioned | 1924 |
| Reclassified | Converted to target ship, 1924 |
| Stricken |
|
| Fate | Scrapped, 1946–1947 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Kawachi-classbattleship |
| Displacement | 21,443long tons (21,787 t) (normal) |
| Length | 533 ft (162.5 m) |
| Beam | 84 ft 2 in (25.7 m) |
| Draft | 27 ft 10 in (8.5 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | 2 shafts, 2steam turbine sets |
| Speed | 21knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) |
| Range | 2,700 nmi (5,000 km; 3,100 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
| Complement | 999–1100 |
| Armament |
|
| Armor |
|
Settsu (Japanese:摂津; named afterSettsu Province) was the second and last of theKawachi-classdreadnought battleships built for theImperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the first decade of the 20th century. DuringWorld War I she bombarded German fortifications atQingdao during thesiege of Qingdao in 1914, but saw no other combat. She was placed inreserve in 1919 and was disarmed in 1922 in accordance with the terms of theWashington Naval Treaty.
Two years later,Settsu was converted into atarget ship and she played a minor role at the beginning of theSecond Sino-Japanese War in 1937. At the beginning of thePacific War in 1941, the ship was used in an attempt to deceive theAllies as to the locations and activities of the Japaneseaircraft carriers.Settsu reverted to her normal role as a target ship for the rest of the war; she was badly damaged when Allied aircraft carriers struck the naval base atKure Naval District in July 1945. The ship wasrefloated after the war andscrapped in 1946–1947.
TheKawachi-class was ordered on 22 June 1907 under the 1907 Warship Supplement Program after theRusso-Japanese War as Japan's first dreadnoughts,[1] although their construction was delayed by a severedepression.[2] Their design was based on theAki with a uniform 12-inch (305 mm) main-gun armament, although cost considerations prevented all the guns from having the same barrel length.[3]
Unlike hersister ship,Kawachi,Settsu had aclipper bow that made her 7 feet (2.1 m) longer than her sister. The ship had anoverall length of 533 feet (162.5 m), abeam of 84 feet 2 inches (25.7 m), and a normaldraft of 27 feet 10 inches (8.5 m). She displaced 21,443long tons (21,787 t) at normal load. Her crew ranged from 999 to 1100 officers and enlisted men.Settsu was fitted with a pair oflicense-built Curtissteam turbine sets, each set driving one propeller, using steam from 16 Miyabarawater-tube boilers. The turbines were rated at a total of 25,000shaft horsepower (19,000 kW) for a design speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). She carried enough coal andfuel oil to give her a range of 2,700nautical miles (5,000 km; 3,100 mi) at a speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).[4]
Settsu's main armament consisted of four 50-caliber12-inch 41st Year Type guns in two twin-gun turrets, one each fore and aft of thesuperstructure, and eight 45-caliber12-inch 41st Year Type guns mounted in four twin-gun turrets, two on each side of the superstructure.[4]Settsu'ssecondary armament was ten 45-caliber6-inch/45 guns, mounted incasemates in the sides of the hull, and eight 40-caliberquick-firing (QF)4.7-inch 41st Year Type guns.[2] The ship was also equipped with a dozen 40-caliber3-inch 4th Year Type guns[4] and four others were used assaluting guns.[5] In addition, the battleship was fitted with five submerged 18-inch (457 mm)torpedo tubes, two on eachbroadside and one in the stern.[6]
Thewaterlinemain belt of the ship had a maximum thickness of 12 inchesamidships. It tapered to a thickness of 5 inches (127 mm) at the ends of the ship.[2] A 6-inch (152 mm)strake of armor protected the casemates. The barbettes for the main guns were 9–11 inches (229–279 mm) thick. The armor ofSettsu's main gun turrets had a maximum thickness of 11 inches. Thedeck armor was 1.1 inches (29 mm) thick and theconning tower was protected by 6 to 10 inches of armor.[7]
Settsu waslaid down atKure Naval Arsenal on 18 January 1909. She waslaunched on 30 March 1911[2] and completed on 1 July 1912 at a cost of¥11,010,000.[1] Following theJapanese ship-naming conventions,Settsu was named afterSettsu Province,[8] now a part ofOsaka prefecture.CaptainMorihide Tanaka assumed command on 1 December and the ship was assigned to the First Squadron. She spent most of the following year training and patrolling off the coast of China. When World War I began in August 1914,Settsu was atKure. Together with her sisterKawachi, she bombarded German fortifications in October–November 1914 during the final stage of thesiege of Qingdao.Settsu was assigned to the First Squadron until 1 December 1916 when she was placed in reserve[9] for a refit at Kure.[6] Upon its completion on 1 December 1917, the ship was assigned to the Second Squadron until 23 July 1918 when she rejoined the First Squadron.[9] By this time, all 12 of the 3-inch 4th Year Type guns were removed and four 3-inch 4th Year Typeanti-aircraft guns were added. Two of the torpedo tubes were also removed.[4] On 28 October 1918,Settsu was theflagship forEmperor Taishō for thenaval review held offYokohama as well as the review held on 9 July 1919.[9]
Settsu was placed in reserve on 6 November 1919 and reboilered during anoverhaul that lasted from 1 April 1920 to 21 August 1921.[9] While transportingEmpress Teimei back to Tokyo after she toured several shrines where she prayed for the health of her husband, the ship was caught in a typhoon that forced her escortingdestroyer,Warabi, ashore, but did not damage the battleship.[10] She was disarmed in Kure in 1922 under the terms of theWashington Naval Treaty[Note 1] and stricken from thenavy list on 1 October 1923.[9] Her guns were turned over to theImperial Japanese Army for use ascoastal artillery; two of her main gun turrets were installed onTsushima Island, one each in 1929 and 1936.[11] The rest of her guns were placed in reserve and scrapped in 1943.[12] In 1924, she was converted into atarget ship with the removal of oneboiler room and her centerfunnel. Her armor was reinforced to be able to absorb hits from 203-millimeter (8 in) shells and 30-kilogram (66 lb) practice bombs. These changes reduced her maximum speed to 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and her displacement to 16,130 long tons (16,390 t).[9] In early February 1925,Settsu towed the incompletehulk of the battleshipTosa, which had been used for gunnery and torpedo damage experiments, from Kure to theBungo Channel where it was scuttled on 8 February.[13]
Between October 1935 and 1937,Settsu was converted toradio-control which allowed her to be maneuvered by operators aboard the destroyerYakaze. Armor on the deck, funnels, andbridge was added to strengthen her ability to survive hits.
In late August 1937,Settsu, under the command of CaptainNaomasa Sakonju, transported abattalion of the Sasebo 4thSpecial Naval Landing Force to the Shanghai area in the early stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War. The troops were transferred offshore to thelight cruiserNatori and theYakaze for transportation up theYangtze River. During 1940, the ship was modified to make it suitable to train carrier pilots, and was used extensively by bomber pilots practicing for theattack on Pearl Harbor. She participated in the fleet review byEmperor Hirohito on 11 October 1940 inTokyo Bay.[9]
At the beginning of thePacific War,Settsu, under the command of CaptainChiaki Matsuda sailed fromTaiwan to the vicinity of thePhilippines and simulated the radio traffic of all six aircraft carriers of the1st Air Fleet as well as thelight carriersZuihō andRyūjō in an effort to deceive Allied intelligence as to the locations and activities of the Japanese carriers.[9] For most of the rest of the war, she was stationed in theInland Sea and used for bomb and torpedo training. In March–June 1944, she served as a target for the 522nd and 762nd Naval Air Groups. During this time, she was fitted with a number of license-builtHotchkiss25 mm Type 96 light AA guns,depth charges and ahydrophone.[9]
During theU.S. Navycarrier air attack on Kure on 24 July 1945,Settsu was attacked by 30Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters nearEtajima. She was struck by one bomb that killed two men and wounded another two; five near misses started a serious leak in the starboard engine room. Captain Masanano Ofuji decided torun his ship aground on Etajima to prevent her from sinking. All ofSettsu's 25 mm guns were subsequently removed and the ship was used as afloating barracks. Four days later, the ship was again attacked by carrier aircraft that hit her twice more with bombs. She was abandoned the next day.Settsu was stricken from thenavy list on 20 November and herhulk was raised in June 1946 and towed to Kure where scrapping was completed in August 1947.[9]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in July 1945 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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