Japanese battleship Settsu

The nihongo|"Settsu"| 摂津 (戦艦)| Settsu (senkan) was the second of the two ship Kawachi class dreadnought battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy. She was built at Kure Naval Arsenal and launched in 1910. The name "Settsu" comes from Settsu Province, now a part of Osaka prefecture.

Her sister ship, the "Kawachi", had a straight bow as opposed to the clipper bow on the "Settsu".

Background

"Settsu" was ordered under the 1907 Fleet Expansion Program as one of the first steps in full implementation of the Eight-Eight Fleet Program. The Japanese Navy projected that a fleet of eight front-line battleships was the minimum necessary against potential threats from China, Russia or the United States. Construction was delayed by a severe world economic depression. The convert|12|in|mm|0|sing=on guns were acquired from Great Britain, but the Auto shp|25000|-1　Brown-Curtis turbine engines were built under license by Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan.

Operational History

Commissioned on 1912-07-01, "Settsu" participated World War I, and was assigned to patrol the sea lanes south of Japan, in the South China Sea and the Yellow Sea, as part of Japan’s contribution to the war effort under the terms of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. She was also at the Battle of Tsingtao.

After the war, "Settsu" was host to Emperor Taisho for the triumphal naval review held off of Yokohama on 1918-10-28.

"Settsu" was disarmed in Kure in 1922 under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty, and its weaponry and armor was removed. It was officially stricken from the Navy list on 1924-10-01.

In 1924, the hulk of "Settsu" was converted into a convert|16|kn|km/h|0, 16,130 ton target ship, with the removal of one boiler room (and funnel), and increased armor to be able to absorb hits from convert|8|in|mm|0|sing=on shells and 30 kilogram practice bombs. Between October 1935 and 1937, radio-control was added, allowing it to be maneuvered by operators on (the destroyer "Yukaze" as "mother ship"). Armor on the deck, funnels, and bridge were increased to enhance its ability to survive hits. During the Pacific War, the target ship was stationed in the Inland Sea, and used for bombing and torpedo training. It was sunk by US aircraft on 1945-07-24 at Etajima; its hulk was raised and scrapped in 1947.

Gallery

References

*cite book
last = Brown
first = D. K.
year = 1999
title = Warrior to Dreadnought, Warship Development 1860-1906
publisher = Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 1-84067-529-2
*cite book
last = Evans
first = David
year = 1979
title = Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941
publisher = US Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 0870211927
*cite book
last = Howarth
first = Stephen
year = 1983
title = The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945
publisher = Atheneum
location =
id = ISBN 0689114028
*cite book
last = Jentsura
first = Hansgeorg
year = 1976
title = Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945
publisher = Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 087021893X

External links

* [http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0118.htm Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy]
* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/japan/settsu-bb.htm　Global Security site]