Japanese cruiser Nishin

, during Battle of the Yellow Sea (10 August 1904). The "Nisshin" received significant damage but stayed in the fight.

At the subsequent Battle of Tsushima on 26 May 1905, "Nisshin", as flagship of Vice-Admiral Misu Sotaru (second in command after Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō), was 6th and last in the line of battle, following the "Kasuga". At 14:15, "Nisshin" opened fire on the at 3300 yards.

At 15:30, the Japanese line again reversed course, placing "Nisshin" at the rear again. Another 12-inch hit was made on the "Nisshin" but without any significant damage. At 16:05, "Nisshin" was hit once more A 9-inch hit on the fore turret sent shell splinters into the conning tower, wounding Admiral Misu. By 17:07, the Japanese line was firing into the light of the setting sun and the Russian line had better visibility. "Nisshin" was hit again at 17:20 by another 12-inch shell, which cut the left 8-inch gun of the aft turret in half. She was now down to half her main armament. As daylight was dying, "Nisshin" was hit yet again at 19:00 by a 12-inch shell with her left 8-inch gun of the forward turret being cut in half. She now just had a single 8-inch gun operable, the right gun of the aft turret. After nightfall, the action of the main Japanese line concluded. "Nisshin" had expended 181 8-inch shells during the battle. Her rate of expenditure obviously decreased significantly as she lost first one, then two and finally three of her four 8-inch guns.

While serving on the "Nisshin" at the Battle of Tsushima, then ensign Yamamoto Isoroku lost two fingers on his left hand.

Of the battle damage received by the Japanese, "Nisshin" received the second most hits after . "Mikasa" received over 40 hits, of which ten were from 12-inch shells. "Nisshin" was hit 13 times, including six 12-inch and one 9-inch hits. Given the number of hits on the "Nisshin" and the fact that she stayed in line throughout the battle, it can certainly be said that she had validated the hopes of the designer: a cruiser able to stand in the line of battle. The performance of the Japanese armored cruisers during the Battle of Tsushima and that of "Nisshin" in particular was such that it led to a burst of construction of armored cruisers in the world's navies and also directly led to the battlecruiser designs that were shortly to follow.

From 1917, the "Nisshin" participated in World War I in the Mediterranean theater, where she led a group of eight Japanese destroyers based in Malta, in a mission to protect Allied shipping against German and Austrian submarine attacks, as part of Japan’s contribution to the Allied war effort under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance.

During the 1920s, "Nisshin" was partially disarmed in accordance with the Washington Naval Treaty. It was used to transport Japanese soldiers and supplies to Siberia in 1922 as part of Japan's Siberian Intervention. She was then used as a training ship until decommissioned in 1935. In 1936, she was scuttled.

In a strange footnote in history, the "Nisshin" was later raised, and towed as a target by the battleship "Mutsu" at the Kamegakubi Naval Proving Ground, Inland Sea, 15 miles SW of Kure. There, on 18 January 1942, it was sunk again by the battleship with her new 18.1 inch guns.

The city of Nisshin in Aichi District, Aichi prefecture was named after the cruiser "Nisshin" in 1905.

Gallery

References

*"Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905"
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*Kofman,V.L. "Armored Cruiser Type Garibaldi, Morskaya Kollektsia 3-1995" * Schencking, J. Charles. "Making Waves: Politics, Propaganda, And The Emergence Of The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1868-1922". Stanford University Press (2005). ISBN 0804749779
*Tōgō Shrine and Tōgō Association (東郷神社・東郷会), "Togo Heihachiro in images, illustrated Meiji Navy" (図説東郷平八郎、目で見る明治の海軍), (Japanese)