Battleship of the old Japanese Navy
In 1932, Japan officially launched the battleship design plan, not only requiring it to carry several large guns, but also must have dozens of secondary guns and a speed of at least 30 knots, such a configuration far exceeded the battleships of other countries at that time, and because the requirements were very demanding, until the end of 1936, Japan also finalized the final design plan, and officially put into construction the following year, and because of the limited industrial strength, Japan can only build two at the same time, but the naval leadership at this time is very much looking forward to it. After that, he spent a lot of money to buy a large number of new equipment from Germany, and finally named the two ships Musashi and Yamato respectively.
Sea trials
Among them, Yamato took the lead in construction as the first ship, and in order to keep it as secret as possible, the ship also adopted a strict secrecy system during the construction process, not only all the workers were strictly scrutinized, but the entire construction site was surrounded by thick wooden planks, and it was impossible to see a single thing from the outside, and this costly battleship was not built until October 1941, and successfully completed the sea trial acceptance, and then was officially commissioned into the combined fleet. This battleship was also the pride of the Japanese Navy at the time, making it the last trump card.
Huge Yamato
So although it participated in many battles, but only arrived at the scene, did not join the war at all, the only role is to accompany other ships back together, but many times unscathed or let the Japanese Navy feel that the Yamato is a battleship that will never sink, so it is more respected after that, simply became the spiritual pillar of the Japanese army, will not go to war at will, usually in the coast to lead the fleet for training, and even if it goes to war, it is used as a backup force. Or assist other fleets in transporting soldiers, after all, the volume is very large.
Pacific War
With the progress of the Pacific War, the sea power of the Japanese army has been seriously hit, losing a lot of aircraft carriers and warplanes, it is reasonable to say that finally the strongest battleship should be out of the horse, but at this time the Japanese navy top brass is still unwilling to send at will, because the status of the Yamato over the years is too high, many soldiers have called it the savior of the Japanese Empire, as long as they go to the battlefield can quickly turn the tide of war, but at this time, all the rational Japanese know that even the aircraft carrier can be sunk in the naval battle. A large battleship cannot turn the tide of war at all, and even if it goes to war, it will not escape the fate of being sunk.
Japanese Combined Fleet
And the naval top brass naturally knew this fact, but at this time the combined fleet had no spare ships to use, and in order to avoid the sinking of the Yamato, the Japanese army not only equipped it with a powerful escort formation, but wanted to maximize the power of several main guns on the Yamato to quickly sink the enemy ships, but the Yamato itself was very weak in its anti-submarine capabilities, and its huge size was also very eye-catching in the battlefield, so it was attacked by american submarines when it went to sea before, and finally was hit by two torpedoes and damaged. Having to return to port again for repairs, why did Japan spend so much money to build this battleship?
Modern British fleet
This also starts from the modern theory of sea power, Britain and France and other established Western countries of the powerful fleet made Japan envious, so after that also crazy development of the navy, and in the subsequent battles also tasted the sweetness of the navy's strength, so the whole country paid more attention to naval construction, and after it became the world's naval power, it regarded the United States as an imaginary enemy, so at that time wanted to expand its fleet, after all, the Japanese Navy at that time had a long service life, and even some were already in a state of overdue service , continue with a new batch of capital ships to replenish.
Warships in overdue service
However, at this time, the Japanese army did not challenge the strength of the maritime powers such as Britain and the United States, so although there was an idea of expanding the capital ships, it was eventually stranded because of the restrictions of the treaty, but the Japanese Navy did not give up, not only reformulated the battle plan, focused on building the battleship, but also put forward the request to lift the restriction at the subsequent congress, and then announced the formal withdrawal from the disarmament conference because it was not passed, although this move was hostile to several countries, but it also got rid of the restrictions in disguise. Subsequently, Japan's defense policy was changed again, and it was officially decided to fight against the United States in the future.
Shipbuilding canals
And because the aviation technology at that time was not yet developed, so although the aircraft carrier has appeared, but the role is not too large, in the fleet can generally only be used as an auxiliary ship, so at that time the operation still depends on battleships, but at this time Japan's industrial base is still relatively weak, resources are also very scarce, and the Japanese army strength is only half of the United States, so in order to obtain the strength of the United States, it is necessary to make up for the lack of quantity with quality, as long as the construction of capital ships that can surpass all the battleships in service, It will be possible to balance the naval forces of Japan and the United States and even tilt toward Japan.
Panama canal
Because of the restrictions of the Panama Canal, it is impossible for the United States to build large battleships like Japan, so in order to resist the powerful warships of the Japanese army, it is necessary to build more conventional battleships, and even if the economic strength of the United States is strong, it will cause great pressure and economic burden. Therefore, at that time, the Japanese top brass approved the construction of 8 huge battleships about 1.5 times that of the active battleships, and in order to cope with the possible decisive battle in the future, they also wanted to carry a larger caliber main gun on the battleship, but this was only Japan's own wishful thinking.
Is6 Yamamoto
Such a huge battleship plan Japan can not be built at the same time, and the various main guns carried on it are still an idea, and even in terms of the technology at that time, it can not be successful, so it was opposed by many people at that time, and with the progress of the times, aviation technology can be said to be changing with each passing day, such as the then Minister of Aviation Yamamoto Isoroku and some chiefs of staff have realized that the future will be the world of aircraft carriers, so they strongly oppose this plan, but the chief of the navy at that time and other people are tough fleet factions. So in the end, this plan was implemented, after all, in their view, even if the role of aircraft carriers will become more and more important in the future, battleships are still the decisive force in it.
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Moreover, the Yamato could not only play a decisive role in the battlefield, but also become a symbol of the spirit of the Japanese Navy, and finally the Yamato spent almost two Shōzuru-class aircraft carriers to build successfully, and successfully completed the sea trial at the outbreak of the Pacific War. At that time, the Yamato was also used as the exclusive property of Yamamoto Fifty-Six after being formally incorporated into the combined fleet, although it was not liked at the time, but at this time the Yamato had officially succeeded the Nagato as the flagship of the Japanese army, and because of its significance, the Japanese Navy had severely damaged the Us Pacific Fleet after the attack on Pearl Harbor, so there was no need for the Yamato to fight.
Battle of Midway
However, as the U.S. army gradually recovered its strength and counterattacked, Yamato participated in the Battle of Midway, but because the aircraft carrier was the main force at that time, the Yamato did not participate in the battle, and then it was also parked in Truk, which was used to use materials and replenish troops to the Japanese troops on the island, but with the defeat of the Japanese army in the Battle of Midway, the sea defense force was greatly reduced, so the Yamato was attacked by american submarines at that time, and the power of one of the torpedo explosions caused its mechanical room and powder magazine to enter the water, resulting in a large amount of water into the hull. In the end, it could only return to the port for repairs, which also made the Japanese Navy realize that the Yamato could say that it did not have any anti-submarine capabilities, so after repairs, it also thickened its armor in key parts, and at the same time improved the air defense capabilities of the Yamato.
Yamato in the Battle of Leyte Gulf
Subsequently installed a lot of anti-aircraft guns and vigilance radar, and as the Japanese Navy faced the embarrassment of no ships available, the Yamato, which was highly expected by soldiers, also officially went to war, participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and its huge size became the primary target of the US military when it first appeared, so under the air attack of a large number of aircraft carrier-based aircraft, the foredeck of the Yamato was blown through, and the hull of the ship also began to enter the water again because of damage, in order to prevent the sinking, it could only withdraw from the battle and return to the port for repairs, and as the Japanese army was defeated in the Pacific, The U.S. military also launched the Okinawa Campaign, which posed a great threat to the Japanese army, so in order to support Okinawa at that time, the Japanese army dispatched a fleet including the Yamato to carry out the Tenichi combat order.
Battle of Okinawa
These ships only added one-way fuel at that time, wanted to break through the defense line of the Us fleet, rushed to the beach as a cannon, but at this time the strength of the Japanese fleet was weak, it was impossible to form an escort formation, and the Yamato because of its large size, the sailing speed was not outstanding, so it was quickly targeted by the U.S. Navy, and then through the way of fire, so that its starboard was seriously damaged, these bombs not only blew up several turrets, and even penetrated the rear main deck, so that the shooting command post was destroyed. Although yamato counterattacked, it did not sink any battleships, and in order to prevent its attack, the U.S. military not only dispatched more than 400 carrier-based aircraft, but also fired several torpedoes.
The Yamato sank
In this way, the Yamato suffered from three hours of indiscriminate bombardment by the US army, resulting in the destruction of its drainage system, the continuous inflow of water made the Yamato tilt, and finally even many important cabins began to enter the water, so that the power system was seriously damaged, the speed was reduced again and again, and there was no hope of reaching Iwo Jima, and the captain on board had no choice but to announce the abandonment of the ship to escape, and soon after this order was issued, the main ammunition of the Yamato was seriously exploded, and the speed of sinking was therefore accelerated. In the end, only more than 200 of the thousands of soldiers on board were rescued, and all the rest were buried in the sea, and the sinking of the Yamato also announced the collapse of the Japanese army.