Japanese cruiser Tenryū

Tenryū in Yokosuka, 1925
History
Empire of Japan
Name	Tenryū "Heavenly Dragon"
Namesake	Tenryū River
Ordered	1915 Fiscal Year
Builder	Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
Laid down	7 May 1917
Launched	11 March 1918
Commissioned	20 November 1919
Stricken	20 January 1943
Fate	Sunk 19 December 1942 by USS Albacore off Madang, New Guinea
General characteristics
Class and type	Tenryū-class cruiser
Displacement	3,948 long tons (4,011 t) (standard) 4,350 long tons (4,420 t) (full load)
Length	142.9 m (468 ft 10 in) o/a
Beam	12.3 m (40 ft 4 in)
Draft	4 m (13 ft 1 in)
Installed power	51,000  kW )
Propulsion	3 × Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines 10 × Kampon boilers 3 × shafts 920 tons oil, 150 tons coal
Speed	33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph)
Range	5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement	327
Armament	4 × 14 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval guns 1 × 8 cm/40 3rd Year Type naval guns 2 × Type 93 13.2 mm (0.52 in) anti-aircraft machine guns 6 × 533 mm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes
Armor	Belt: 63 mm (2.5 in) Deck: 25 mm (1 in) Conning tower: 51 mm (2 in)

Tenryū (天龍, Heavenly Dragon) was the

Background

The Tenryū-class was designed to act as flagships for destroyer flotillas. The design represented an intermediate class between the light cruiser and the destroyer, which had few counterparts in other navies of the time, although it was inspired by a similar concept to the Royal Navy's Arethusa and C-class cruisers.^[1] The Imperial Japanese Navy and Japanese shipbuilding industry were still closely associated with the British due to the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, and were able to improve on the British experience.

Design

The Tenryū-class vessels, termed "small-model" (or "3,500-Ton") cruisers, were designed as fast flotilla leaders for the Imperial Navy's new first- and second-class destroyers.^[2] With improvements in oil-fired turbine engine technology and the use of Brown Curtiss geared turbine engines, the Tenryū class had more than twice the horsepower of the previous Chikuma class, and were capable of the high speed of 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph), which was deemed necessary in their role as flagships for destroyer squadrons.^[1] However, by the time of their completion, newer Japanese destroyers, such as the Minekaze class had a design speed of 39 knots, and newer American cruisers, such as the Omaha class also exceeded it in firepower.^[3]

However, in terms of weaponry, the Tenryū class was weaker than any other contemporary cruiser. The

Tenryū was completed on 20 November 1919, at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, and was assigned as flagship of the 2nd Destroyer Squadron based at Kure Naval District, under the IJN 2nd Fleet.

The following year, Tenryū was assigned to patrols of the east coast of

On 20 January 1942, Tatsuta and Tenryū were assigned to cover troop transports during the invasion of Kavieng, New Ireland and Gasmata, New Britain from 3–9 February, and patrolled from Truk in late February.^[4]

During a refit at Truk on 23 February, two additional Type 96 twin-mount 25 mm AA guns were installed aft, as part of the heightened awareness of the threat posed by American aircraft.^[1]

Solomon Islands and New Guinea campaigns

From March, Tenryū with CruDiv 18 covered numerous troop landings throughout the

On 14 July 1942, in a major reorganization of the Japanese navy, CruDiv 18 under Rear Admiral Mitsuharu Matsuyama came under the newly created Eighth Fleet, commanded by Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa and based at Rabaul. On 20 July, Tenryū was assigned to cover Japanese troop landings in the invasion of Buna, New Guinea ("Operation RI"). The invasion force was attacked by USAAF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Martin B-26 Marauder bombers on its return to Rabaul, but Tenryū was unharmed.^[2]

Battle of Savo Island

On 9 August 1942, Tenryū was in the Battle of Savo Island, together with the cruisers Yūbari, Aoba, Kako, Kinugasa, Furutaka, and Chōkai, and the destroyer Yūnagi, which attacked US Task Group 62.6 that was screening transports with Allied invasion forces for Guadalcanal. During nighttime gun and torpedo action, Tenryū sank the cruiser USS Quincy with two torpedoes. She also contributed to sinking the cruisers USS Astoria, Vincennes, and HMAS Canberra. In addition, the cruiser USS Chicago and destroyers USS Ralph Talbot and Patterson were damaged. Tenryū was hit by Chicago, with 23 crewmen killed. Tenryū remained based out of Rabaul through the end of August, escorting convoys of troops and supplies.,^[4]

On 25 August, Tenryū covered of the landing of 1,200 troops of the Kure No. 5

On 2 October, Tenryū was hit by a bomb dropped by a B-17 of the 19th Bomb Group, Fifth Air Force while at Rabaul. The bomb killed 30 crewmen, but the ship was not severely damaged. Tenryū was then tasked with Tokyo Express transport runs from Rabaul to Tassafaronga, Guadalcanal, through early November, evacuating 190 members of the Sasebo No.5 Special Night Operations Landing Force on 26 October^[5] and narrowly escaping a torpedo launched by USS Plunger on 3 November off Santa Isabel Island. On 8 November, Tenryū was attacked by PT boats (PT-37, PT-39, and PT-61) off Cape Tassafaronga, but escaped without damage.^[4]

Naval Battles of Guadalcanal

On 13 November 1942, Tenryū departed Shortland for Guadalcanal as part of the Japanese task force for the bombardment of Henderson Field. The task force was attacked the next day by USS Flying Fish and Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo-bombers from USS Enterprise and Guadalcanal. During the subsequent battle, Kinugasa was sunk and Chōkai was slightly damaged. A Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber crashed into the cruiser Maya. Tenryū was undamaged and returned to Shortland.^[4]

On 16 December 1942, Tenryū departed for Madang, New Guinea, in an attack force with the destroyers Isonami, Inazuma, Suzukaze, and Arashio and the armed merchant cruisers Aikoku Maru and Gokoku Maru, successfully landing its forces on 18 December.^[4]

The following day, as Tenryū was departing, it was attacked by the submarine USS Albacore, which fired three torpedoes each at a transport and what it identified as a destroyer. The torpedoes missed the transport, but one hit Tenryū in the stern. Tenryū sank at 23:20 on 19 December 1942, at 05°12′S 145°56′E / 5.200°S 145.933°E / -5.200; 145.933.^[6] Twenty-three crewmen were lost, but Suzukaze rescued the survivors, including Captain Mitsuharu Ueda.

Tenryū was struck from the

Gallery

• 
  In 1919, under construction
• 
  In 1919, under trials
• 
  At Yokosuka, 1919
• 
  In 1921
• 
  In the 1920s
• 
  In a 1926 postcard
• 
  In 1930
• 
  In the Inland Sea, 1930–1932
• 
  In 1930–1931
• 
  At Shanghai, 1932
• 
  At Shanghai, February 1934
• 
  Docked at Shanghai, February 1934
• 
  In 1936

References

Notes

Books

• Brown, David (1990). Warship Losses of World War Two. Naval Institute Press.
  ISBN 1-55750-914-X
  .
• Dull, Paul S. (1978). A Battle History of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1941-1945. Naval Institute Press.
  ISBN 0-87021-097-1
  .
• ISBN 0-87021-907-3
  .
• Jentschura, Hansgeorg; Jung, Dieter & Mickel, Peter (1977). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute.
  ISBN 978-0-87021-893-4
  .
• Lacroix, Eric &
  ISBN 0-87021-311-3
  .
• Morrison, Samuel (2002). New Guinea and the Marianas: March 1944 - August 1944 (History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, Volume 8). University of Illinois.
  ISBN 0-252-07038-0
  .
• Stille, Mark (2012). Imperial Japanese Navy Light Cruisers 1941-45. Osprey.
  ISBN 978-1-84908-562-5
  .

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tenryū (ship, 1919).

• Parshall, Jon; Bob Hackett; Sander Kingsepp; Allyn Nevitt. "Imperial Japanese Navy Page (Combinedfleet.com)".
• DiGiulian, Tony. "14 cm/50 (5.5") 3rd Year Type". NavWeaps.com.
• DiGiulian, Tony. "8 cm/40 (3") 3rd Year Type". NavWeaps.com.
• Gallery: US Navy Historical Center Archived 18 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine