Japanese minelayer Itsukushima

Coordinates: 5°23′S 113°48′E / 5.383°S 113.800°E / -5.383; 113.800
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other ships with the same name, see Japanese ship Itsukushima.
Itsukushima, circa 1935
History
Japan
NameItsukushima
OrderedFiscal 1923
BuilderUraga Dock Company[1]
Laid down2 February 1928
Launched22 May 1929
Commissioned26 December 1929
Stricken10 January 1945
FateTorpedoed and sunk by HNLMS Zwaardvisch, 7 October 1944[1]
General characteristics
TypeMinelayer
Displacement1,970 long tons (2,002 t) (standard)
Length104 m (341 ft 2 in) (waterline)
Beam11.83 m (38 ft 10 in)
Draught3.22 m (10 ft 7 in)
Installed power
  • 3 boilers
  • 39,000 
    kW
    )
Propulsion3 shafts; 3 diesel engines
Speed17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Range5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement221
Armament

Itsukushima (厳島) was a medium-sized minelayer of the Imperial Japanese Navy, which was in service during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. She was named after Itsukushima, a sacred island in Hiroshima Prefecture of Japan. She was the first warship in the Imperial Japanese Navy with all-diesel engine propulsion.[2]

Building

Under the fiscal 1923 budget, the Imperial Japanese Navy authorized a minelayer to supplement its aging minelayers, the former cruisers Aso, and Tokiwa. The new vessel was designed to carry 500 Type 5 naval mines, and to incorporate design features developed through operational experience gained in World War I. Initial plans to procure a 3,000-ton vessel were scaled back to 2,000 tons due to budget limitations.[3]

Itsukushima was launched by the Uraga Dock Company on 22 May 1929, and was commissioned into service on 26 December 1929.[4]

Operational history

After commissioning, Itsukushima was assigned to the

Yangzi River
in China. However, at the end of 1938, she was removed from active duty and placed on reserve status and returned to Yokosuka.

Istukushima was reactivated on 15 November 1940 under the Combined Fleet and resumed patrols of the China coast to April 1941, when she was reassigned back to the IJN 3rd Fleet and deployed to Palau in December 1941. At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Itsukushima was assigned to the Southern Philippines Striking Force of the IJN 3rd Fleet under the overall command of Admiral Ibō Takahashi, and tasked with mining the San Bernardino Strait.[4]

In January 1942, Itsukushima was assigned to the Netherlands East Indies theatre of operations, supporting the Japanese invasions of Tarakan and Balikpapan in Borneo as flagship of the Second Base Unit under Admiral Sueto Hirose. From 10 March, she was reassigned to the 3rd Southern Expeditionary Fleet under Admiral Rokuzō Sugiyama, and continued to support operations in Borneo and Java. She was then reassigned to the Second Southern Expeditionary Fleet, under the Southwest Area Fleet, patrolling between Singapore, Surabaya, Batavia and Ambon to the end of the year. On 25–26 December 1942, together with the light cruiser Natori, Itsukushima landed troops of the 24th Naval Base force which captured Hollandia, New Guinea.[5]

Itsukushima was subsequently based out of Palau through most of 1943, becoming part of the 4th Southern Expeditionary Fleet from 30 November, and was deployed to Ambon by the end of the year.

In early 1944, Itsukushima was assigned to escort convoys between Ambon, Surabaya and

Royal Dutch Navy submarine HNLMS Zwaardvisch, and sank at position 5°23′S 113°48′E / 5.383°S 113.800°E / -5.383; 113.800.[4]

Itsukushima was removed from the

navy list on 10 January 1945.[4]

Shipwreck

On 15 December 2002 a group of divers operating off the dive vessel MV Empress located the wreck of Itsukushima northeast of

Bawean Island in the Java Sea.[6] At the time of discovery the wreck lay in two sections, cleanly severed where Zwaardvisch's torpedo struck aft. The much larger forward section rests 350 to 400 m (1,150 to 1,310 ft) from the severed stern and is completely upside down from the bow stem to the break where the three propeller shafts begin to exit the hull. No upper works or superstructure whatsoever can be seen. The small severed stern section sits upright and is relatively intact. The deck has deteriorated with the 'doors' on the two outer mine-laying 'wings' closed and in place. The 'doors' across the stern itself are missing. No 5.5-inch guns can be seen on the aft section, but one gun mount sits upright on the seabed about 15 m (49 ft) from the break in the hull.[4]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b "Itsukushima". Miramar Ship Index. R.B.Haworth. Retrieved 6 October 2008.
  2. ISBN 0-87021-893-X
    .
  3. ISBN 0-689-11402-8
    .
  4. ^ a b c d e f Nevitt, Allyn D. (1997). "IJN Itsukushima: Tabular Record of Movement". Long Lancers. Combinedfleet.com.
  5. ISBN 1-59114-119-2
    .
  6. ^ "Itsukushima". pacificwrecks.com. Retrieved 9 December 2020.

References

External links

5°23′S 113°48′E / 5.383°S 113.800°E / -5.383; 113.800

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