Shirakumo-class destroyer
 Japanese destroyer Shirakumo during commissioning, England, 1902
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Shirakumo class |
| Builders | John I. Thornycroft & Company Chiswick, England |
| Operators |  Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Preceded by | Akatsuki class |
| Succeeded by | Harusame class |
| In commission | February 1902 – April 1923 |
| Completed | 2 |
| Retired | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Destroyer |
| Displacement | 322 tons normal, 432 tons full load |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 20 ft 9 in (6.32 m) |
| Draught | 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) |
| Depth | 13 ft 9 in (4.19 m) |
| Propulsion | 2-shaft reciprocating engines, 4 boilers, engine output 7,000 hp (5,200 kW) |
| Speed | 31 knots (57 km/h; 36 mph) |
| Complement | 62 |
| Armament |
|
The Shirakumo-class destroyers (白雲型駆逐艦, Shirakumogata kuchikukan) was a
Background
The Shirakumo-class destroyers were ordered under the 1900 fiscal budget as a follow-on to the earlier Murakumo class. Both were ordered on 7 (or 16) November 1900 from the yard of John I. Thornycroft & Company in Chiswick, England.[2]
Design
Compared with the previous Murakumo class, the Shirakumo class was significantly larger in displacement with a somewhat more powerful engine. The main difference externally between the vessels was in the design of their rudders. With the previous class, the rudder was semi-balanced, and had a portion exposed above the waterline. This made the vessel vulnerable to disablement by stray gunfire.
The design of the three-boilered Murakumo-class destroyers had been similar to that of the two-
All were powered by
Operational history
Both Shirakumo-class destroyers arrived in Japan in time to be used in combat service during the
On 28 August 1912, both vessels were re-classified as third-class destroyers and were removed from front-line combat service. They were converted to auxiliary
Ships
| Kanji | Name | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Completed | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 白雲 | Shirakumo "White Cloud" |
Thornycroft, Chiswick, United Kingdom | 1 February 1901 | 1 October 1901 | 13 February 1902 | auxiliary minesweeper 1 April 1922; utility vessel 1 April 1923; sold 21 July 1925 |
| 朝潮 | Asashio "Morning Tide" |
3 April 1901 | 10 January 1902 | 4 May 1902 | auxiliary minesweeper 1 April 1922, utility vessel 1 April 1923; sold 5 April 1926 |
Notes
References
- Cocker, Maurice (1983). Destroyers of the Royal Navy, 1893–1981. Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-1075-7.
- Evans, David (1979). Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-192-7.
- Halpern, Paul G (1994). A Naval History of World War I. Routledge. ISBN 1-85728-498-4.
- Howarth, Stephen (1983). The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945. Atheneum. ISBN 0-689-11402-8.
- Jane, Fred T. (1904). The Imperial Japanese Navy. Thacker, Spink & Co. ASIN: B00085LCZ4.
- Jentsura, Hansgeorg (1976). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-893-X.
- Lyon, David (1981). The Thornycroft List. Greenwich: National Maritime Museum.
- Lyon, David (2006). The First Destroyers. Mercury Books. ISBN 1-84560-010-X.
- Stille, Mark (2016). The Imperial Japanese Navy of the Russo-Japanese War. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4728-1119-6.
- Watts, Anthony John (1971). The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945. London: Macdonald & Co. (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 0-356-03045-8.
External links
