Japanese cruiser Haguro
| | Career | |
|---|
| Ordered: | Autumn of 1924 |
| Laid down: | 16 March 1925 |
| Launched: | 24 March 1928 |
| Commissioned: | 25 April 1929 |
| Fate: | Sunk in the Indian Ocean on 16 May 1945 |
| Struck: | 20 June 1945 |
| General Characteristics |
|---|
| Displacement: | 13,300 tons |
| Length: | 661 ft 9 in (201.70 m) |
| Beam: | 68 ft 0 in (20.73 m) |
| Draught: | 20 ft 9 in (6.32 m) |
| Propulsion: | 4-shaft geared turbines, 12 boilers, 130,000 shp |
| Speed: | 36 knots (67 km/h) |
| Range: | 8,000 nm at 14 kt |
| Complement: | 773 |
| Armour: | Main belt 4 in, 1⅜ in main deck, 1 in turrets, 3 in barbettes |
| Armament: | Ten 8 inch (203 mm) guns, six 4.7 inch (-1934) or eight 5 inch (1935-) |
| Aircraft: | two |
Haguro (ç¾½é»') was the last of the four-member
Myoko class of
heavy cruiser of the
Imperial Japanese Navy. She was named after a mountain in
Yamagata Prefecture. The other ships of her class were
Myoko (妙高),
Nachi (那智), and
Ashigara (足柄).
The ships of this class displaced 13,300 tons, were 201 metres long, and were capable of 36 knots (67 km/h). They carried one aircraft and their main armament was ten 8 inch (203 mm) guns.
Haguro was laid down at the
Mitsubishi shipyard in
Nagasaki on
16 March 1925, launched and named on
24 March 1928, and was commissioned into the Imperial Navy on
25 April 1929. Her service in
World War II started in the Dutch East Indies, where she engaged the enemy off
Makassar on
8 February 1942, played a role in the sinking of
HMS Exeter and
HMS Encounter in the
battle of the Java Sea on
27 February 1942, and was engaged in another action off south
Borneo on
1 March 1942. On
7 May 1942 she participated in the
battle of the Coral Sea, moving on to the
Solomon Islands where she took part in the
battle of the Eastern Solomons on
24 August 1942, the evacuation from
Guadalcanal at the end of January 1943, and took light damage in the
battle of Empress Augusta Bay on
2 November 1943. On
19 June 1944 she survived the
battle of the Philippine Sea, and on
23 October â€" on
25 October 1944 she took light damage in the
battle of Leyte Gulf.
In May 1945,
Haguro was the target of the British Operation
Dukedom and was ambushed. The 26th Destroyer Fotilla found her with the destroyer
Kamikaze and began the attack. During the battle, the
Kamikaze was lightly damaged, but
Haguro was hit by gunfire and three Mark IX Torpedoes. The
Haguro soon began to slow down and took a 30-degrees list to port.
At 0232 the Haguro began to go down bow first in the
Malacca Strait, 55 miles off
Penang, on
16 May 1945,
Kamikaze rescued 320 survivors. Nine hundred men, including Vice Admiral Hashimoto and Rear Admiral Shiguira, perished with her. Rear Admiral Shiguira was later promoted to Vice Admiral posthumously in
May 16.
Haguro's name was stricken from the Naval List on
20 June 1945.
The wreck was discovered in 2003, showing significant superstructure damage from her last and earlier battles.
 |
USAAF gun camera footage of the Haguro under attack at Rabaul |
*
Haguro's history in detail*
Sinking of the Haguro (very good description)
