Japanese cruiser Hashidate
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 The Japanese cruiser Hashidate |
|
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Built: | Yokosuka Naval Yards, Japan |
| Ordered: | 1886 Fiscal Year |
| Laid down | August 6 1888 |
| Launched: | March 24 1891 |
| Completed: | June 26 1894 |
| Fate: | Scrapped 1927 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 4,217 tons |
| Length: | 91.81 meters at waterline |
| Beam: | 15.6 meters |
| Draught: | 6.05 meters |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft reciprocating; 5400 HP |
| Speed: | 16.5 knots |
| Fuel: | 680 tons coal |
| Complement: | 360 |
| Armament: |
|
| Armor: | 50 mm deck; 300 mm turret; 100 mm gunshield |
The IJN Hashidate (橋立) was a protected cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy, designed by Emile Bertin, and built by the Yokosuka naval shipyards in Japan. The Hashidate was the 3rd and last ship in the Matsushima-class, and was the only one constructed in Japan. Like its sister ships, (the Matsushima and Itsukushima) its name comes from one of the three most famous scenic spots in Japan, in this case, the Ama-no-hashidate in northern Kyoto prefecture on the Sea of Japan.
Forming the backbone of the Imperial Japanese Navy during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Matsushima-class protected cruisers were based on the principles of Jeune Ecole. The Japanese government did not have the resources or budget to build a battleship navy to counter the Chinese navy; instead, Japan adopted the radical theory of using smaller, faster warships, with light armor and small caliber long-range guns, coupled with a massive single 320 cm Canet gun. The design eventually proved impractical, as the recoil from the huge cannon was too much for a vessel of such small displacement, and the reloading time on the cannon was impractically long; however, the Matsushima-class cruisers served their purpose well against the poorly-equipped and poorly-led Chinese fleet. There were originally plans to build a fourth vessel in this class (name unknown), and its cancellation due concerns over the design was one of the factors that led to Bertin’s resignation and return to France.
The Hashidate saw combat in the Battle of the Yalu River and the subsequent attack on Weihaiwei during the Sino-Japanese War.
The Hashidate was reclassified as a 2nd class cruiser on 21 March 1898.
On 25 February 1901, the Hashidate, and the Itsukushima, departed Yokosuka on a tour which took it to Manila, Batavia, Hong Kong, Chelumpo, Pusan, Gensan, and Vladivostok, returning to Yokosuka on 14 August 1901.
During the Russo-Japanese War, the hopelessly obsolete Hashidate and her sister ships were assigned to the 5th squadron of the reserve 3rd Fleet, together with the equally outdated ironclad battleship Chin'en under the command of Admiral Shichiro Kataoka.
On 28 August 1912, the Hashidate was re-classified as a 2nd class Coastal Defense Vessel. It was struck from the active list on 01 April 1922, and sent to the breakers in 1927.
The cruiser Hashidate should not be confused with the Pacific War era river gunboat of the same name.
Imperial Japanese Navy  |
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