Japanese cruiser Kurama
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Japanese heavy cruiser Kurama |
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Builder: | Yokosuka Naval Yards, Japan |
| Ordered: | FY1904 Fiscal Year |
| Laid down: | August 23, 1905 |
| Launched: | October 21, 1907 |
| Commissioned: | February 28, 1911 |
| Fate: | Scrapped September 20, 1923 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 14,636 tons (normal); 15,595 tons (max) |
| Length: | 147.8 meters waterline; 137.2 meters overall |
| Beam: | 23.0 meters |
| Draft: | 8.0 meters |
| Propulsion: | Two Shaft Reciprocating Engines; 22,500 shp |
| Speed: | 20.5 knots |
| Fuel & Range: | 1868 tons coal 200 tons oil |
| Complement: | 844 |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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IJN Kurama (鞍馬) was the second vessel in the Ibuki class of 1st class heavy cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
The Kurama had one sister ship, the IJN Ibuki. The Kurama is named after Mount Kurama located north of Kyoto. The class was planned during the Russo-Japanese War and was authorized under the 1904 Supplemental Naval Budget, at the same time as the IJN Tsukuba, but with heavier guns. The Ibuki was designed with geared turbine engines which promised more power and hence, more speed; however, problems with these engines led the Kurama to be completed with conventional VTE reciprocating engines.
Shortly after commissioning, the Kurama, with Admiral Shimamura Hayao on board, was sent on a voyage to Great Britain for the coronation ceremony of King George V, visiting Singapore, Aden, Malta, Portsmouth and Spithead on the way. On the way back, it called on France, Italy and Austria.
On 28 August 1912, the Kurama was re-classified as a battlecruiser by the Japanese navy.
It subsequently played an important role in World War I, in protecting British merchant shipping in the South Pacific, and (together with the Kongō and Hiei) supporting the landings to occupy German-held Caroline Islands and Mariana Islands.
In the 1920s, it was assigned to the northern fleet, assisting in the landings of Japanese troops in Siberia to support White Russian forces against the Bolshevik Red Army.
After the war, the Kurama fell victim to the Washington Naval Treaty and was scrapped after a short service life of only 15 years.
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Imperial Japanese Navy  |
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| Major battles | List of ships | List of aircraft | List of weapons | Main admirals | ||||||||
| Ibuki-class cruiser |
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Ibuki | Kurama |
| List of ships of the Japanese Navy |
