Japanese battleship Haruna

Japanese battleship Haruna was a Kongō-class battlecruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Named after Mount Haruna in Gunma Prefecture, she was laid down in 1912 at the Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation yard in Kobe. Over her three-decade career, she underwent two major reconstructions that transformed her from a battlecruiser into a fast battleship, seeing extensive service during World War II before being sunk in Kure Naval District in the final days of the conflict.

Design and description

The *Haruna* was the fourth and final unit of the Kongō-class battlecruiser, a design initially prepared by the British naval architect George Thurston of Vickers. The class represented a significant leap in Japanese naval technology, being the first to mount 14-inch (356 mm) guns and utilize advanced armor protection. As built, her main battery consisted of eight 14-inch guns arranged in four twin gun turrets, supported by a secondary armament of sixteen 6-inch (152 mm) guns. Her propulsion plant, comprising Brown-Curtis steam turbines and Yarrow boilers, could propel the 27,384-ton vessel at a design speed of 27.5 knots.

Construction and career

*Haruna*'s keel was laid down on 16 March 1912 at the Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation shipyard in Kobe. She was launched on 14 December 1913 and commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy on 19 April 1915. Upon completion, she was assigned to the 3rd Battleship Division of the 1st Fleet. Her early service was largely uneventful, consisting of routine training and patrols in home waters, as she entered service after the major naval engagements of World War I.

World War I and interwar period

During World War I, *Haruna* was deployed on patrols in the East China Sea and off the coast of China as part of Japan's contribution to the Allied war effort under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. In the interwar period, she underwent two extensive reconstructions at the Kure Naval Arsenal. The first, from 1926 to 1928, added anti-torpedo bulges and increased her armor protection, while her boilers were replaced, and she was fitted with a pagoda mast. A second, more radical reconstruction from 1933 to 1934 replaced her powerplant with new Kampon boilers and geared steam turbines, dramatically increased her horizontal armor, and lengthened her stern, reclassifying her as a fast battleship capable of over 30 knots.

World War II

*Haruna* played a prominent role throughout the Pacific War. At the start of hostilities, she provided distant cover for the Malayan Campaign and the invasion of Java. She participated in major carrier battles including the Indian Ocean raid, the Battle of Midway, and the Battle of the Philippine Sea. As part of Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita's Center Force, she survived the Battle of Leyte Gulf, engaging American escort carriers and destroyers in the Battle off Samar. In the war's final year, largely deprived of fuel, she was used as a floating anti-aircraft battery in Kure Naval District, where she was subjected to intense aerial attacks by the United States Third Fleet and United States Army Air Forces.

Wreck and legacy

On 28 July 1945, during a series of attacks by aircraft from Task Force 38, *Haruna* was hit by multiple bombs while anchored at Eta Jima. She sank in shallow water at her moorings, with the loss of 65 crewmen. After the surrender of Japan, her wreck was raised by the U.S. Navy in 1946 and towed to Hiroshima Bay for scrapping, a process completed later that year. Unlike her sister ships *Kirishima* and *Hiei*, which were sunk in naval combat, *Haruna*'s longevity and extensive wartime service made her one of the most active and recognizable Japanese capital ships of the conflict.

Category:Kongō-class battlecruisers Category:World War I battleships of Japan Category:World War II battleships of Japan Category:Ships built in Kobe Category:1915 ships