Japanese battleship Shikishima

nihongo|"Shikishima"|敷島 (戦艦)|Shikishima (senkan) was the lead ship in the "Shikishima"-class of pre-dreadnought battleships in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and one of the six battleships ("Fuji", "Yashima", "Hatsuse", "Shikishima", "Asahi", and "Mikasa") that formed the main Japanese battle line in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905.

History

Following the 1894-1895 Sino-Japanese War, and the forced return of the Liaotung Peninsula to China under Russian pressure, Japan began to build up its military strength in preparation for further confrontations. In particular, Japan embarked on a ten-year naval expansion program, with the construction of six battleships and six armored cruisers at its core."Shikishima" was ordered to Thames Iron Works, England in 1897. She was designed by Phillip Watts and was basically an improved version of the British Navy's "Majestic"-class.

"Shikishima"arrived at Kure on 1900-04-17. She served in the Russo-Japanese War, was damaged in the bombardment of Port Arthur, fighting at the Battle of the Yellow Sea, and taking 10 hits at the Battle of Tsushima.

After the Russo-Japanese War ended, "Shikishima" was based out of Sasebo and used to patrol the waters of the East China Sea. She suffered damage from an explosion on 1916-07-24 and again on 1917-08-16. Rendered obsolete by the development of the "Dreadnought" class battleships. "Shikishima" later served in Japanese home waters during World War I.

In 1920, "Shikishima" was used as a support vessel, to cover the landings of Japanese troops in Russia during Japan's Siberian Intervention.

Refitted in 1921, "Shikishima" was de-rated to First-class Coastal defence ship and relegated to training duties the same year. Disarmed under the provisions of the Washington Naval Treaty, she was used as a training school for submarine crews after 1923. She was then briefly designated as a transport, and then officially stricken from the navy list in 1926, but remained moored at Sasebo as a damage control hulk, floating barracks ship, and training center."Shikishima" was still afloat after the Pacific War, somehow escaping American air attacks, but had not moved under her own power for over two decades. She was broken up for scrap in 1948 at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal.

References

*cite book
last = Andidora
first = Ronald
year = 2000
title = Iron Admirals: Naval Leadership in the Twentieth Century
publisher = Greenwood Press
location =
id = ISBN 0-313-31266-4
*cite book
last = Brown
first = D. K.
year = 1999
title = Warrior to Dreadnought, Warship Development 1860-1906
publisher = Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 1-84067-529-2
*cite book
last = Evans
first = David
year = 1979
title = Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941
publisher = US Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 0870211927
*cite book
last = Hoare
first = J.E.
year = 1999
title = Britain and Japan, Biographical Portraits, Volume III
publisher = RoutledgeCurzon
location =
id = ISBN 1873410891
*cite book
last = Howarth
first = Stephen
year = 1983
title = The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945
publisher = Atheneum
location =
id = ISBN 0689114028
* Jane, Fred T. "The Imperial Japanese Navy". Thacker, Spink & Co (1904) ASIN: B00085LCZ4
*cite book
last = Jentsura
first = Hansgeorg
year = 1976
title = Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945
publisher = Naval Institute Press
location =
id = ISBN 087021893X
*cite book
last = Schencking
first = J. Charles
year = 2005
title = Making Waves: Politics, Propaganda, And The Emergence Of The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1868-1922
publisher = Stanford University Press
location =
id = ISBN 0804749779

External links

* [http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0108.htm Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy]
* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/japan/shikishima-bb.htm Global Security site]