Originally intended as sister ships of the preceding Fuso class, the Ise-class battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy were considered sufficiently different to warrant classification as a separate class in their own right. Among the differences were a shorter foredeck, a more closely-grouped secondary armament (with the majority of the forward guns set further astern than in the Fusos), a different arrangement of the primary turrets (though the cumbersome six-twin arrangement was retained) and more closely-spaced funnels and uptakes. Like most if not all battleships of their era, they retained the soon-to-be outmoded casemated secondary armament, the forward guns of which often proved useless in any kind of seaway, and like all Japanese warships of the period, these vessels still relied on mixed (i.e. coal and oil) firing for their boilers. Ise (伊勢) was the Imperial Japanese Navys first Ise-class battleship, and laid at the Kawasaki Heavy Industries shipyard in Kobe on May 5, 1915, launched on November 12, 1916, and completed on December 1, 1917. ... Jump to: navigation, search Ensign of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ...

During World War I, like their cousins of the Fuso class, the Ises took part in no significant action, being largely surplus to the Imperial Japanese Navy's duties. They were also reconstructed in the 1930s, receiving improved powerplants, armour, fire control and internal protection. Jump to: navigation, search World War I was primarily a European conflict with many facets: immense human sacrifice, stalemate trench warfare, and the use of new, devastating weapons - tanks, aircraft, machineguns, and poison gas. ... A fire-control system is a computer, often mechanical, which is designed to assist a weapon system in hitting its target. ...

During World War II, to partially compensate for the loss of carrier strength at the Battle of Midway, both battleships were converted to hybrid battleship/aircraft carrier in 1943. Their aft turrets were replaced with a hangar surmounted by a flight deck, and anti-aircraft guns were added. Hyuga, for example, mounted a complement of 14 Yokosuka D4Y dive-bombers and 8 Aichi E16A seaplanes. However, the lack of planes and pilots meant that neither ship was involved in combat in her carrier role. Jump to: navigation, search World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atom bomb World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a mid-20th-century conflict that... Jump to: navigation, search The Battle of Midway took place on June 5, 1942 (June 4 – June 7 in U.S. time zones). ... Jump to: navigation, search An aircraft carrier is a warship whose main role is to deploy and recover aircraft—in effect acting as a sea-going airbase. ... The Yokosuka D4Y Suisei (彗星, comet) was a dive bomber of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ...

Ships

There were two ships of the class:

• Ise, launched on 1916-11-12.
• Hyuga, launched on 1917-01-27.

Both ships were heavily damaged in the Battle off Cape Engaño on 1944-10-25. They returned to Kure naval dockyard in Japan and took no further part in operations. They were attacked by American planes in a series of raids and were sunk at their moorings in shallow water. Ise (伊勢) was the Imperial Japanese Navys first Ise-class battleship, and laid at the Kawasaki Heavy Industries shipyard in Kobe on May 5, 1915, launched on November 12, 1916, and completed on December 1, 1917. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1916 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January-February January 1 -The first successful blood transfusion using blood that had been stored and cooled. ... Jump to: navigation, search November 12 is the 316th day of the year (317th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 49 days remaining. ... Hyuga (日向), named for Hyuga Province in Kyushu, was an Ise class battleship laid down by Mitsubishi on 6 May 1915, launched on 27 January 1917 and completed on 30 April 1918. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1917 was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search January 27 is the 27th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... The Battle of Leyte Gulf was a naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II, fought in the seas around the island of Leyte in the Philippines from 23 October to 26 October 1944. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Jump to: navigation, search October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 67 days remaining. ... Kure (呉市; -shi) is a city located in Hiroshima, Japan. ...

General characteristics (after reconstruction, 1934-37)

• Displacement: 35,800 tons (standard); 40,169 tons (laden)
• Length: 215.8 m
• Beam (at widest point): 31.75 m
• Draught: 9.15 m
• Crew: 1,370

Armament

• Main armament: 12 x 14 in (356 mm) rifled guns (6 x 2)
• Secondary armament: 16 x 5.5 in (140 mm) rifled guns (16 x 1) (casemated); 8 x 5 in (127 mm) DP (dual purpose) (4 x 2)
• Anti-aircraft: 20 x 25 mm cannon

Protection

• Main belt: 12 in (305 mm) maxinum thickness
• Decks: 3.75 in (95 mm) maximum thickness
• Main turrets: 12 in (305 mm) face, 10 in (254 mm) sides
• Barbettes: 8 in (203 mm) maxmimum thickness
• Casemates: 6 in (152 mm) maximum thickness
• Connong tower: 13.75 in (349 mm) maximum thickness

Propulsion

• Speed: 25.3 knots (47 km/h)
• Powerplant: Eight oil-fired Kampon boilers
• Output: 80,000 shaft horsepower (60 MW)
• Bunkerage: 5,113 tons fuel oil

Miscellaneous

• Aircraft: 3, with one catapult.

References

• M. J. Whiteley, Battleships of World War Two: an International Encyclopaedia, Orion, 2001.