Japanese battleship Yamato

During the 1930s the Japanese government adopted an ultranationalist militancy with a view to greatly expand the Empire of Japan. Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in 1934, renouncing its treaty obligations. After withdrawing from the Washington Naval Treaty, which limited the size and power of capital ships, the Imperial Japanese Navy began their design of the new of heavy battleships. Their planners recognized Japan would be unable to compete with the output of US naval shipyards should war break out, so the 70,000-ton vessels of the Yamato class were designed to be capable of engaging multiple enemy battleships at the same time. The keel of Yamato, the lead ship of the class, was laid down at the Kure Naval Arsenal, Hiroshima, on 4 November 1937 in a dockyard that had to be adapted to accommodate her enormous hull. The dock was deepened by one metre, and gantry cranes capable of lifting up to 350 tonnes were installed. Extreme secrecy was maintained throughout construction, a canopy even being erected over part of the dry dock to screen the ship from view. Yamato was launched on 8 August 1940, with Captain (later Vice Admiral) Miyazato Shutoku in command. Armament , 20 September 1941 Yamatos main battery consisted of nine 45-caliber Type 94 guns—the largest ever fitted to a warship, although the shells were not as heavy as those fired by the British 18-inch naval guns of . Each gun was long, weighed , and was capable of firing high-explosive or armor-piercing shells . Her secondary battery comprised twelve 15.5 cm/60 3rd Year Type naval gun| guns mounted in four triple turrets (one forward, one aft, two amidships), and twelve 12.7 cm/40 Type 89 naval gun| guns in six twin mounts (three on each side amidships). These turrets had been taken off the s when those vessels were converted to a main armament of 20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval gun| guns. In addition, Yamato carried twenty-four Type 96 25 mm AT/AA Gun| anti-aircraft guns, primarily mounted amidships. the secondary battery configuration was changed to six 155 mm guns and twenty-four 127 mm guns, and the number of 25 mm anti-aircraft guns was increased to 162. ==Service==

Trials and initial operations (fourth from left) and his staff posing with the ''Yamato's'' 46 cm (18.1 in) gun turret 3 on 20 December 1941. During October or November 1941 Yamato underwent sea trials, reaching her maximum possible speed of . On 12 February 1942, Yamato became the flagship of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's Combined Fleet. US codebreakers were aware of Yamamoto's intentions, and the Battle of Midway proved disastrous for Japan's carrier force, with four fleet carriers and 332 aircraft lost. After 11 days at sea, she was sighted by the American submarine , which fired four torpedoes, all of which missed; Yamato arrived safely at Truk later that day. On that day, she set sail for Yokosuka and from there for Kure, arriving on 14 May. Skate fired a spread of four torpedoes at Yamato; one struck the battleship's starboard side toward the stern. The mission was cancelled when word reached Ozawa's headquarters of American carrier attacks on the Mariana Islands. The Japanese lost three aircraft carriers and 426 aircraft; In response to the American invasion of the Philippines, Operation Shō-Gō called for a number of Japanese groups to converge on the island of Leyte, where American troops were landing. On 18 October, Yamato was given a coating of black camouflage in preparation for her nighttime transit of the San Bernardino Strait; the main ingredient was soot taken from her smokestack. Kurita survived the loss of Atago and transferred his flag to Yamato. However, her sister ship Musashi became the focus of the American attacks and eventually sank after being hit with 17 bombs and 19 torpedoes. Battle off Samar '' entering the battle off Samar Unknown to Kurita, the main American battle group under the command of Admiral William Halsey Jr., departed the Leyte Gulf area on the evening of 24 October. Convinced that Kurita's Center Force had been turned back, Halsey took his powerful Task Force 38 in pursuit of the Japanese Northern Force, a decoy group composed of one fleet aircraft carrier (), three light carriers, two hybrid battleship-carriers, and their escorts. At 07:30, Yamato spotted a US "cruiser" and prepared to rain fire. With the crippled Johnston disappearing behind a rain squall, Yamato recorded the "cruiser" as sunk, though her AP shells allowed Johnston to survive for the time being. The damage mortally wounded Johnston for the rest of the engagement, and two hours later she was finished off by gunfire from the light cruiser Yahagi and the destroyers Yukikaze, Isokaze, Urakaze, and Nowaki. Yamato resumed firing on the escort carriers, but due to the extreme range failed to score any hits for the time being. Around 07:50, the Japanese battleships were attacked by the destroyers and . Both ships opened fire, with Hoel hitting Yamato with two 127 mm shells, though neither caused any notable damage. By 07:54, both destroyers launched their torpedoes, which missed their intended target, the battleship , but headed towards Yamato. Turning to evade them, she was caught in between both spreads, and forced to steam out of the battle for around 10 minutes. While earlier accounts of the battle by US sailors state Yamato was forced out of the battle permanently by this point, Japanese records firmly disprove this. Once the torpedoes ran out of fuel she turned around and raced back to the battle, making contact with Taffy 3 again at around 08:10, immediately training her guns on the escort carrier . From , Yamato fired her main guns, immediately hitting Gambier Bay on her first salvo with a 46 cm shell that plunged through her flight deck into her hangar bay. At 08:17, another 46 cm shell smashed through the forward hanger bay. At 08:20, Yamato scored what is commonly attributed as the most fatal hit to the flat top as a 46 cm shell hit Gambier Bays engine room below the waterline, immediately cutting her speed to 10 knots as she gradually slowed until dead in the water, with Yamato following up with another pair of hits at 08:23. By 08:30, American destroyers covered Gambier Bay, leading to a number of Japanese warships switching fire from the carrier to said destroyers. However, Yamato continued to pound Gambier Bay with her main battery, and observed her listing more and more to port. Meanwhile, her 155 mm secondary guns reengaged Hoel. After Hoel had been scorched by gunfire from Yamato, the battleship and the heavy cruiser , Yamato scored a critical hit that disabled Hoels last boiler, with further gunfire finishing her off by 08:50. Meanwhile, by 08:43 the abandon ship order was issued in Gambier Bay and resulted in Yamato ceasing fire on the now sinking escort carrier. The Japanese ships were taking a toll on Taffy 3, sinking four ships, with Yamato either sinking or helping to sink all besides the destroyer escort . However, relentless air attacks sank three Japanese heavy cruisers. 's torpedoes were detonated, and her propellers were blown off from bomb hits, while was hit by a bomb down the stack that destroyed her engines, leading to both cruisers being scuttled. Finally, Chikuma was outright sunk by American torpedo bombers. With Kurita concluding he had sunk at least two fleet carriers, two cruisers, and two destroyers, and under fear of follow up air attacks causing more losses, he ordered the Japanese ships, Yamato included, to retreat from the battle, meaning the Japanese's primary objectives, the American troop convoys, remained untouched by Japanese surface forces. In the aftermath of the battle, Yamato was attacked by aircraft from and damaged by two more bomb hits, one destroying some crew quarters and the other impacting on her turret 1, rounding out her engagement in the battle. On 15 November 1944, the 1st Battleship Division was disbanded, and Yamato became the flagship of the Second Fleet. Yamatos battle group was attacked by the submarine . The battleship Kongō and destroyer were lost. Yamato was immediately dry docked for repairs and anti-aircraft upgrades on reaching Kure, where several of the battleship's older anti-aircraft guns were replaced. On 25 November, Captain Aruga Kōsaku was named Yamatos commander. On 19 March, American carrier aircraft from TG 58.1 attacked Kure Harbour. Although 16 warships were hit, Yamato sustained only minor damage from several near misses and from one bomb that struck her bridge. The intervention of a squadron of Kawanishi N1K1 "Shiden" fighters (named "George" by the Allies) flown by veteran Japanese fighter instructors prevented the raid from doing too much damage to the base and assembled ships, while Yamatos ability to maneuver – albeit slowly – in the Nasami Channel benefited her. The Imperial Japanese Navy's response was to organise a mission codenamed Operation Ten-Go that would commit much of Japan's remaining surface strength. Yamato and nine escorts (the cruiser and eight destroyers) would sail to Okinawa and, in concert with kamikaze and Okinawa-based army units, attack the Allied forces assembled on and around Okinawa. Yamato would then be beached to act as an unsinkable gun emplacement and continue to fight until destroyed. However, the Allies had intercepted and decoded their radio transmissions, learning the particulars of Operation Ten-Go. Further confirmation of Japanese intentions came around 20:00 when the Surface Special Attack Force, navigating the Bungo Strait, was spotted by the American submarines and . Both reported Yamatos position to the main American carrier strike force, At about 12:30, 280 bomber and torpedo bomber aircraft arrived over the Japanese force. , which had fallen out of formation with engine trouble, was caught and sunk by a detachment of aircraft from . The Surface Special Attack Force increased speed to , and following standard Japanese anti-aircraft defensive measures, the destroyers began circling Yamato. The first aircraft swooped in to attack at 12:37. Yahagi turned and raced away at in an attempt to draw off some of the attackers; it drew off only an insignificant number. Yamato was not hit for four minutes, but at 12:41 two bombs obliterated two of her triple 25 mm anti-aircraft mounts and blew a hole in the deck. A third bomb destroyed her radar room and the starboard aft 127 mm mount. At 12:45 a single torpedo struck Yamato far forward on her port side, sending shock waves throughout the ship. These had only minor effects, but no detailed information about this hit survived the battle. At 12:46, another two bombs struck the port side, one slightly ahead of the aft 155 mm centreline turret and the other right on top of the gun. These caused a great deal of damage to the turret and its magazines; only one man survived. This attack left Yamato in a perilous position, listing ° to port. Counterflooding of all remaining starboard void spaces lessened this to °, but further correction would have required repairs or flooding the starboard engine and fire rooms. Although the battleship was not yet in danger of sinking, the list meant the main battery was unable to fire, and her speed was limited to . The third and most damaging attack began around 13:40. At least four bombs hit the ship's superstructure and caused heavy casualties among her 25 mm anti-aircraft gun crews. Many near misses drove in her outer plating, compromising her defense against torpedoes. Most serious were four more torpedo impacts. Three exploded on the port side, increasing water flow into the port inner engine room and flooding yet another fire room and the steering gear room. With the auxiliary steering room already under water, the ship lost maneuverability and became stuck in a starboard turn. The fourth torpedo most likely hit the starboard outer engine room, which, along with three other rooms on the starboard side, was being counterflooded to reduce the port list. The torpedo strike accelerated the rate of flooding and trapped many crewmen. At 14:02, the order was belatedly given to abandon ship. By this time, Yamatos speed had dropped to and her list was increasing. Fires raged out of control, and alarms on the bridge warned of critical temperatures in the forward main battery magazines. Protocol called for flooding the magazines to prevent explosion, but the pumping stations had been knocked out. At 14:05, Yahagi sank, the victim of twelve bombs and seven torpedoes. At the same time, a final flight of torpedo bombers attacked Yamato from her starboard side. Her list was such that the torpedoes – set to a depth of – struck the bottom of her hull. The battleship continued her inexorable roll to port. The experience of the sinking of the ship was described by a Japanese survivor (Yoshida Matsuro) in Senkan Yamato no Saigo, translated into English as Requiem for Battleship Yamato. ==Wreck discovery==

Because of often confused circumstances and incomplete information regarding their sinkings, it took until 2019 to discover and identify most wrecks of Japanese capital ships lost in World War II. A second expedition returned to the site two years later, and the team's photographic and video records were later confirmed by one of the battleship's designers, Shigeru Makino, to show the Yamatos last resting place. The wreck lies southwest of Kyushu under of water in two main pieces; a bow section comprising the front one third of the ship, and a separate stern section. In May 2016, the wreckage was surveyed using digital technology, giving a more detailed view and confirming the earlier identification. The resulting video revealed many details such as the Imperial chrysanthemum on the bow, the massive propeller, and the detached main gun turret. A nine-minute video of this survey is shown at the Yamato Museum in Kure. ==Cultural significance==

|alt=Three quarter view of a very large model of a battleship in an open gallery From the time of their construction, Yamato and her sister Musashi carried significant weight in Japanese culture. The battleships represented the epitome of Imperial Japanese naval engineering, and because of their size, speed, and power, visibly embodied Japan's determination and readiness to defend its interests against the Western Powers and the United States in particular. Shigeru Fukudome, chief of the Operations Section of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, described the ships as "symbols of naval power that provided to officers and men alike a profound sense of confidence in their navy." Yamatos symbolic might was such that some Japanese citizens held the belief that their country could never fall as long as the ship was able to fight. Decades after the war, Yamato was memorialised in various forms by the Japanese. Historically, the word "Yamato" was used as a poetic name for Japan; thus, her name became a metaphor for the end of the Empire of Japan. In April 1968, a memorial tower was erected at Cape Inutabu on Tokunoshima, an island in the Amami Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture, to commemorate the lives lost in Operation Ten-Go. In October 1974, Leiji Matsumoto created a television series, Space Battleship Yamato, about rebuilding the battleship as a starship and its interstellar quest to save Earth. The series was a huge success, spawning eight feature films and four more TV series, the most recent of which was released in 2017. The series popularised the space opera. As post-war Japanese tried to redefine the purpose of their lives, Yamato became a symbol of heroism and of their desire to regain a sense of masculinity after their country's defeat in the war. Brought to the United States as Star Blazers, the animated series proved popular and established a foundation for anime in the North American entertainment market. The motif in Space Battleship Yamato was repeated in Silent Service, a popular manga and anime that explores issues of nuclear weapons and the Japan–US relationship. It tells the story of a nuclear-powered super submarine whose crew mutinies and renames the vessel Yamato, in allusion to the World War II battleship and the ideals she symbolises. In 2005, the Yamato Museum was opened near the site of the former Kure shipyards. Although intended to educate on the maritime history of post Meiji era Japan, the museum gives special attention to its namesake; the battleship is a common theme among several of its exhibits, which includes a section dedicated to Matsumoto's animated series. The centrepiece of the museum, occupying a large section of the ground floor, is a long model of Yamato (1:10 scale). In 2005, Toei released a 143-minute movie, Yamato, based on a book by Jun Henmi, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II; Tamiya released special editions of scale models of the battleship in conjunction with the film's release. The film is a tale about the sailors aboard the doomed battleship and the concepts of honour and duty. The film was shown on more than 290 screens across the country and was a commercial success, taking in a record 5.11 billion yen at the domestic box office. == See also ==