HNLMS Java (1921): Difference between revisions

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'''HNLMS ''Java''''' was the lead ship of the [[Java-class cruiser|''Java''-class]] [[Light cruiser|light cruisers]] operated by the [[Royal Netherlands Navy]]. She was designed to defend the [[Dutch East Indies]] and outperform all potential rivals. She was laid down in 1916, but a series of construction delays prevented her from being completed until 1925. By the time she entered service, her design was already dated. Over the next several years, she operated in the [[Indonesian archipelago]] and protected [[Merchant ship|merchant ships]] during the [[Spanish Civil War]].

During World War II, '' Java script'' joined allied forces as part of the [[American-British-Dutch-Australian Command|American-British-Dutch-Australian Striking Force]], participated in several failed attempts to intercept Japanese invasions of the East Indies, and fended off several air attacks. During the [[Battle of the Java Sea]], she was ambushed by the cruiser ''[[Japanese cruiser Nachi|Nachi]]''. A torpedo struck her magazine; the resulting explosion ripped the ship apart and she promptly sank with most of her crew. Her wreck was later illegally salvaged for metal in the 2010s, which destroyed most of the ship.

== Design ==

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== Construction ==

[[File:Kruiser Hr.Ms. Sumatra (1926-1942) Oplegperiode tijdens WOII in Portsrmouth, UK. Oefeningen 15 cm- geschut (2158 011547).jpg|thumb|''Java'''s single-barrel open turrets were already obsolete by the time she entered service (image from sister ship ''Sumatra'').]]

Dutch [[Naval architecture|naval architects]] had no experience with a ship such as ''Java'', so design work and construction of various components was done by German firms such as [[Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft|Germaniawerft]] and [[Krupp]]. On 15 November 1915, she was ordered from the [[NV Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde|N.V. Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde]] shipyard in [[Vlissingen]] and laid down on 31 May 1916.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|pages=|page=8}} The reliance on German expertise soon backfired as [[World War I]] and the [[Treaty of Versailles]] crippled the German arms industry, which leadled to supply shortages. In conjunction with a series of [[Strike action|strikes]] and delays in building the ship's engines, construction stalled for years.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|pages=|page=8,9}}<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=van Oosten |first=F. C. |title=Warship Profile 40: Her Netherlands Majesty's Ship De Ruyter |date=1 January 1974 |publisher=Profile Publications |isbn=9780853830627 }}</ref>{{Rp|pages=73}} Progress restarted in 1920, although the third ship of the class, ''Celebes'', was canceled during the pause.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|pages=|page=8,9}} ''Java'' was launched on 9 August 1921, and finally completed on 1 May 1925.<ref name=":8" />{{Rp|pages=|page=190}}

The significant delays of her construction saw the ship outdated by the time she entered service, primarily regarding her armament. By 1922, the [[Washington Naval Treaty]] created a [[Heavy cruiser#Washington Treaty|new standard of cruiser]] equipped with {{Convert|203|mm|in|abbr=on}} guns, which Japan heavily invested in. In addition, the single-barrel turrets protected by [[Gun shield|gun shields]] used on ''Java'' had already been replaced by enclosed, multi-gun turrets fed by independent [[Magazine (artillery)#Naval magazines|magazines]] in other navies.<ref name=":74" />{{Rp|page=138|pages=}}<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=10}}

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==== Sinking ====

[[File:NH 111605 Japanese heavy cruiser, HIJMS NACHI (cropped)Nachi-19420306.jpgpng|thumb|Japanese heavy cruiser ''[[Japanese cruiser Nachi|Nachi]]'' (pictured)days after she torpedoed ''Java'' with devastating effect.]]

During the night of 26 February, the cruisers were temporarily followed by Japanese [[Floatplane|floatplanes]], which gave the enemy an understanding of the fleet's route. Unaware, the Allied cruisers passed near the invasion force but were ambushed by the Japanese [[Heavy cruiser|heavy cruisers]] ''[[Japanese cruiser Haguro|Haguro]]'' and ''[[Japanese cruiser Nachi|Nachi]]''. Under cover of darkness, the Japanese closed to {{Convert|9,000|yd|m}} undetected and fired a spread of torpedoes followed by a renewed gun duel. ''Java''{{'}}s crew, exhausted and low on ammunition, did not shoot back at such a long range.<ref name=":74" />{{Rp|page=314-316|pages=}}