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{{Infobox nave

|Categoria = incrociatore

|Nome = Azuma

|Immagine = Japanese cruiser Azuma at Portsmouth.jpg

|Didascalia = L'''Azuma'' all'ancora a [[Portsmouth]], 1900

|Bandiera = Naval_ensign_of_the_Empire_of_Japan.svg

|Tipo = [[Incrociatore corazzato]]

|In_servizio_con = [[Marina imperiale giapponese]]

Riga 41 ⟶ 43:

== Storia e progetto ==

Il piano di espansione navale del 1896 fu stilato dopo la [[prima guerra sino-giapponese]] e includeva quattro incrociatori corazzati, in aggiunta a quattro corazzate, tutte da ordinarsi a cantieri d'oltremare dato che il Giappone non aveva le capacità per costruire domesticamente. Ulteriori considerazioni sul programma navale russo portarono la marina imperiale a pensare che navi ordinate non sarebbero state abbastanza. Limitazioni budgettarie bloccavano l'ordine di ulteriori corazzate e quindi si decise di aumentare il numero dei più convenienti incrociatori corazzati da quattro a sei, con l'idea che l'introduzione della superiore [[corazzatura Krupp]] gli avrebbe permesso di prendere parte ad una [[linea di battaglia]]. Il piano revisionato è comunemente conosciuto come Flotta Sei-Sei. Le prime quattro navi furono costruite da [[Armstrong Whitworth]] nel [[Regno Unito]], ma le ultime due furono costruite in [[Germania]] e Francia. Per assicurare la compatibilità delle munizioni la marina imperiale giapponese richiese ai costruttori di usare gli stessi cannoni britannici delle prime quattro navi. In generale la marina giapponese fornì solo un disegno di massima ed alcune specifiche ai costruttori, per il resto ogni cantiere fu libero di costruire le navi come preferì. A differenza della maggior parte degli incrociatori del tempo, progettati per interdire il commercio nemico o difendere le colonie e i trasporti, l'''Azuma'' e lale suasue mezzamezze sorellasorelle furono progettate per fungere da esploratori della flotta e per poter combattere nella linea di battaglia.

== Descrizione ==

Riga 127 ⟶ 129:

* [https://archive.ph/20120710061958/http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0314.htm Materiali della IJN]

Lo '''''Yakumo''''' (八雲, Otto Nuvole) fu un [[incrociatore corazzato]] (''Sōkō jun'yōkan'') costruito per la [[marina imperiale giapponese]] negli ultimi [[Anni 1890|anni '90 del XIX secolo]]. Dato che il [[Giappone]] non aveva la capacità industriale per costruire questo tipo di unità, la nave fu costruita in [[Germania]]. La nave partecipò nella maggioranza delle battaglie navali della [[guerra russo-giapponese]] e fu leggermente danneggiata durante la [[Battaglia del Mar Giallo]] e la [[Battaglia di Tsushima]]. Lo ''Yakumo'' non vide l'azione durante la [[prima guerra mondiale]] e svolse la prima delle molte corciere d'addestramento nel 1917, anche se non fu ufficialmente riclassificato come nave d'addestramento fino al 1931. although she was not officially reclassified as a training ship until 1931. L'ultima crociera d'addestramento fu nel 1939 ma la nave continuò a servire come nave scuola in acque nazionali per tutta la [[Guerra del Pacifico (1941-1945)|guerra del Pacifico]]. Lo''Yakumo'' divenne un trasporto per il rimpatrio delle truppe alleate alla fine della guerra e fu demolito tra il 1946 e il 1947.

== Storia e progetto ==

Il piano di espansione navale del 1896 fu stilato dopo la [[prima guerra sino-giapponese]] e includeva quattro incrociatori corazzati, in aggiunta a quattro corazzate, tutte da ordinarsi a cantieri d'oltremare dato che il Giappone non aveva le capacità per costruire domesticamente. Ulteriori considerazioni sul programma navale russo portarono la marina imperiale a pensare che navi ordinate non sarebbero state abbastanza. Limitazioni budgettarie bloccavano l'ordine di ulteriori corazzate e quindi si decise di aumentare il numero dei più convenienti incrociatori corazzati da quattro a sei, con l'idea che l'introduzione della superiore [[corazzatura Krupp]] gli avrebbe permesso di prendere parte ad una [[linea di battaglia]]. Il piano revisionato è comunemente conosciuto come Flotta Sei-Sei. Le prime quattro navi furono costruite da [[Armstrong Whitworth]] nel [[Regno Unito]], ma le ultime due furono costruite in [[Germania]] e Francia. Per assicurare la compatibilità delle munizioni la marina imperiale giapponese richiese ai costruttori di usare gli stessi cannoni britannici delle prime quattro navi. In generale la marina giapponese fornì solo un disegno di massima ed alcune specifiche ai costruttori, per il resto ogni cantiere fu libero di costruire le navi come preferì. A differenza della maggior parte degli incrociatori del tempo, progettati per interdire il commercio nemico o difendere le colonie e i trasporti, lo ''Yakumo'' e la sue mezze sorelle furono progettate per fungere da esploratori della flotta e per poter combattere nella linea di battaglia.

== Descrizione ==

La nave era [[Lunghezza fuori tutto|lunga fuori tutto]] 132,3 m e 124,64 m [[Lunghezza tra le perpendicolari|tra le perpendicolari]]. Aveva un [[baglio massimo]] di 19,57 m e un'immersione media di 7,21 m. Lo''Yakumo'' dislocava 9646 t a carico normale e 10288 t a carico massimo. La nave aveva un'[[altezza metacentrica]] di 0,95 m. L'unità aveva un doppio fondo e il suo scafo era suddiviso in 247 compartimenti stagni. L'equipaggio consisteva in 670 tra ufficiali e marinai.

Lo ''Yakumo'' aveva due [[Motrice alternativa|motori a vapore a triplice espansione]] a 4 cilindri, ognuno collegato ad un elica. Il vapore per i motori era generato da 24 [[Caldaia a tubi d'acqua|caldaie a tubi d'acqua]] tipo Belleville con una potenza indicata di 11600 kW. La nave aveva una velocità di progetto di 20 [[Nodo|nodi]] e raggiunse i 21,5 nodi durante le prove in mare, ad una potenza di 12650 kW. Poteva trasportare fino a 1300 t di carbone e quindi navigare a 10 nodi per 7000 [[Miglio nautico|miglia nautiche]].

=== Armamento ===

L'armamento principale degli incrociatori della Flotta Sei-Sei erano 4 [[Cannone nanvale 203/45 Type 41|cannoni Armstrong Whitworth 203/45]] in torrette binate a prora e poppa della sovrastruttura. Le torrette, operate elettricamente, erano capaci di rotazione di 130° verso dritta o sinistra e i cannoni potevano essere elevati a +30° o abbassati a −5°. La torretta ospitava 65 proietti, ma poteva essere ricaricata solo attraverso portelli nel ponte della torretta che permettevano ad un argano elettrico di sollevare i proietti dalla polveriera sottostante. La nave trasprotava un totale di 320 proietti da 203 mm. I cannoni erano caricatimanualmente con una velocità di circa 1.2 colpi al minuto. I cannoni da 203 mm sparavano proietti da 113.5 kg ad una [[velocità alla volata]] di 760 m/s con una gittata fino a 18000 metri.

The secondary armament consisted of a dozen Elswick Ordnance Company "Pattern Z" quick-firing (QF), 40-caliber, 6-inch guns. Only four of these guns were not mounted in armored casemates on the main and upper decks, and their mounts on the upper deck were protected by gun shields. Their 45.4 kilograms (100 lb) AP shells were fired at a muzzle velocity of 700 meters per second (2,300 ft/s). The guns were provided with 150 rounds each. ''Yakumo'' was also equipped with a dozen 40-caliber QF 12-pounder 12-cwt guns and eight QF 2.5-pounder Yamauchi guns as close-range defense against torpedo boats. The former gun fired 76-millimeter (3 in), 5.7-kilogram (12.5 lb) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 719 meters per second (2,359 ft/s).

''Yakumo'' was equipped with five 457 mm (18.0 in) torpedo tubes, one above water in the bow and four submerged tubes, two on each broadside. The Type 30 torpedo had a 100-kilogram (220 lb) warhead and three range/speed settings: 800 meters (870 yd) at 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph), 1,000 meters (1,100 yd) at 23.6 knots (43.7 km/h; 27.2 mph) or 3,000 meters (3,300 yd) at 14.2 knots (26.3 km/h; 16.3 mph).

=== Corazzatura ===

All of the "Six-Six Fleet" armored cruisers used the same armor scheme with some minor differences, one of which was that the four later ships all used Krupp cemented armor. The waterline belt ran the full length of the ship and its thickness varied from 178 millimeters (7.0 in) amidships to 89 millimeters (3.5 in) at the bow and stern. It had a height of 2.13 meters (7 ft 0 in), of which 1.49 meters (4 ft 11 in) was normally underwater. The upper strake of belt armor was 127 millimeters (5.0 in) thick and extended from the upper edge of the waterline belt to the main deck. It extended 61.49 meters (201 ft 9 in) from the forward to the rear barbette. ''Yakumo'' had only a single transverse 127 mm armored bulkhead that closed off the forward end of the central armored citadel.

The barbettes, gun turrets and the front of the casemates were all 152 millimeters thick while the sides and rear of the casemates were protected by 51 millimeters (2.0 in) of armor. The deck was 63 millimeters (2.5 in) thick and the armor protecting the conning tower was 356 millimeters (14.0 in) in thickness.

== Costruzione e carriera ==

''Yakumo'', named from a stanza of the ''waka'' poem by Susanoo in the Japanese mythology, was ordered on 1 September 1897 and laid down a year later by AG Vulcan Stettin in Stettin, Germany. The ship was launched on 8 July 1899 and completed on 20 June 1900. She departed Stettin two days later and arrived in Yokosuka, Japan, on 30 August.

=== Guerra russo-giapponese ===

At the start of the Russo-Japanese War, ''Yakumo'' was assigned to the 2nd Division of the 2nd Fleet. She participated in the Battle of Port Arthur on 9 February 1904, when Vice Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō led the Combined Fleet in an attack on the Russian ships of the Pacific Squadron anchored just outside Port Arthur. Tōgō had expected the surprise night attack by his destroyers to be much more successful than it was, anticipating that the Russians would be badly disorganized and weakened, but they had recovered from their surprise and were ready for his attack. The Japanese ships were spotted by the protected cruiser ''Boyarin'', which was patrolling offshore and alerted the Russians. Tōgō chose to attack the Russian coastal defenses with his main armament and engage the ships with his secondary guns. Splitting his fire proved to be a poor decision as the Japanese eight- and six-inch guns inflicted little damage on the Russian ships, which concentrated all their fire on the Japanese ships with some effect. Although many ships on both sides were hit, Russian casualties numbered some 150, while the Japanese suffered roughly 90 killed and wounded before Tōgō disengaged. ''Yakumo'' was not hit during the engagement, although she did hit the protected cruiser ''Novik'' one time with an eight-inch shell.

In early March, Vice Admiral Kamimura Hikonojō was tasked to take the reinforced 2nd Division north and make a diversion off Vladivostok. While scouting for Russian ships in the area, the Japanese cruisers bombarded the harbor and defenses of Vladivostok on 6 March to little effect. Upon their return to Japan a few days later, the 2nd Division was ordered to escort the transports ferrying the Imperial Guards Division to Korea and then to join the ships blockading Port Arthur. ''Yakumo'' was then transferred to Rear Admiral Dewa Shigetō's 3rd Division. On 23 June, the ship was Dewa's flagship when the Pacific Squadron sortied in an abortive attempt to reach Vladivostok, but the new squadron commander, Rear Admiral Wilgelm Vitgeft, ordered the squadron to return to Port Arthur when it encountered the Japanese battleline shortly before sunset, as he did not wish to engage his numerically superior opponents in a night battle.

==== Battaglia del Mar Giallo ====

''Articolo principale: [[Battaglia del Mar Giallo]]''

On the morning of 10 August 1904, Dewa's cruisers were over 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) south of Tōgō's 1st Division when the Russians sortied from Port Arthur in another attempt to reach Vladivostok. In the early stages of the battle, Dewa attempted to engage the Russian cruisers trailing the battleships in accordance with Tōgō's standing orders, but was rebuffed by fire from the battleships. As Dewa closed with the Russians later in the afternoon in another attempt to attack the Russian cruisers, a 12-inch (305 mm) shell struck ''Yakumo'' amidships at 15:40, killing 12 and wounding 11. The range at this time exceeded 8 nautical miles (15 km; 9.2 mi), beyond the range of any gun in his squadron, so Dewa ordered his ships to disengage. By 17:45, ''Yakumo'' had maneuvered to about 8,000 or 9,000 meters (8,700 or 9,800 yd) from the damaged Russian battleship ''Poltava'' and opened fire. ''Yakumo'' continued to close until the Russian squadron was thrown into confusion by the death of Vitgeft around 18:40.

The 3rd Division then followed Tōgō's ships as they circled the Russian ships while they sorted themselves out, now firing at the Russian cruisers with little effect, until Tōgō ordered Dewa to attack the Russian destroyers at about 19:44. Dewa cancelled that last order and turned south around 20:00 in pursuit of several Russian cruisers that were fleeing to the south, in an attempt to intercept them before they reached the isolated flotillas of destroyers and torpedo boats. The Russian ships were engaged by other Japanese cruisers before they could reach the small ships, and Dewa broke off the pursuit around 20:25 as light was fading. He continued south-eastwards overnight and spotted one cruiser and two destroyers, but was unable to catch any of them. On 14 August, ''Yakumo'' and the 3rd Division was ordered to Qingdao to confirm that the Germans had indeed interned the battleship ''Tsesarevich'' and three destroyers that had taken shelter there after the battle. After their return, they were reassigned to the blockade of Port Arthur.

In mid-September, ''Yakumo'' was transferred back to Kamimura's 2nd Division, which was defending the Strait of Tsushima, although she began a refit at the end of the month. The ship returned to Dewa on 15 November and he transferred his flag back to her. On 13 December, the ship attempted to rescue survivors of the ''Takasago'' after she had struck a mine, but found no one still living. ''Yakumo'' was sent to Sasebo Naval Arsenal for another refit five days later. On 1 February 1905, the ship was ordered to join Rear Admiral Shimamura Hayao's 2nd Division blockading Vladivostok, although this only lasted for a few weeks as she was ordered to Kure Naval Arsenal for a final refit in mid-February before the anticipated battle with the Russian ships sent from the Baltic Fleet.

==== Battaglia di Tsushima ====

''Articolo principale: [[Battaglia di Tsushima]]''

As the Russian 2nd and 3rd Pacific Squadrons approached Japan on 27 May, having sailed from the Baltic Sea, ''Yakumo'' was assigned to Kamimura's 2nd Division of the 2nd Fleet. The Russians were spotted by patrolling Japanese ships early that morning, but visibility was limited and radio reception poor. The preliminary reports were enough to cause Tōgō to order his ships to put to sea and the 2nd Division spotted the Russian ships under the command of Vice Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky at around 11:30. Kamimura closed to about a range of 8000 meters before sheering off under fire to join Tōgō's battleships. ''Yakumo'' was fourth of six when Tōgō opened fire on the 2nd Pacific Squadron at 14:10 and, like most of the ships in the division, engaged the battleship ''Oslyabya'' which was forced to fall out of formation at 14:50 and sank 20 minutes later. By this time the Russian formation was in disorder and the battleship ''Knyaz Suvorov'' suddenly appeared out of the mist at 15:35 at a range of about 2,000 meters (6,600 ft). All of Kamimura's ships engaged her for five minutes or so, with ''Yakumo'' and the armored cruiser ''Azuma'' also firing torpedoes at the Russian ship without effect.

After 17:30 Kamimura led his division in a fruitless pursuit of some of the Russian cruisers, leaving Tōgō's battleships to their own devices. He abandoned his chase around 18:03 and turned northwards to rejoin Tōgō. His ships spotted the rear of the Russian battleline around 18:30 and opened fire when the range closed to 8000–9000 meters. Nothing is known of any effect on the Russians, and they ceased fire by 19:30 and rejoined Tōgō at 20:08 as night was falling. The surviving Russian ships were spotted the next morning and the Japanese ships opened fire around 10:30, staying beyond the range at which the Russian ships could effectively reply. Rear Admiral Nikolai Nebogatov therefore decided to surrender his ships, as he could neither return fire nor close the range.

In the meantime, the coast defense ship ''Admiral Ushakov'' had fallen well behind Nebogatov's ships and was spotted by the protected cruiser ''Chiyoda'' early in the morning, but the Japanese were more intent on locating the main body of the Russian fleet than attacking a single isolated ship. ''Admiral Ushakov'' was then spotted at 14:10, well after Nebogatov's surrender, by Shimamura who received permission to pursue her with his flagship, the armored cruiser ''Iwate'', and ''Yakumo''. They caught up with the Russian ship at 17:00 and demanded her surrender. ''Admiral Ushakov'' attempted to close the range to bring the Japanese cruisers within range of her guns, but they were fast enough to keep the range open and the Russian ship never hit either one. After about half an hour, ''Admiral Ushakov'' was listing heavily enough that her guns could not elevate enough to bear, and her commander ordered his crew to abandon ship and the scuttling charges detonated. The ship sank in three minutes and 12 officers and 327 crewmen were rescued by the Japanese. Between them, ''Yakumo'' and ''Iwate'' fired 89 eight- and 278 six-inch shells during the engagement. Over the course of the entire battle, ''Yakumo'' was struck by a single twelve-inch shell and six others, of which three or four were six inches in size. They inflicted only minor damage.

On 14 June, ''Yakumo'' was assigned as the flagship of Vice Admiral Kataoka Shichirō, commander of the 3rd Fleet, as part of the operation to capture the island of Sakhalin in July.

=== Prima guerra mondiale ===

In November 1914, ''Yakumo'' was deployed to Singapore preparatory to searching for the German commerce raider ''Emden'', but the ship was sunk before the mission began. ''Yakumo'' served as the flagship of Destroyer Squadron (''Suiraisentai'') 2 from 13 December 1915 to 1 December 1916 and then of ''Suiraisentai'' 1 from 1 to 12 December. In February 1917, the ship began patrolling the South Pacific and Indian Oceans, searching for German commerce raiders. She began the first of her many training cruises on 5 April when she departed for North America and Hawaii, before arriving back in Japan on 17 August. In October 1918, Kichisaburō Nomura was appointed captain of ''Yakumo'' for two months, only one of which he spent on board the vessel, as a political appointment to qualify Nomura for flag rank.

=== Periodo tra le guerre ===

On 1 September 1921, ''Yakumo'' was re-designated as a 1st class coast-defense ship and used primarily for training duties in long-distance oceanic navigation and officer training for cadets in the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy. In this capacity, she participated in 13 more voyages in the 1920s and 1930s to Europe, North and South America, and the South Pacific, including a circumnavigation of the globe from August 1921 to April 1922, in company with the armored cruiser ''Izumo''. Two of the naval cadets that participated in this cruise were Princes Kuni Asaakira and Kachō Hirotada.

In 1924, four of ''Yakumo''<nowiki/>'s 12-pounder guns were removed, as were all of her QF 2.5-pounder guns, and a single 8 cm/40 3rd Year Type anti-aircraft gun was added. In addition three of her torpedo tubes were removed. Three years later, her boilers were replaced by six Yarrow boilers, formerly from the battleship ''Haruna'', which reduced her power to 7,000 ihp (5,200 kW) and maximum speed to 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). These boilers used a mix of coal and fuel oil, and the ship now carried a total of 1,210 metric tons (1,190 long tons) of coal and 306 metric tons (301 long tons) of oil.

During a visit to Qingdao in 1932, ''Yakumo'' and ''Izumo'' had to land marines on 13 January to quell a riot by Japanese residents there. The following year, the ship was reclassified as a training ship. On 6 November 1936, between the islands of Saipan and Truk, an accidental explosion in her front magazine killed four crewmen and flooded her front food locker. Repairs were made underway and ''Yakumo'' arrived home two weeks later. A month after her return, in December 1936, Captain Matome Ugaki assumed command of ''Yakumo'' until he took command of the battleship ''Hyūga'' the next year. Her last training cruise ended on 20 November 1939.

=== Seconda guerra mondiale ===

After the start of the Pacific War, ''Yakumo'' was reclassified as a 1st class cruiser on 1 July 1942, and her eight-inch guns were replaced by four 12.7 cm (5.0 in) Type 89 dual-purpose guns in two twin mounts. In addition her light anti-aircraft armament was augmented. However, ''Yakumo'' remained within the confines of the Seto Inland Sea throughout the war as she was assigned to training duties, and was not used in any combat operations. On 24 July US Task Force 38 launched a massive attack on Kure to destroy any and all remaining units of the Japanese Navy. ''Yakumo'' was damaged and re-designated as a special transport ship. ''Yakumo'' began service as a repatriation transport on 7 December. Her mission was to return troops and civilians to the home islands from Japan's former overseas possessions, primarily from Taiwan and mainland China. She completed her last voyage in June 1946, repatriating a total of 9,010 people. ''Yakumo'' arrived at the Maizuru shipyard of Hitachi Shipbuilding & Engineering on 20 July 1946 to begin demolition that lasted until 1 April 1947.

== Note ==

# '''^''' "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 12 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.

== Bibliografia ==

*

*

== Collegamenti esterni ==

* [http://www.combinedfleet.com/Yakumo_c.htm Yakumo on Nihon Kaigun]