Ships gallery

**captain kong** · 10-20-2009

Yes she was the last, there was going to be a Lion Class of battleship, bigger than the KGV Class45,000 ton. but only the Vanguard was completed too late for WW2 but I `think`she may have made an appearance in the Korean war shelling the land. She didnt last too long before being scrapped.
I have an idea that Doolittle? proved that battleships had no chance against airiel attack. Obviously this was proved right with the Repulse and the Prince of Wales.
The atatchments are the badges of HMS Repulse and of HMS Prince of Wales, these are kept n Saint Andrews Church in Singapore

**brian daley** · 10-20-2009

A Swordfish bi-plane is shown landing on the Illustrious,which was the first of the armoured carriers. Still in the battle mode ,we have a painting of the Japanese battleship Yamato. Theoretically she was the most potent battleship to be built up to that time. An awesome sight,she was sunk by boms in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The Royal Navy Dreadnought ,the ship that maintained Britains mastery of the Seas in the early part of the last century,was shown at her most belligerent in this painting by William Lionel Wyllie.
I think I've got enough paintings and photo's of battle wagons to maintain a thread. Anyone interested,
BrianD

**wsteve55** · 10-20-2009

The "Yamoto", and her sister ship,the "Musashi" were some ships,at over 72,000 tons,but sunk just as easily as the "Repulse",etc, under plane attack! And yes Brian,I'd be interested in seeing your paintings,etc!

**Norm NZ** · 10-20-2009

Originally Posted by wsteve55

hi Norm,
That looks a bit draughty!

Sure Was! Steve, You would'nd believe the antics of all the 'squaddies' when it was time to get into the hammocks, last men in did'nt stand a chance!!!

**wsteve55** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by Norm NZ

Sure Was! Steve, You would'nd believe the antics of all the 'squaddies' when it was time to get into the hammocks, last men in did'nt stand a chance!!!

Ha,Ha, pity you didn't film it! Bet the snoring didn't half echo,as well!

**pablo42** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by brian daley

A Swordfish bi-plane is shown landing on the Illustrious,which was the first of the armoured carriers. Still in the battle mode ,we have a painting of the Japanese battleship Yamato. Theoretically she was the most potent battleship to be built up to that time. An awesome sight,she was sunk by boms in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The Royal Navy Dreadnought ,the ship that maintained Britains mastery of the Seas in the early part of the last century,was shown at her most belligerent in this painting by William Lionel Wyllie.
I think I've got enough paintings and photo's of battle wagons to maintain a thread. Anyone interested,
BrianD

Yep, start a new thread then Brian. I love those old warships. I seen a program on the Yamoto. Boy, was that a ship. Seeing pictures of her really gets your pulse racing. Pity she was on the other side. Beautiful ship all the same.

**pablo42** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by captain kong

Yes she was the last, there was going to be a Lion Class of battleship, bigger than the KGV Class45,000 ton. but only the Vanguard was completed too late for WW2 but I `think`she may have made an appearance in the Korean war shelling the land. She didnt last too long before being scrapped.
I have an idea that Doolittle? proved that battleships had no chance against airiel attack. Obviously this was proved right with the Repulse and the Prince of Wales.
The atatchments are the badges of HMS Repulse and of HMS Prince of Wales, these are kept n Saint Andrews Church in Singapore

True that Captain, Doolittle proved the effectiveness of air power. The powers that be though still doubted this. Hence the Replulse and Prince of Wales. What a tragedy.

**pablo42** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by wsteve55

The "Yamoto", and her sister ship,the "Musashi" were some ships,at over 72,000 tons,but sunk just as easily as the "Repulse",etc, under plane attack! And yes Brian,I'd be interested in seeing your paintings,etc!

Steve, I've not heard of the Musashi. I thought the Yamoto was the only one of her class. Thanks, I shall find out more.

**Waterways** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by wsteve55

Wasn't the"Vanguard" the last battleship we built? You can see,what I'd think,was the American influence,in it's design! Though not around at the time,of course,I always think of the loss of the "Prince of Wales" and the "Repulse" being a particularly sad waste of life,they didn't stand a chance against those dive-bombers,and with no air cover of their own!

They were within range of land based RAF planes. The Capt was told to go to Australia but never.

**Waterways** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by pablo42

True that Captain, Doolittle proved the effectiveness of air power. The powers that be though still doubted this. Hence the Replulse and Prince of Wales. What a tragedy.

It wasn't Doolittle. The British sunk Italian ships at Tarranto. The Japanese took notice. The British sunk the Bismark using planes to disable her. They may have sunk her but the Home fleet fired on the Med fleet's planes flying to see her off. They said get away the ship is ours. The Japanese took notice.

The British told the captain of the PoW and the Repulse to sail to Australia, as they knew battleships were obsolete. He never. They were sunk. The Japanese learnt fro Tarranto and attacked Pearl Harbour with planes. The attacked Ceylon with planes as well.

The British pre war idea was that carriers would be reconnaissance and to guide the battleships to the target. The US and Japan thought so as well, but a section of their navy and the IJN thought that attack aircraft on carriers was the way and designed planes for that purpose. The UK had to use US planes to make their carriers attack capable.

**Waterways** · 10-21-2009

Originally Posted by pablo42

Steve, I've not heard of the Musashi. I thought the Yamoto was the only one of her class. Thanks, I shall find out more.

She was sunk by carrier planes as well.

**pablo42** · 10-21-2009

Thanks for the info guys. What a wonderful pair of ships. To see them together must have been awe inspiring.

**captain kong** · 10-21-2009

FROM THE

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060
Online Library of Selected Images:
-- JAPANESE NAVY SHIPS --

Yamato (Battleship, 1941-1945)
Yamato, lead ship of a class of two 65,000-ton (over 72,800-tons at full load) battleships, was built at Kure, Japan. She and her sister, Musashi were by far the largest battleships ever built, even exceeding in size and gun caliber (though not in weight of broadside) the U.S. Navy's abortive Montana class. Their nine 460mm (18.1-inch) main battery guns, which fired 1460kg (3200 pound) armor piercing shells, were the largest battleship guns ever to go to sea, and the two ships' scale of armor protection was also unsurpassed.

Commissioned in December 1941, just over a week after the start of the Pacific war, Yamato served as flagship of Combined Fleet commander Isoroku Yamamoto during the critical battles of 1942. During the following year, she spent most of her time at Truk, as part of a mobile naval force defending Japan's Centeral Pacific bases. Torpedoed by USS Skate (SS-305) in December 1943, Yamato was under repair until April 1944, during which time her anti-aircraft battery was considerably increased. She then took part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June and the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October. During the latter action, she was attacked several times by U.S. Navy aircraft, and fired her big guns in an engagement with U.S. escort carriers and destroyers off the island of Samar.

Yamato received comparatively light damage during the Leyte Gulf battle, and was sent home in November 1944. Fitted with additional anti-aircraft machine guns, she was based in Japan during the winter of 1944-45. Attacked by U.S. Navy carrier planes in March 1945, during raids on the Japanese home islands, she was again only lightly damaged. The following month, she was assigned to take part in the suicidal "Ten-Go" Operation, a combined air and sea effort to destroy American naval forces supporting the invasion of Okinawa. On 7 April 1945, while still some 200 miles north of Okinawa, Yamato was attacked by a massive force of U.S. carrier planes and sunk.

After the war, the great battleship became an object of intense fascination in Japan, as well as in foreign countries. Yamato's remains were located and examined in 1985 and again examined, more precisely, in 1999. She lies in two main parts in some 1000 feet of water. Her bow portion, severed from the rest of the ship in the vicinity of the second main battery turret, is upright. The midships and stern section is upside down nearby, with a large hole in the lower starboard side close to the after magazines.