Japanese battleship Hiei
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| Missing image Japanese_training_ship_Hiei.jpg Hiei as a training ship, August 1933 | |
| Career | 
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|---|---|
| Ordered: | 1911 |
| Laid down: | 4 November 1911 |
| Launched: | 21 November 1912 |
| Commissioned: | 4 August 1914 |
| Fate: | Scuttled at Savo Island on 13 November 1942 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 36,600 tons |
| Length: | 728 ft 4 in (222 m) |
| Beam: | 101 ft 8 in (31 m) |
| Draught: | 31 ft 9 in (9.7 m) |
| Propulsion: | |
| Speed: | 30 knots (56 km/h) |
| Range: | 10,000 nm at 18 kts |
| Complement: | 1360 |
| Armament: | 8 x 14 inch (357 mm) guns, 16 x 6 inch (152 mm) guns, 8 x 5 inch (127 mm) DP, up to 118 × 25 mm AA |
Hiei (比叡), named for Mount Hiei north-east of Kyoto, was a Kongo-class battleship of the Imperial Japanese Navy. She was laid down by the Yokosuka Kaigun Kosho on 4 November 1911, launched on 21 November 1912 and completed on 4 August 1914.
Following World War I, her boilers were upgraded for speed and bilges were added for better defense against torpedoes. Kongo and Hiei were relatively fast for battleships and because they were able to keep up with the carrier battle groups, both ships often accompanied them. However, their old design meant they were not effective against aircraft and both ships lacked air-search radar.
Hiei steamed with the Striking Force during the attack on the American fleet at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, participated in the Battle of the Java Sea in March 1942, took part in the Indian Ocean raid against the British Eastern Fleet with the Carrier Striking Force in April 1942, screened the carriers during the Battle of Midway in June 1942, participated in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in August 1942, and the Battle of Santa Cruz Island in October 1942.
During the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on 13 November 1942, Hiei, commanded by Captain Nishida Masao, suffered thirty 8-inch shell hits from the cruisers USS San Francisco and Portland, and many 5-inch shells and two torpedoes from the destroyer Sterett. Her fire control systems for her main and secondary batteries were knocked out, her superstructure set afire and 188 of her crew killed. She was attacked repeatedly by Marine Grumman Avenger TBF torpedo planes from Henderson Field, TBFs and Douglas Dauntless SBD dive-bombers from the USS Enterprise and B-17 Flying Fortress bombers of the United States Army Air Force 11th Heavy Bombardment Group from Espiritu Santo and suffered 70 sorties as she attempted to withdraw, and was scuttled by her crew.
External links
- Tabular record of movement (http://www.combinedfleet.com/hiei.htm) from combinedfleet.com
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