Mikasa

Type

Battleship

Period

20th Century

Nation

Japan

Overview: Mikasa is a pre-dreadnought battleship built for the Imperial Japanese Navy in the late 1890s at Vickers in Barrow-in-Furness, England, and was the only ship of her class. She is best known as the flagship of Vice Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō during the Russo-Japanese War, and today survives as the only preserved pre-dreadnought battleship in the world. Specifications: Mikasa carried a main armament of two twin 12-inch (305 mm) gun turrets, supplemented by fourteen single 6-inch guns, numerous smaller quick-firing guns, and four 18-inch torpedo tubes. Her armor scheme used Krupp cemented steel, with belt armor of 4–9 inches, turret armor of 8–10 inches, and barbette protection up to 14 inches, giving modelers a well-documented and heavily armored profile typical of the pre-dreadnought era. Service History: Mikasa served as Tōgō's flagship throughout the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, taking part in the Battle of Port Arthur, the Battle of the Yellow Sea, and the decisive Battle of Tsushima in 1905. Days after the war ended, an accidental magazine explosion sank the ship, but she was salvaged and fully repaired over more than two years. She later served as a coast-defence ship during World War I and supported Japanese operations in the Siberian Intervention during the Russian Civil War. Notable Facts: After being decommissioned under the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922, Mikasa was preserved as a museum ship at Yokosuka, opening to the public in 1926. She suffered heavy neglect during the post-WWII Allied Occupation of Japan and required extensive refurbishing in the late 1950s to restore her appearance; she remains on display today at Mikasa Park in Yokosuka, making her a popular subject for plastic and wood scale-model kits depicting the Russo-Japanese War era.