Chapter 922 A Brief History of the Japanese Navy’s Self-Explosion Part 2

Speaking of this matter, I also have to mention the number "Mikasa". This guy’s history is definitely a miracle and weird! It is true that it had its glory as the flagship of the Japanese Combined Fleet. But as a legendary battleship, the Mikasa is so powerful that it self-destructed twice!

After the self-destruction on September 11, 1905, the Mikasa sank... Naturally, such a nb, such a representative battleship cannot sink like this! Where is the majesty of the Japanese combined fleet? Where do you want the Japanese Empire to lose face? Therefore, the Japanese government decided to salvage and repair it, and put it into service again before the U.S. "Great White Fleet" arrived in Japan on October 18, 1908.

However, the matter was not over yet. Mikasa, who had self-destructed once, felt very unhappy and decided to make another big news when she had time! At 6:40 pm on October 3, 1912, a fire broke out in the ammunition depot and there was a slight explosion in the sea outside Koto. This time it was not a big incident or too much trouble. However, in the ammunition depot A third-class sailor was found burned to death, and one theory is that the deceased was severely beaten by a veteran, and then he couldn't think about it for a while and decided to play something big...

In addition to the Mikasa, there is another self-destruction star in the history of Japanese battleships! This is the Hyuga battleship. This battleship is also an existence of epic level! In terms of the number of self-destructions, he blew himself up three times. In terms of the location of the self-destruction, it was particularly artistic and regular... What's even more impressive is that this battleship self-destructed and created another part of his career, a career in which he transformed into an aviation battleship...

This guy blew himself up three times, and all three times were turrets! Let me ask you, are you afraid? ! Are you convinced? ! History: On October 24, 1919, just over a year after the battleship was completed, the No. 3 turret exploded, and then on September 23, 1924, the No. 4 turret exploded... (Then look at the order of the turrets. I think some smart book friends can already guess the next exploding turret?) Yes, there is some irresistible secret power and the will of the old Japanese navy to self-destruct. With the blessing, the next explosion was the Hinata's No. 5 turret...

On May 5, 1942, the No. 5 turret of the Hyuga exploded in full view of everyone! This time the explosion was relatively powerful, and the entire top cover of the turret was blown off. The cause of this explosion is the clearest. The Japanese Navy got the shells loading order wrong during practice. Although this explosion did not kill the Hyuga, it still caused the tragedy of 51 people dead and 11 injured.

However, at this time, Japan was about to launch an offensive on Midway Island. In order to participate in this large-scale battle, the Japanese Navy removed the No. 5 turret, directly sealed the gun mount with steel plates, and then installed several triple 25mm 96-type anti-aircraft guns. The artillery and No. 22 sea search radar were hastily put into battle.

But let’s not forget that the Hyuga’s performance at Midway was pretty good. After the Japanese aircraft carrier formation suffered a disastrous defeat, the Hyuga used its No. 22 sea search radar to find the chaotic Japanese warships.

Then assist the fleet in regrouping. At that time, the captain of the battleship Hyuga, Chiaki Matsuda, also successfully stayed at the "Yamato Hotel" because of his excellent service. Became the captain of the Dahe.

Another thing worth mentioning about this guy is that he actually lived to be 99 years old and died in 1995. This can be considered a miracle in the history of the Japanese navy! And because the Hyuga exploded, he also became one of the alternative targets when the aviation battleship was modified in the future. Nonsense, one of the turrets was blown away. If not, who would you modify? !

(Actually, when it comes to self-destruction, navies of all countries have experienced it. The British Empire's St. Vincent-class dreadnought ship Vanguard exploded on July 9, 1917. During World War I, German submarines also had explosions, and Russian battleships also exploded. It also self-destructed in World War 1, and the U.S. Iowa-class battleship also experienced turret explosions after World War II. On April 19, 1989, the B turret of the USS Iowa battleship exploded during exercises in the Atlantic Ocean, killing 47 people. Died. As for the Russian Navy? Let’s not talk about the submarines that sank during the Cold War. Everyone knows that the Kursk self-destructed... So, it is normal for some accidents or explosions to occur. . But to say that it is as frequent as the old Japanese Navy. I guess it really doesn’t happen.)

If we count the time, it is already 1912. The earliest self-destruction in history should be during the Russo-Japanese War. It is a bit late for self-destruction now. But the self-destruction time this time is really awesome.

As for the reason why the Japanese warship exploded? This thing? The Japanese themselves can't explain clearly. Generally speaking, they are divided into two categories. One is that the propellant is unstable, and then the temperature is too high and it explodes. Of course, this kind of statement became less common later. Another theory is that lower-level soldiers often received corporal punishment and severe beatings, which made some soldiers unable to think about it, and then made big news...

In fact, in Ruprecht's view, the reason why the Akashi cruiser self-destructed is more likely to be the first one. First of all, because it was performing a combat cruise mission, the alert level of the entire battleship must be very high. Historically, Japanese battleships that self-destructed and sank all had one thing in common: they all happened while they were resting in port. For example, the Mikasa exploded on a Sunday. At this time, the battleship's alertness was lax, and some people who couldn't think about it did have a chance to "can't think about it." But when cruising, especially when encountering the U.S. fleet and confronting each other, when the officers and soldiers on the battleship are highly vigilant, nothing will happen.

Then look at the ship Akashi. After all, this ship has been in service for more than ten years, and it is an old-fashioned dome-armored cruiser. The temperature control of the ammunition depot on the ship is definitely not as good as that of the new ships behind it. And as a small ship with a displacement of no more than 4,000 tons, most of it is equipped with high-explosive bombs, and picric acid charges are as deadly to yourself as to the enemy... And wandering around in the tropics for a long time also increases the possibility of spontaneous combustion of ammunition. Of course, this is just a guess. I am afraid no one knows the exact result. After all, everything has sunk into the rolling waves of the Pacific Ocean. Among the waves!

As for the abuse of recruits or severe beatings and corporal punishment in the old Japanese navy, this matter is quite serious. Interested book friends can read "Men's 96 Guns"~~~. What? You said you can't find it? You can try replacing the 96 cannon with Yamato!

Third update today~~~! Please subscribe and reward~~~!