was the fourth of six destroyer

Destroyer

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

s, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

 under the Circle One Program

1st Naval Armaments Supplement Programme (Japan, 1931)

The , otherwise known as the "Circle One" plan was the first of four expansion plans of the Imperial Japanese Navy between 1930 and the start of World War II.-Background:...

 (Maru Ichi Keikaku). Three were laid down in JFY 1931 and the next three in JFY 1933. The remaining six ships in the plan were built as the .

History

Construction of the advanced Hatsuharu-class destroyers was intended to give the Imperial Japanese Navy smaller and more economical destroyers than the previous and destroyers, but with essentially the same weaponry. These conflicting goals proved beyond contemporary destroyer design, and the resulting ships were top-heavy design, with severe stability problems and with inherent structural weaknesses. After the "Tomozuru Incident" of 1934 and "IJN 4th Fleet Incident" in 1935, Wakaba underwent extensive modifications on completion to remedy these issues.

The Hatsuharu-class destroyers used the same 50 caliber 12.7 cm gun as the Fubuki-class, but all turrets could elevate to 75° to give the main guns a minimal ability to engage aircraft. During the war the single turret was removed on all surviving ships after 1942. The only anti-aircraft

Anti-aircraft warfare

NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...

 guns were two water-cooled, license-built Vickers 40 mm (1.6 in) (pom pom). These guns were deemed to be too heavy, slow-firing and short-ranged and were replaced by license-built French Hotchkiss

Hotchkiss et Cie

Société Anonyme des Anciens Etablissements Hotchkiss et Cie was a French arms and car company established by United States engineer Benjamin B. Hotchkiss, who was born in Watertown, Connecticut. He moved to France and set up a factory, first at Viviez near Rodez in 1867, then at Saint-Denis near...

 25 mm (0.984251968503937 in) Type 96 anti-aircraft guns in single, double and triple mounts from 1943 for the surviving ships. These powered mounts were still unsatisfactory because their traverse and elevation speeds were too slow to engage high-speed aircraft and more single mounts were fitted to ships in the last year of the war.

The 61 cm Type 90 torpedo

61 cm Type 90 torpedo

The 61 cm Type 90 torpedo was a surface-fired torpedo used by the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. It was used in the s and in most cruisers, including the , , , and heavy cruisers after refits during the 1930s...

 was mounted in triple tube Type 90 Model 2 launchers It was traversed by an electro-hydraulic system and could traverse 360° in twenty-five seconds. If the backup manual system was used the time required increased to two minutes. Each tube could be reloaded in twenty-three seconds using the endless wire and winch provided.
Hatsushimo was laid down on January 31, 1933, launched on November 4, 1933 and commissioned on September 27, 1934.

Operational history

On completion, Hatsushimo was assigned to the IJN 2nd Fleet

IJN 2nd Fleet

The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 2nd Fleet was created by the Imperial General Headquarters as a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to pursue the Imperial Russian Navy's Vladivostok-based cruiser squadron while the...

. During the Second Sino-Japanese War

Second Sino-Japanese War

The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...

, from 1937, Hatsushimo covered landing of Japanese forces in Shanghai

Shanghai

Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

 and Hangzhou

Hangzhou

Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...

. From 1940, she was assigned to patrol and cover landings of Japanese forces in south China

Northern and southern China

Northern China and southern China are two approximate regions within China. The exact boundary between these two regions has never been precisely defined...

, and participated in the Invasion of French Indochina.

World War II history

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor

Attack on Pearl Harbor

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...

, Hatsushimo was assigned to Destroyer Division 21 of Destroyer Squadron 1 of the IJN 1st Fleet

IJN 1st Fleet

The was the main battleship fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 1st Fleet was created during the Russo-Japanese War when the Imperial General Headquarters divided the Readiness Fleet into a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to...

 together with her sister ship

Sister ship

A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...

s , , and , and remained in Japanese home waters on anti-submarine patrol. From the end of January 1942, she deployed with the invasion force for the Netherlands East Indies as part of "Operation H", covering landing operations at Kendari

Kendari

Kendari is the capital of the Indonesian province of South East Sulawesi. The city lies along Kendari Bay. Moramo Waterfall is located 65 km east of Kendari. Kendari is divided into four subdistricts: Kendari, Mandonga, Baruga, and Poasia...

 on Sulawesi

Sulawesi

Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...

 on 24 January, Makassar

Makassar

Makassar, is the provincial capital of South Sulawesi, Indonesia, and the largest city on Sulawesi Island. From 1971 to 1999, the city was named Ujung Pandang, after a precolonial fort in the city, and the two names are often used interchangeably...

 on 8 February, and Bali

Bali

Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...

 and Lombok

Lombok

Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east...

 on 18 February. She returned to Sasebo Naval Arsenal

Sasebo Naval Arsenal

was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Sasebo Naval District was established at Sasebo, Nagasaki in 1886, as the third of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands. After the establishment of the...

 at the end of March for maintenance.

From May 1942, ‘‘Hatsushimo’’ was reassigned to northern operations, and deployed from Ōminato Guard District

Ominato Guard District

The was the major navy base for the Imperial Japanese Navy in northern Honshu before and during World War II. Located in Mutsu Bay, The was the major navy base for the Imperial Japanese Navy in northern Honshu before and during World War II. Located in Mutsu Bay, The was the major navy base for...

 with Destroyer Division 21 and as part of "Operation AL"

Battle of Dutch Harbor

The Battle of Dutch Harbor took place on 3-4 June 1942, and was a minor air and naval battle of the Aleutian Islands Campaign of World War II between Imperial Japanese Navy and United States Army and Navy forces.-Overview:...

 in support of Admiral Boshiro Hosogaya

Boshiro Hosogaya

, was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Biography:Hosogaya was born to a farming family in Nozawa, Nagano prefecture in 1888. He graduated from the 36th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1908. He was ranked 16th in a class of 191 cadets. As a midshipman, he...

’s Northern Force in the Aleutians campaign, patrolling around Attu

Attu Island

Attu is the westernmost and largest island in the Near Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, making it the westernmost point of land relative to Alaska and the United States. It was the site of the only World War II land battle fought on the incorporated territory of the United States ,...

, Kiska

Kiska

Kiska is an island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska located at . It is about long and varies in width from - Discovery :...

 and Amchitka Island until mid-July. After returning briefly to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal

Yokosuka Naval Arsenal

was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka city, Kanagawa prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama...

 for maintenance, she continued to patrol in the Chishima Islands, deploying out of Paramushiro or Shumushu to Attu and Kiska, making numerous transport runs to deploy supplies and reinforcements until December.

Hatsushimo returned to Sasebo at the end of 1942, and during a refit, her aft 40 mm (1.6 in) (pom pom) was replaced by twin 25 mm (0.984251968503937 in) Type 96 anti-aircraft guns.

Hatsushimo returned to northern waters from January 1943, continuing patrols and resupply transport missions to the Aleutians. On 26 March, she participated in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands

Battle of the Komandorski Islands

The Battle of the Komandorski Islands was one of the most unusual engagements of World War II. It was a naval battle which took place on 27 March 1943 in the North Pacific area of the Pacific Ocean, near the Soviet Komandorski Islands.-Background:...

 as part of the IJN 5th Fleet

IJN 5th Fleet

The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy, active during the early portions of the Second Sino-Japanese War, and again in World War II, primarily in the Battle of the Aleutian Islands.-China Expeditionary Fleet:...

, and unsuccessfully engaged United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 forces at long range with torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

es. She withdrew together with and to Yokosuka at the end of March.

Hatsushimo rejoined the IJN 5th Fleet in northern waters at in mid-May, escorting convoys between Paramushiro and Ōminato to late June. In July, she participated in the evacuation of the Aleutians as part of a screening force consisting of , , and . On 26 July, Hatsushimo rammed Wakaba in the stern and was rammed in turn by Naganami during heavy fog, suffering moderate damage. On her return to Yokosuka for a months of repairs in September, a Type 22 radar was installed, the “X”-turret was removed, and additional 25 mm anti-aircraft guns were added. She was able to return to active duty in mid-October, when she escorted the and to Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

 and back.

From 24 November, Hatsushimo escorted from Kure

Kure Naval District

was the second of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the Inland Sea of Japan and the Pacific coasts of southern Honshū from Wakayama to Yamaguchi prefectures, eastern and northern Kyūshū and Shikoku....

 to Truk via Manila

Manila

Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...

, Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, Tarakan

Tarakan

Tarakan volcano is located in Indonesia's Halmahera islands, near the shore of Galela Bay north east of Dukono volcano. Tarakan consists of two large cinder cones, namely Tarakan Lamo and Tarakan Itji ....

 and Palau

Palau

Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...

, returning with and to Yokosuka at the end of the year.

At the start of 1944, Hatsushimo was reassigned directly to Combined Fleet

Combined Fleet

The was the main ocean-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Combined Fleet was not a standing force, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units normally under separate commands in peacetime....

 headquarters, and continued in escort patrol missions between Yokosuka and Truk. She returned to Sasebo on 14 April, where additional 25 mm anti-aircraft guns were added along with an additional Type 22 radar. In June, she participated in the Battle of the Philippine Sea

Battle of the Philippine Sea

The Battle of the Philippine Sea was a decisive naval battle of World War II which effectively eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invasion of the Mariana Islands during the Pacific War...

 as part of the First Supply Force, and continued in escort missions between Japan and the Philippines through September. In a maintenance refit at Kure Naval Arsenal

Kure Naval Arsenal

was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Kure Naval District was established at Kure, Hiroshima in 1889, as the second of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands along with the establishment of the...

, additional 25-mm anti-aircraft guns and a Type 13 radar were added. Hatsushimo continued with transport and escort missions to the Philippines through November.

On 24 October 1944, after the Battle of Leyte Gulf

Battle of Leyte Gulf

The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battles for Leyte Gulf", and formerly known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.It was fought in waters...

, Hatsushimo rescued 74 survivors from the sunken Wakaba On 15 November 1944, Hatsushimo was reassigned to the IJN 2nd Fleet and assigned to escort missions between Singapore and Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay

Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in the province of Khánh Hòa. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilometers / 180 miles northeast of Hồ Chí Minh City / Saigon.Cam Ranh is...

 in French Indochina

French Indochina

French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....

 through the end of the year. It came just two days after her flotilla leader Hatsuharu had been sunk in shallow waters by US air attacks off Manila.

In February 1945 Hatsushimo escorted and from Singapore back to Kure during Operation Kita

Operation Kita

Operation Kita was conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Pacific War in February 1945. Its purpose was to return both Ise-class hybrid battleship-aircraft carriers and their escorts to Japan from Singapore, where they had been based since November the previous year...

. While at Kure, yet more 25-mm anti-aircraft guns were installed. In April 1945, Hatsushimo was part of the escort for during her final Operation Ten-Go

Operation Ten-Go

was the last major Japanese naval operation in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Other renderings of this operation's title in English include Operation Heaven One and Ten-ichi-gō....

. She was not hit during the mission, and rescued survivors from Yamato, and . She was subsequently reassigned to Maizuru for use as a training and guard vessels. On 30 July 1945, Hatsushimo struck a naval mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

 while under attack from United States Navy aircraft from TF38 at Miyazu Bay

Miyazu, Kyoto

is a city located in Kyoto, Japan.As of May 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 21,512 with 8,360 households and the density of 127.06 persons per km². The total area is 169.31 km²....

, and sank at 35°33′N 135°12′E. The attack killed 17 crewmen. Hatsushimo was the last destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy to be sunk during the war.

On 30 September 1945, Hatsushimo was removed from the navy list

Navy List

A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....

.