Battleship YAMASHIRO 戦艦山城 --- "Only 10 Survived"

Here is a good shot of the memorials which are lined-up at the eastern end of Yokosuka's Verny Park:

I have already described, earlier in this blog, the four monuments starting from the right-hand side of the photograph, and now I would like to concentrate on the one furthest to the left, which is dedicated to the Imperial Japanese Navy's battleship "YAMASHIRO."

 

YAMASHIRO was built at Yokosuka Naval Arsenal (1913-1917), so I guess that is one reason for the memorial to be located here.  The following is a brief history of the ill-fated battleship from WIKIPEDIA:

Yamashiro (山城, "Mountain castle", named for Yamashiro Province) was the second of two Fusō-class dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Launched in 1915 and commissioned in 1917, she initially patrolled off the coast of China, playing no part in World War I. In 1923, she assisted survivors of the Great Kantō earthquake.

Yamashiro was modernized between 1930 and 1935, with improvements to her armor and machinery and a rebuilt superstructure in the pagoda mast style. Nevertheless, with only 14-inch guns, she was outclassed by other Japanese battleships at the beginning of World War II, and played auxiliary roles for most of the war.

By 1944, though, she was forced into front-line duty, serving as the flagship of Vice-Admiral Shōji Nishimura's Southern Force at the Battle of Surigao Strait, the southernmost action of the Battle of Leyte Gulf. During fierce night fighting in the early hours of 25 October against a superior American force, Yamashiro was sunk by torpedoes and naval gunfire. Nishimura went down with his ship, and only 10 crewmembers survived.

   









Yamashiro was the second of two Fuso-class battleships, but was the first Japanese battleship equipped with aircraft catapults. Between Dec 1930 and Mar 1935, she undergone a modernization that replaced her boilers, added aircraft handling facilities, and added better armor protection, particularly against torpedo attacks. After this modernization, her appearance became rather different than her sister ship Fuso: the pagoda-style tower was larger after being extended further aft, which required that the stowed position of Turret 3 in the aft position, as opposed to forward as on Fuso. 

The Battle of Surigao Strait which doomed YAMASHIRO.