Nagato

Ballistics

Armor Model

Overview

The Nagato-class battleships were the first Japanese battleships not only built but also entirely designed in Japan. The 410 mm caliber guns were developed in response to British 381 mm armament. Their speed was increased compared to their predecessors, a fact which Japan concealed. Nagato was built in Kure. Between 1933 and 1936, the battleship underwent a major modernization that included enhanced armor. It participated in World War II, serving as the flagship of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto during the attack on Pearl Harbor. In 1942, it took part in the Battle of Midway and the Solomon Islands campaign. During the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the battleship sustained damage and, after the war, was surrendered to the United States as a war reparation. In 1946, the battleship became a target for nuclear weapon tests at Bikini Atoll as part of Operation Crossroads. Nagato, which had been damaged late in World War II, successfully withstood two nuclear explosions and sank on July 30, 1946, as it was impossible to conduct damage control on the radioactive ship.