Japanese battleship Kawachi

Kawachi in 1911
History
Empire of Japan
Name:	Kawachi
Namesake:	Kawachi Province
Ordered:	22 June 1907
Builder:	Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
Laid down:	1 April 1909
Launched:	15 October 1910
Commissioned:	31 March 1912
Struck:	21 September 1918
Fate:	Sunk by magazine explosion, 12 July 1918
General characteristics
Class and type:	Kawachi-class battleship
Displacement:	20,823 long tons (21,157 t) (normal)
Length:	526 ft (160.3 m)
Beam:	84 ft 3 in (25.7 m)
Draft:	27 ft (8.2 m)
Installed power:	25,000 shp (19,000 kW) 16 Miyabara water-tube boilers
Propulsion:	2 shafts, 2 steam turbine sets
Speed:	21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Range:	2,700 nmi (5,000 km; 3,100 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Complement:	999–1100
Armament:	2 × twin 12-inch/50 guns 4 × twin 12-inch/45 guns 10 × single 6-inch guns 8 × single 4.7 in (119 mm) guns 12 × single 3 in (76 mm) guns 5 × 18-inch (457 mm) torpedo tubes
Armor:	Waterline belt: 5–12 in (127–305 mm) Deck: 1.2 in (30 mm) Gun turrets: 11 in (279 mm) Conning tower: 10 in (254 mm) Barbettes: 11 in (279 mm)

Kawachi (河内^?) was the lead ship of the two-ship Kawachi-class dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the first decade of the 20th century. Following the Japanese ship-naming conventions, Kawachi was named after Kawachi Province, now a part of Osaka prefecture. During World War I she bombarded German fortifications at Tsingtao during the Battle of Tsingtao in 1914, but saw no other combat. She sank in 1918 after an explosion in her ammunition magazine with the loss of over 600 officers and crewmen.

The Kawachi class was ordered on 22 June 1907 under the 1907 Warship Supplement Program after the Russo-Japanese War as Japan's first dreadnoughts, although their construction was delayed by a severe depression. Their design was based on the Aki with a uniform 12-inch (305 mm) main-gun armament, although cost considerations prevented all the guns from having the same barrel length.

The ship had an overall length of 526 feet (160.3 m), a beam of 84 feet 3 inches (25.7 m), and a normal draft of 27 feet (8.2 m). She displaced 20,823 long tons (21,157 t) at normal load. Her crew ranged from 999 to 1100 officers and enlisted men. Kawachi was fitted with a pair of license-built Curtis steam turbine sets, each set driving one propeller, using steam from 16 Miyabara water-tube boilers. The turbines were rated at a total of 25,000 shaft horsepower (19,000 kW) for a design speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). She carried enough coal and fuel oil to give her a range of 2,700 nautical miles (5,000 km; 3,100 mi) at a speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).

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