Japanese battleship Satsuma

Postcard of Satsuma at anchor
History
Empire of Japan
Name:	Satsuma
Namesake:	Satsuma Province
Ordered:	1904
Builder:	Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, Japan
Laid down:	15 May 1905
Launched:	15 November 1906
Commissioned:	25 March 1910
Decommissioned:	1922
Struck:	20 September 1923
Fate:	Sunk as target, 7 September 1924
General characteristics
Class and type:	Satsuma-class semi-dreadnought battleship
Displacement:	19,372 long tons (19,683 t)
Length:	482 ft (146.9 m)
Beam:	83 ft 6 in (25.5 m)
Draft:	27 ft 6 in (8.4 m)
Installed power:	17,300 ihp (12,900 kW) 20 Miyabara water-tube boilers
Propulsion:	2 shafts, 2 Vertical triple-expansion steam engines
Speed:	18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Range:	9,100 nmi (16,900 km; 10,500 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement:	800–940
Armament:	2 × twin 12 in (305 mm) guns 6 × twin 10 in (254 mm) guns 12 × single 4.7 in (119 mm) guns 8 × single 3 in (76 mm) guns 5 × 18-inch (457 mm) torpedo tubes
Armor:	Waterline belt: 4–9 in (102–229 mm) Deck: 2–3 in (51–76 mm) Gun turrets: 7–9 in (178–229 mm) Conning tower: 6 in (152 mm) Casemates: 6 in (152 mm)

Satsuma (薩摩^?) was a semi-dreadnought battleship built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the first decade of the 20th century. Lead ship of her class, she was the first battleship built in Japan. She was named for Satsuma Province, now a part of Kagoshima prefecture. The ship saw no combat during World War I, although she led a squadron that occupied several German colonies in the Pacific Ocean in 1914. Satsuma was disarmed and sunk as a target in 1922–24 in accordance with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922.

The Satsuma class was ordered in late 1904 under the 1904 War Naval Supplementary Program during the Russo-Japanese War. Unlike the previous Katori-class pre-dreadnought battleships, they were the first battleships ordered from Japanese shipyards, although Satsuma used many imported components. They were originally designed with a dozen 12-inch (305 mm) guns, but had to be redesigned because of a shortage of guns in Japan and to reduce costs.

The ship had an overall length of 482 feet (146.9 m), a beam of 83 feet 6 inches (25.5 m), and a normal draft of 27 feet 6 inches (8.4 m). She displaced 19,372 long tons (19,683 t) at normal load. The crew ranged from 800 to 940 officers and enlisted men.