Matsushima-class cruiser
Itsukushima, the lead ship of the Matsushima class
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| Class overview | |
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| Name: | Matsushima class |
| Operators: |
 Imperial Japanese Navy
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| Preceded by: | Naniwa class |
| Built: | 1888–1894 |
| In commission: | 1891-1926 |
| Planned: | 4 |
| Completed: | 3 |
| Cancelled: | 1 |
| Lost: | 1 (Matsushima) |
| Retired: | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Protected cruiser |
| Displacement: | 4,217 long tons (4,285 t) (Matsushima); 4,278 long tons (4,347 t) (Itsukushima and Hashidate) |
| Length: | 91.81 m (301 ft 3 in) w/l |
| Beam: | 15.6 m (51 ft 2 in) |
| Draft: | 6.05 m (19 ft 10 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft reciprocating; 6 boilers; 5,400 hp (4,000 kW), 680 tons coal |
| Speed: | 16.5 knots (19.0 mph; 30.6 km/h) |
| Complement: | 360 |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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The Matsushima class (松島型防護巡洋艦 Matsushima-gata bōgojun'yōkan?) was a class of protected cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN), with three ships named after the three most famous scenic spots in Japan (nicknamed Sankeikan (三景艦, 'three-views ships')). The Matsushima class was a highly unorthodox design among cruisers of the 1890s, in that each ship had a primary armament of a single massive 320 millimetres (13 in) Canet gun, resulting in a monitor-like appearance.
Forming the backbone of the Imperial Japanese Navy during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Matsushima-class cruisers were based on the principles of Jeune Ecole, as promoted by French military advisor and naval architect Louis-Émile Bertin. The Japanese government did not have the resources or budget to build a large battleship navy to counter the heavier vessels of the Imperial Chinese Beiyang Fleet; instead, Japan adopted the radical theory of using smaller, faster warships, with light armor and small caliber long-range guns, coupled with a massive single main weapon. The design eventually proved impractical, as the recoil from the huge cannon was too much for vessels of such small displacement, and reloading time on the cannon was impractically long; however, the Matsushima-class cruisers served their purpose well against the poorly equipped and poorly led Imperial Chinese Beiyang Fleet.
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