Kure Naval Arsenal

Japan Est. 1889

The Imperial Japanese Navy's premier shipyard, responsible for building the largest battleships in history. Kure built Yamato in extraordinary secrecy — the drydock was roofed over and workers were sworn to silence. The arsenal was heavily bombed in 1945 and never rebuilt as a naval facility. The site is now the Kure Maritime Museum.

Heritage

Kure was the heart of Japanese naval construction. The arsenal produced battleships, carriers, and submarines that fought across the Pacific. The construction of Yamato represented the pinnacle of Japanese naval engineering — and the last gasp of the battleship era. Today, the Yamato Museum on the arsenal's former grounds draws hundreds of thousands of visitors.

Vessels (1)

Yamato

Yamato was the largest, heaviest, most powerfully armed battleship ever built. Her 18.1-inch guns could throw 3,200-pound shells 26 miles. She displaced more than any warship before or since. The Japanese kept her existence secret — workers at Kure Naval Arsenal were forbidden from discussing what they were building. Yamato represented the pinnacle of battleship design, and she was obsolete before her paint dried. By 1945, carrier aviation had made the battleship a relic. Japan's navy was shattered. Yamato was sent on Operation Ten-Go — a one-way mission to beach herself at Okinawa and fight as a fixed battery until destroyed. She never got close. On April 7, 1945, 386 American aircraft swarmed her. She took 10 torpedo hits and 7 bomb hits before her forward magazines exploded. She capsized and sank, taking 3,055 of her 3,332 crew.

1941-1945 · warship