Battleships of the Second World War did not play an important role in the course of large-scale naval battles that shook the skies over the seas and oceans for exactly six years, from September 1, 1939 to September 2, 1945. They did not fulfill their function, did not justify the high hopes placed on them. But a lot of money was spent on their construction, a lot of money was spent on their maintenance. The fate of these imaginary "masters of the sea", the tools of failed domination, is very instructive, and can serve as an example of incorrect calculation, incorrect forecasting of the future nature of strategy and tactics, and irrational expenditure of economic resources.

The State of Naval Tactical Thought in the Interwar Period

From the time when the Anglo-Dutch naval battles thundered on the seas, and until the middle of the 20th century, the idea of ​​an ideal ship existed and practically did not change in the minds of the command of the fleets of the whole world. The main tactical technique was formed at the same time, in the 17th century, and it consisted in lining up all the forces in a wake column, and then opening fire from all trunks. Whoever sinks more enemy units wins. Some confusion in the minds of naval commanders was introduced in 1916 by the Battle of Jutland, which took place according to a slightly different scenario. Performing energetic maneuvering, the German squadron inflicted significant damage on the British forces, which had quantitative and qualitative superiority, suffering half as many losses and "beating on points" (to put it in sports terminology) the enemy. However, the British hurried to announce the victorious outcome of the battle, do not bother to analyze their, in general, unsuccessful actions. And you should have thought about it. Perhaps then the battleships of the Second World War would have been more effective weapons in the fight against fascism, or at least there would have been fewer of them, which would have freed up resources for other, more important defense programs. However, the winners of Jutland, the Germans, did not draw the right conclusions either. They (at least Hitler and his immediate circle) also considered power and size to be a priority factor in defeating the enemy. And other countries that faced heavy battles on the seas and oceans held similar views. They were all wrong.

What is a battleship?

The question is not superfluous, and in order to answer it, one should return to history, to those times when the ships (then still sailing, and later steam) of the opponents lined up in wake formations (that is, one after another), and the advantage of artillery weapons was a guarantee of victory. The formation was a straight line, this was dictated by the main principle of the battle, otherwise there would be interference in the line of fire, and the power of the guns could not be used to the full. The ships that had the largest number of guns lined up on decks were defined as "linear". The abbreviation "battleship" has taken root in the Russian fleet, consisting of the roots of the two words "linear" and "ship".

Sails gave way to steam engines and turbines, but the principle and purpose of a large artillery floating battery, protected by armor and fast, remained unchanged. It was possible to combine all the required fighting qualities only under the condition of large sizes. For this reason, the battleships of the Second World War had a monstrous displacement.

Battleships and the economy

The shipbuilders of the thirties, fulfilling the orders of the fleets and governments, tried to provide them with the most powerful and destructive weapons in the history of mankind. Not every country could afford to have at least one ship of this class; in addition to the defense function, it also played the role of a prestigious fetish. Owning battleships, the state asserted itself in its own power and demonstrated it to its neighbors. Today, the owners of nuclear weapons or aircraft carriers form a special club, access to which is allowed only to certain countries with the economic potential of the corresponding level. In the thirties, ships of the line served as a symbol of military power. Such an acquisition, not only was it very expensive, but also required additional allocations for ongoing maintenance, maintenance and training of crews and infrastructure. The fleets included units that survived the previous global conflict, but new ones were also launched. The battleships of the Second World War, that is, built between 1936 and 1945, were the focus of all the latest achievements of the technical thought of their time. Their presence served as a kind of guarantee of a new worldwide slaughter. It was possible to create such a powerful and expensive weapon only if it was to be used, and in the very near future. Otherwise, it makes no sense.

How many were there

For the entire period, called the pre-war (in fact, the war was already going on, in Spain and on Far East, for example), and all the years of the "hot phase" of the world conflict, the most developed countries, seeking to assert or restore their regional (or world) dominance, built twenty-seven units of ships belonging to the linear class.

Most of all, the Americans launched, as many as ten. This testifies to the quite serious intentions of the United States to maintain its level of influence in remote areas of the World Ocean, however, without large-scale direct participation. ground forces, at that time quite modest.

The second place is occupied by Britain with its five units. Good too.

Germany, having just rejected the terms of Versailles, launched four.

Italy, which claimed the role of the regional Mediterranean leader during the reign of Duce Mussolini, was able to master three large-capacity units. France managed to produce the same number of dreadnoughts.

Japanese battleships of World War II are represented by two units of the Yamato series. Relatively compared to other members of the "club", the imperial fleet was going to compensate for the small number of ships with the cyclopean size of the ships.

The figures given are actual. The plans were much bigger.

Soviet battleships of World War II were laid down in tsarist Russia. Before the World War, the domestic fleet was developing rapidly, the modernization program launched then became the basis for growth for many years, after the revolution.

There were three battleships: "Paris Commune" ("Sevastopol"), "Marat" ("Petropavlovsk") and "October Revolution" ("Gangut"), all of the same project. They survived the hard times, albeit with damage, and served for some time after 1945. Thirty years of age for a warship is not considered advanced, and in 1941 they turned just that much. Thus, at the time of entry into the war, after the German attack, the USSR had three fairly modern units of ships of the linear class, inherited "by inheritance" from the tsarist regime. But this does not mean that the leadership of the USSR had no plans to strengthen the Navy. They were, and not only plans, but also quite specific actions. Stalin was preparing the most ambitious project in the history of domestic shipbuilding.

USSR plans

According to the government shipbuilding program adopted in 1936, over the next seven years, Soviet shipyards were to launch no less than 533 naval units. Of these, there are 24 battleships. Maybe they were going to build them in accordance with the possibilities, smaller and more modest, so to speak, in the "economy version"? No, the planned displacement is 58.5 thousand tons. Reservation - from 375 mm (belt) to 420 (base of gun turrets). Project "A" (No. 23) was calculated with the help of American engineers invited to the USSR in 1936 with appropriate pay. The Italian specialists with whom they tried to cooperate at the beginning were refused, and not because the Nazis (this circumstance did not prevent the purchase of the “blue cruiser”), they simply “did not pull” the scale of the plan. The guns were ordered from the Barricades plant (Stalingrad). Nine giant cannons of the main caliber 406-mm were supposed to fire shells of 11 centners each. Three armored decks. Only the latest battleships of Japan during the Second World War could compete with such power, but no one knew about them then, they were deeply classified, and became an unpleasant surprise for the US Navy in December 1941.

Why did the plans fail?

The battleship "Soviet Union" of project "A" was laid down in Leningrad by plant number 15 in the summer of 1938, two units ("Soviet Belarus", "Soviet Russia") began to be built in Molotovsk (today this city is called Severodvinsk), one more - in Nikolaev ("Soviet Ukraine"). So I. V. Stalin cannot be reproached for projecting and manilovism, the plans set by the party were steadily carried out. Another question is that there were objective difficulties, for which, quite possibly, some comrades who did not cope with the task subjectively answered before the law. At the time of the German attack, the ships under construction were in varying degrees of readiness, but no more than a fifth of the total amount of work. The most modern battleships of the USSR of World War II never got into combat formation, serving as donors for other important defense programs. Their guns and armor plates were used, but they themselves never went to sea. There was not enough time and experience, the development of technologies took too long a period.

What if they could?

JV Stalin was often reproached (and continues to do so) for not preparing the country to repel the German invasion. To some extent, these claims can be considered justified. However, given the situation that developed in the first months of Hitler's aggression, today we can conclude that even the most modern and large Soviet battleships of World War II could not have influenced the course of hostilities that took place mainly on the land front. Already in the summer of 1941, the operational area of ​​the Baltic Sea, due to its geographical feature(closeness), was closed by minefields and blocked by the submarine forces of the Kriegsmarine. The battleships of the USSR during the Second World War that were in service were used as stationary batteries, similar to coastal ones. With their heavy main-caliber guns, they inflicted damage on the advancing enemy, but aviation and long-range artillery succeeded more in this. In addition, going to sea with such a huge ship is fraught with great risk. He, like a magnet, attracts to himself all the forces of the enemy, who calms down only by letting him go to the bottom. A sad example is the many battleships of the Second World War, which became a steel grave for their crews.

The Germans and their ships of the line

Not only Stalin suffered from gigantomania, but also his main opponent, the German Chancellor. He had great hopes for the German battleships of World War II, their construction was too expensive, but it was they who were supposed to crush the naval power of the arrogant Britain. This, however, did not happen. After the loss of the Bismarck in 1941, shot by a superior enemy, the Fuhrer treated the Tirpitz as an expensive and thoroughbred fighting dog, which is a pity to launch into an ordinary dog ​​dump, but you still have to feed it, and it is used as a deterrent. For a long time, the second battleship annoyed the British until they dealt with it, bombing the beauty and pride of the Kriegsmarine in an obscure Norwegian fjord.

So the battleships of Germany rested at the bottom. In the Second World War, they got the role of huge animals, hunted down by a pack of smaller, but more agile predators. A similar fate awaited many other ships of this class. Their loss entailed huge casualties, they often died along with the crews in full force.

Japan

Who built the largest and most modern battleships of World War II? Japan. "Yamato" and the second ship of the series, which became the last, "Musashi", had a titanic displacement (total) in excess of 70 thousand tons. These giants were also armed with the most powerful guns of the main caliber 460 mm. Armor also knew no equal - from 400 to 650 mm. To destroy such a monster, dozens of direct hits from torpedoes, aerial bombs or artillery shells were required. The Americans had all these deadly weapons in sufficient quantities, and the circumstances were such that they were able to use them. They were angry at the Japanese for Pearl Harbor and knew no pity.

USA

US battleships of World War II are represented by ships of various designs, including the newest ones, launched between 1941 and 1943. These primarily include the class "Iowa", represented, in addition to the head unit, by three more ("New Jersey", "Wisconsin" and "Missouri"). On the deck of one of them, namely the Missouri, the last point was put in the six-year world war. The displacement of these giant ships- 57.5 thousand tons, they had excellent seaworthiness, but for modern naval combat, after the advent of rocket weapons, they were practically unsuitable, which did not prevent them from using their artillery power for punitive purposes against countries that did not have the ability to effectively resist them. They served for a long time, and fought along different coasts:

- "New Jersey" - in Vietnamese and Lebanese.

- "Missouri" and "Wisconsin" - at the Iraqi.

Today, all three of the last US battleships of World War II are at their moorings and receiving tourist visitors.

Exactly seventy years ago, the Soviet Union launched a seven-year program of "large naval shipbuilding" - one of the most expensive and ambitious projects in the history of domestic, and not only domestic, military equipment.

The main leaders of the program were considered heavy artillery ships - battleships and cruisers, which were to become the largest and most powerful in the world. Although it was not possible to complete the super battleships, interest in them is still great, especially in light of the recent fashion for an alternative history. So what were the projects of the "Stalinist giants" and what preceded their appearance?

Lords of the Seas

The evolution of battleships in the first decades of the twentieth century was truly rapid. If by the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904 the largest representatives of this class, then called squadron battleships, had a displacement of about 15 thousand tons, then the famous Dreadnought built in England two years later (this name became a household name for his many followers) had a full the displacement was already 20,730 tons. "Dreadnought" seemed to contemporaries a giant and the height of perfection. However, by 1912, against the backdrop of the latest superdreadnoughts, it looked like a completely ordinary ship of the second line ... And four years later, the British laid the famous "Hood" with a displacement of 45 thousand tons! Incredibly, powerful and expensive ships in the conditions of an unbridled arms race became obsolete in just three to four years, and their serial construction became extremely burdensome even for the richest countries.

Why did it happen so? The fact is that any warship is a compromise of many factors, the main of which are three: weapons, protection and speed. Each of these components "ate" a significant part of the ship's displacement, since artillery, armor, and bulky power plants with numerous boilers, fuel, steam engines or turbines were very heavy. And the designers, as a rule, had to sacrifice one of the fighting qualities in favor of the other. So, the Italian shipbuilding school was characterized by high-speed and heavily armed, but poorly protected battleships. The Germans, on the contrary, prioritized survivability and built ships with very powerful armor, but moderate speed and light artillery. The desire to ensure a harmonious combination of all characteristics, taking into account the trend of a constant increase in the main caliber, led to a monstrous increase in the size of the ship.

Paradoxically, the appearance of the long-awaited "ideal" battleships - fast, heavily armed and protected by powerful armor - brought the very idea of ​​\u200b\u200bsuch ships to complete absurdity. Still: floating monsters, because of their high cost, undermined the economy of their own countries more significantly than the invasion of enemy armies! At the same time, they almost never went to sea: the admirals did not want to risk such valuable combat units, since the loss of even one of them was equated almost to a national disaster. Battleships from a means of waging war at sea have become an instrument of big politics. And the continuation of their construction was no longer determined by tactical expediency, but by completely different motives. To have such ships for the prestige of the country in the first half of the 20th century meant about the same as now to have nuclear weapons.

The need to stop the untwisted flywheel of the naval arms race was recognized by the governments of all countries, and in 1922, at an international conference convened in Washington, radical measures were taken. The delegations of the most influential states agreed to significantly reduce their naval forces and fix the total tonnage of their own fleets in a certain proportion over the next 15 years. For the same period, the construction of new battleships was almost everywhere stopped. The only exception was made for the UK - a country forced to scrap largest number brand new dreadnoughts. But those two battleships that the British could build would hardly have had an ideal combination of fighting qualities, since their displacement was to be measured in the amount of 35 thousand tons.

The Washington Conference was the first real step in history to limit offensive arms on a global scale. It has given the global economy some breathing room. But no more. Since the apotheosis of the "battleship race" was yet to come...

The dream of a "large fleet"

However, the revolution, the Civil War and general devastation did not leave a trace of the former sea power of the empire. The Red Navy inherited from the "tsarist regime" only three battleships - "Petropavlovsk", "Gangut" and "Sevastopol", renamed respectively "Marata", "October Revolution" and "Paris Commune". By the standards of the 1920s, these ships already looked hopelessly outdated. It is not surprising that Soviet Russia was not invited to the Washington Conference: its fleet was not taken seriously at that time.

At first, the Red Fleet did not really have any special prospects. The Bolshevik government had far more urgent tasks than restoring its former sea power. In addition, the first persons of the state, Lenin and Trotsky, looked at the navy as an expensive toy and an instrument of world imperialism. Therefore, during the first one and a half decades of the existence of the Soviet Union, the ship structure of the RKKF was replenished slowly and mainly only by boats and submarines. But in the mid-1930s, the naval doctrine of the USSR changed dramatically. By that time, the "Washington battleship vacation" was over and all the world powers began to feverishly catch up. Two international treaties signed in London tried to somehow restrain the size of future battleships, but everything turned out to be futile: practically none of the countries participating in the agreements from the very beginning was going to honestly fulfill the signed conditions. France, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, the USA and Japan have begun to create a new generation of leviathan ships. Stalin, inspired by the successes of industrialization, also did not want to stand aside. And the Soviet Union became another participant in a new round of the naval arms race.

In July 1936, the Council of Labor and Defense of the USSR, with the blessing of the Secretary General, approved the seven-year program of "large naval shipbuilding" for 1937-1943 (due to the dissonance of the official name in the literature, it is usually called the "Big Fleet" program). In accordance with it, it was supposed to build 533 ships, including 24 battleships! For the then Soviet economy, the figures are absolutely unrealistic. Everyone understood this, but no one dared to object to Stalin.

In fact, Soviet designers began to develop a project for a new battleship back in 1934. Things progressed with difficulty: they had no experience in creating large ships. I had to attract foreign specialists - first Italian, then American. In August 1936, after analyzing various options, the terms of reference for the design of battleships of type "A" (project 23) and "B" (project 25) were approved. The latter was soon abandoned in favor of the Project 69 heavy cruiser, but Type A gradually turned into an armored monster, leaving all its foreign counterparts far behind. Stalin, who had a weakness for giant ships, could be pleased.

First of all, we decided not to limit the displacement. The USSR was not bound by any international agreements, and therefore, already at the stage of the technical project, the standard displacement of the battleship reached 58,500 tons. The thickness of the armor belt was 375 millimeters, and in the area of ​​​​the bow towers - 420! There were three armored decks: 25 mm upper, 155 mm main and 50 mm lower anti-fragmentation. The hull was equipped with solid anti-torpedo protection: in the central part of the Italian type, and in the extremities - of the American type.

The artillery armament of the Project 23 battleship included nine 406-mm B-37 guns with a barrel length of 50 calibers, developed by the Stalingrad plant "Barrikada". The Soviet gun could fire 1,105 kg projectiles at a range of 45.6 kilometers. In terms of its characteristics, it surpassed all foreign guns of this class - with the exception of the 18-inch Japanese super battleship Yamato. However, the latter, having larger shells, were inferior to the B-37 in terms of firing range and rate of fire. In addition, the Japanese kept their ships so secret that until 1945 no one knew anything about them at all. In particular, the Europeans and Americans were sure that the caliber of the Yamato artillery did not exceed 16 inches, that is, 406 millimeters.

Japanese battleship "Yamato" - the largest warship of World War II. Laid down in 1937, commissioned in 1941. Total displacement - 72,810 tons. Length - 263 m, width - 36.9 m, draft - 10.4 m. Armament: 9 - 460 mm and 12 - 155 -mm guns, 12 - 127mm anti-aircraft guns, 24 - 25mm machine guns, 7 seaplanes

In the meantime, the "large offshore shipbuilding" program was revised. In the new "Large Shipbuilding Program", approved by Stalin in February 1938, "small" type "B" battleships were no longer listed, but the number of "large" project 23 increased from 8 to 15 units. True, none of the experts doubted that this number, as well as the previous plan, belonged to the realm of pure fantasy. After all, even the “mistress of the seas” Great Britain and the ambitious Nazi Germany expected to build only 6 to 9 new battleships. Having realistically assessed the possibilities of industry, the top leadership of our country had to limit itself to four ships. Yes, and it turned out to be beyond the power: the construction of one of the ships was stopped almost immediately after the laying.

The lead battleship ("Soviet Union") was laid down at the Leningrad Baltic Shipyard on July 15, 1938. It was followed by "Soviet Ukraine" (Nikolaev), "Soviet Russia" and "Soviet Belarus" (Molotovsk, now Severodvinsk). Despite the mobilization of all forces, construction lagged behind schedule. By June 22, 1941, the first two ships had the highest degree of readiness, respectively 21% and 17.5%. At the new plant in Molotovsk, things were going much worse. Although in 1940, instead of two battleships, they decided to build one there, anyway, by the beginning of World War II, its readiness reached only 5%.

The timing of the manufacture of artillery and armor was not kept. Although tests of an experimental 406-mm gun were successfully completed in October 1940, and before the start of the war, the Barrikady plant managed to hand over 12 barrels of naval superguns, not a single turret was assembled. Even more problems were with the release of the armor. Due to the loss of experience in the manufacture of thick armor plates, up to 40% of them went to waste. And negotiations on ordering armor from Krupp ended in nothing.

The attack of Nazi Germany crossed out the plans for the creation of the "Big Fleet". By a government decree of July 10, 1941, the construction of battleships was stopped. Later, the armor plates of the "Soviet Union" were used in the construction of pillboxes near Leningrad, and the B-37 experimental gun also fired at the enemy there. "Soviet Ukraine" was captured by the Germans, but they did not find any use for the giant corps. After the war, the issue of completing the construction of battleships according to one of the improved projects was discussed, but in the end they were dismantled for metal, and the section of the hull of the head "Soviet Union" was even launched in 1949 - it was planned to be used for full-scale tests of the anti-torpedo protection system. The turbines received from Switzerland were at first wanted to be installed on one of the new light cruisers of Project 68 bis, then they abandoned this: too many alterations were required.

Good cruisers or bad battleships?

The heavy cruiser Kronstadt was laid down in 1939 but not completed. The total displacement is 41,540 tons. The maximum length is 250.5 m, the width is 31.6 m, the draft is 9.5 m. The power of the turbines is 201,000 l. s., speed - 33 knots (61 km / h). The thickness of the side armor - up to 230 mm, towers - up to 330 mm. Armament: 9 305 mm and 8 - 152 mm guns, 8 - 100 mm anti-aircraft guns, 28 - 37 mm machine guns, 2 seaplanes

The fate of "Kronstadt" and "Sevastopol" developed similarly to their counterparts of the "Soviet Union" type. By June 22, 1941, their technical readiness was estimated at 12-13%. In September of the same year, the construction of Kronstadt was stopped, and Sevastopol, located in Nikolaev, was captured by the Germans even earlier. After the war, the hulls of both "super cruisers" were dismantled for metal.

Battleship "Bismarck" - the strongest ship of the Nazi fleet. Laid down in 1936, commissioned in 1940. Total displacement - 50,900 tons. Length - 250.5 m, width - 36 m, draft - 10.6 m. Side armor thickness - up to 320 mm, towers - up to 360 mm. Armament: 8 - 380 mm and 12 - 150 mm guns, 16 - 105 mm anti-aircraft guns, 16 - 37 mm and 12 - 20 mm machine guns, 4 seaplanes

Last attempts

But here's the paradox: the Soviet Union, which, compared to other states, spent somewhat less money on unnecessary ships, decided to make up for lost time and became the only country in the world that continued to design battleships after the Second World War! Contrary to common sense, designers have been working tirelessly for several years on the drawings of the floating fortresses of yesterday. The successor of the "Soviet Union" was the battleship of project 24 with a total displacement of 81,150 tons (!), The successor of "Kronstadt" was the 42,000-ton heavy cruiser of project 82. In addition, this pair was supplemented by another so-called "medium" cruiser of project 66 with 220- mm artillery of the main caliber. Note that the latter, although it was called medium, but in terms of displacement (30,750 tons) left all foreign heavy cruisers far behind and approached battleships.

Battleship "Soviet Union", project 23 (USSR, laid down in 1938). Standard displacement - 59,150 tons, full - 65,150 tons. Maximum length - 269.4 m, width - 38.9 m, draft - 10.4 m. Turbine power - 201,000 l. s., speed - 28 knots (when boosting, respectively, 231,000 hp and 29 knots). Armament: 9 - 406 mm and 12 - 152 mm guns, 12 - 100 mm anti-aircraft guns, 40 - 37 mm machine guns, 4 seaplanes

If projects 24 and 66 remained on paper, then under project 82 in 1951-1952, three “bandit cruisers” were laid down - “Stalingrad”, “Moscow” and the third, which remained unnamed. But they did not have to enter service: on April 18, 1953, a month after Stalin's death, the construction of ships was stopped due to their high cost and the complete ambiguity of tactical use. A section of the hull of the head "Stalingrad" was launched and for several years was used for testing different types naval weapons, including torpedoes and cruise missiles. It is very symbolic: the world's last heavy artillery ship turned out to be in demand only as a target for new weapons ...

Heavy cruiser Stalingrad. Laid down in 1951, but not completed. Full displacement - 42,300 tons. Maximum length - 273.6 m, width - 32 m, draft - 9.2 m. Turbine power - 280,000 l. s., speed - 35.2 knots (65 km / h). The thickness of the side armor - up to 180 mm, towers - up to 240 mm. Armament: 9 - 305 mm and 12 - 130 mm guns, 24 - 45 mm and 40 - 25 mm machine guns

The obsession of the "supership"

In this regard, the shipbuilding policy of the then USSR occupies a special place. Here, after the decision of the party and the government to build the "Big Fleet", the obsession with "superships" was actually brought to the point of absurdity. On the one hand, Stalin, inspired by the successes in the aviation industry and tank building, considered too hastily that all problems in the shipbuilding industries could be solved just as quickly. On the other hand, the atmosphere in society was such that the project of any ship proposed by industry and not superior in its capabilities to foreign counterparts could easily be considered "wrecking" with all the ensuing consequences. The designers and shipbuilders simply had no choice: they were forced to design the “most powerful” and “fastest” ships armed with the “world’s longest-range” artillery ... In practice, this resulted in the following: ships with the size and armament of battleships began to be called heavy cruisers (but the most powerful in the world!), heavy cruisers - light, and the latter - "destroyer leaders". Such a substitution of some classes for others would still make sense if domestic factories could build battleships in the quantities in which other countries built heavy cruisers. But since this was, to put it mildly, not at all the case, the reports about the outstanding successes of the designers that went up often looked like banal eyewash.

It is characteristic that almost all the "superships" ever embodied in metal did not justify themselves. Suffice it to cite the Japanese battleships Yamato and Musashi as an example. They died under the bombs of American aircraft, without firing a single salvo with their main caliber at their American "classmates". But even if they happened to meet with the US fleet in a linear battle, they could hardly count on success. After all, Japan was able to build only two battleships of the latest generation, and the United States - ten. With such a balance of power, the individual superiority of the Yamato over the individual "American" no longer plays any role.

World experience shows that several well-balanced ships are much better than one giant with hypertrophied combat characteristics. And yet, in the USSR, the idea of ​​a "supership" did not die. A quarter of a century later, Stalin's leviathans had distant relatives - nuclear missile cruisers of the Kirov type, followers of Kronstadt and Stalingrad. However, that's a completely different story...

Battleships are armored artillery warships that have a large displacement and good weapons. The battleships of the USSR were widely used in a variety of battles, as they easily cope with the destruction of the enemy in a naval battle by delivering artillery strikes against objects located on the shore.

Peculiarities

Battleships are powerful artillery armored ships. At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, there were a lot of them in the arsenal of the country. The battleships of the USSR had high-quality weapons in the form of various guns, which were constantly modernized. Most often, the armament consisted of heavy machine guns, torpedo tubes. These ships provided the defense of Leningrad, Sevastopol and other coastal cities.

Sevastopol class

Battleships of this class had a monitor-shaped hull, in which the freeboard area and icebreaking stem were minimized. With a small hull length, the displacement of the ship was 23,000 tons, but in reality it reached about 26,000 tons. Coal was used as fuel, and if forced operation was required, then oil. These battleships of the USSR Navy were equipped with a power plant of 42,000 hp. With. at a speed of 23 knots and a cruising range of 4,000 miles.

As armament, the ship of the line was equipped with rifled guns, which were located linearly and were distinguished by a technical rate of fire of 1.8 rounds per minute. As anti-mine weapons, 16 120 mm guns were used, the rate of fire of which was 7 rounds per minute, with all the guns located on the middle deck. Such placement of artillery led to low firing efficiency, which, combined with the low seaworthiness of the battleship itself, made their control more difficult.

These battleships of the USSR were modernized even before the Second World War, which affected the improvement of the silhouette of the ships: they got a tank superstructure, which tightly adhered to the hull, and was covered from above with a solid flooring. The changes affected the bow, power plants and improved living conditions for the team.

"Paris Commune"

This battleship was the most recent upgrade. In the course of improvement, its displacement became larger, the engine power became higher and amounted to 61,000 hp, the ship developed a maximum speed of 23.5 knots. During the modernization, much attention was paid to strengthening anti-aircraft weapons: 6 76 mm anti-aircraft guns, 16 artillery pieces and 14 machine guns appeared on the bow and stern. These battleships of the USSR of World War II were used in the defense of Sevastopol. For the entire period of hostilities during the Great Patriotic War, the battleship participated in 15 military campaigns, performed 10 artillery firing, repelled more than 20 enemy air raids and shot down three enemy aircraft.

During World War II, the ship defended Sevastopol and the Kerch Strait. The first hostilities took place on November 8, 1941, and only during the first period of the fighting a large number of tanks, guns, and military vehicles carrying certain goods were destroyed.

"Marat"

These battleships of the USSR defended the approaches to Leningrad, defending the city for 8 days. During one of the enemy attacks, two bombs hit the ship at once, which destroyed the bow of the ship and led to the detonation of the shell magazines. As a result of this tragic event, 326 crew members died. Six months later, the ship was returned to partial buoyancy, the stern, which sank, surfaced. The Germans for a long time tried to destroy the damaged battleship, which was used by our military as a fort.

However, some time later, the battleship was repaired and partially restored, but even this allowed her to resist enemy artillery fire: after the ship was restored, enemy aircraft, batteries and personnel were destroyed. In 1943, this battleship of the USSR was renamed "Petropavlovsk", and even after 7 years it was completely removed from service and transferred to a training center.

"October Revolution"

This battleship was originally based in Tallinn, but with the outbreak of World War II, it was relocated to Kronstadt, as soon as the Germans began to approach the city. The "October Revolution" became a reliable artillery defense of the city, since all attempts by the German army to sink the battleship were unsuccessful. During the war years, this largest battleship of the USSR proved to be a reliable enemy on the water.

From "Gangut" to "Revolution"

The original name of the battleship was "Gangut". It was under this name that the ship took part in the First World War: under its cover, minefields were set up, on which more than one German cruiser was subsequently blown up. Already after the ship was given a new name, it performed during the Second World War, and all attempts by the Germans to cope with it were a failure. The battleships of the USSR of the Second World War were generally distinguished by their reliability: for example, the October Revolution was subjected to numerous air and artillery attacks, and still survived. During the war years, the battleship itself fired about 1,500 shells, repelled numerous air raids, shot down 13 aircraft and damaged a large number.

The main campaigns of the "Gangut" ("October Revolution")

An interesting fact is that the formidable ships of our army have never met in battle with enemy battleships during the two world wars - the first and second. The only fight was held by "Sevastopol" back in civil war, when the ship covered the destroyer "Azard" and repelled the attack of as many as seven British destroyers.

In general, the Gangut went on three military campaigns in the Baltic, where it provided minelaying, then it received a new name in service with the Red Army and was included in the Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea. The battleship also took part in the Soviet-Finnish war as fire support for the ground forces. The most important task of the battleship was the defense of Leningrad.

In 1941, on September 27, a 500 kg bomb hit the ship, which pierced the decks and tore the turret apart.

"Arkhangelsk"

Not all battleships of the USSR during the Second World War were originally in service with our country. So, the battleship "Arkhangelsk" was first part of the British Navy, then was transferred Soviet Union. It is noteworthy, but this ship was converted in the United States, equipped with modern radar systems for any type of weapon. That is why Arkhangelsk is also known as HMS Royal Sovereign.

In the interwar years, the battleship was repeatedly modernized, and seriously. And the changes concerned mainly additional equipment with guns. By World War II, this battleship was already obsolete, but despite this, it was nevertheless included in the country's fleet. But his role was not as valiant as that of other battleships: "Arkhangelsk" for the most part stood off the coast of the Kola Bay, where he provided a fire offensive for the Soviet troops and disrupted the evacuation of the Germans. In January 1949, the ship was delivered to the UK.

USSR battleship projects

The battleships of the USSR, whose projects were developed by a variety of engineers, have always been considered among the most reliable in the world. So, engineer Bubnov proposed a project for a super-dreadnought, which attracted attention with the elaboration of details, the power of artillery, high speed and a sufficient level of armor. Design began in 1914, and the main task of the engineers was to place three four-gun turrets on a small hull, which was not enough for such weapons. It turned out that the ship in this situation was left without reliable anti-torpedo protection. The main weapons on this ship were:

• the main armor belt, which extended to 2/3 of the ship's length;
• horizontal booking at four levels;
• circular armor of towers;
• 12 guns in turrets and 24 anti-mine caliber guns, which were located in casemates.

Experts said that this battleship is a powerful combat unit, which, compared with foreign counterparts, was capable of reaching a speed of 25 knots. True, the reservation was not enough already at the time of the First World War, and there were no plans to modernize the ships ...

Project engineer Kostenko

The perfect battleships of Russia and the USSR more than once rescued Soviet troops. One of the developments was the ship Kostenko, which is considered the latest. Its distinguishing features included balanced weapon characteristics, excellent speed and high-quality armor. The project was based on the Anglo-German experience of the Battle of Jutland, so the engineer had previously abandoned the ultimate artillery equipment for ships. And the emphasis was on the balance of body armor and mobility.

This ship was developed in as many as four versions, and the first version turned out to be the fastest. As in Bubnov's version, the battleship had a main combat belt, which was supplemented by a bulkhead of two plates. Horizontal booking affected several decks, which itself acted as an armor deck. Reservation was carried out in the tower, cutting, around the vessel, in addition, the engineer was attentive to anti-torpedo protection, which used to act on battleships in the form of a simple longitudinal bulkhead.

As weapons, the engineer proposed using 406 mm main caliber guns and 130 mm guns. The first were located in the towers, which ensured a good firing range. The designs of this vessel, as already mentioned, were different, which also affected the number of guns.

Project engineer Gavrilov

Gavrilov proposed to build the most powerful, the so-called ultimate battleships of the USSR. The photo shows that such models were small in size, but in terms of technical and operational characteristics they were more efficient. According to general concept, the battleship was an ultimate ship, the technical characteristics of which were on the verge of an achievable level. The project took into account only the most powerful weapon parameters:

• 16 guns of the main caliber 406 mm in four towers;
• 24 guns of 152 mm anti-mine caliber in casemates.

Such weapons fully corresponded to the concept of Russian shipbuilding, when an amazing combination of the maximum possible artillery saturation with high speed was noted with damage to the armor. By the way, it was not the most successful on most Soviet battleships. But the ship's propulsion system was one of the most powerful, since its action was based on transformer turbines.

Equipment Features

The battleships of the USSR during the Second World War (the photo confirms their power), according to Gavrilov's projects, were equipped with the most advanced systems at that time. Like previous engineers, he paid attention to armor, and the thickness of the armor was somewhat greater. But experts noted that even with powerful artillery, high speed and huge size, this battleship would be quite vulnerable when meeting with the enemy.

Results

According to experts, the Second World War became a certain stage for checking the condition of the battleships of the USSR for readiness. As it turned out, the battle fleet was not ready for the destructive power and power of atomic bombs and high-precision guided weapons. That is why, towards the end of the war, battleships ceased to be considered a powerful combat force, and so much attention was no longer paid to the development of carrier-based aviation. Stalin ordered that battleships be excluded from military shipbuilding plans, as they did not meet the requirements of the time.

As a result, such ships as the October Revolution and the Paris Commune were withdrawn from the active fleet, some models were put into reserve. Subsequently, Khrushchev left literally a few heavy artillery ships in service with the country, considering them effective in battles. And on October 29, 1955, the flagship of the Black Sea squadron, the last battleship of the USSR Novorossiysk, sank in the Northern Bay of Sevastopol. After this event, our country said goodbye to the idea of ​​having battleships in its fleet.

There was a time when the strength of the navy was determined by the number of battleships. Those days are long gone, but the power and brutal beauty of these sea mastodons still excites the imagination and generates controversy. Were battleships needed? Were they useful, or did they represent a larger purpose? Let's take a look at five battleship era legends.

The battleship of the Third Reich "Bismarck" lived a short but bright life, which still provides material for literature and cinema. On May 24, 1941, Bismarck, paired with Prinz Eugen, met with two Britons Hood and Prince of Wales. During the ensuing battle, the Hood was sunk, but the Bismarck was also seriously damaged. A three-day pursuit of the German battleship began.

May 27 "Bismarck" took an unequal battle and received a lot of damage, but remained afloat. Even having exhausted all the ammunition, the ship did not lower the flag. In the end, the commander of the ship, Lutyens, ordered the kingstones to be opened and the ship to be abandoned. It should be noted that Bismarck received critical damage from a torpedo fired from an aircraft. The death of the Bismarck was an important signal that the battleships were losing their leading role in the fleet.

The ancient Japanese called their country Yamato, which means "great harmony", "peace". There is some ridicule in the fact that the largest warship in the world was named by that name. Its gigantic 460 mm cannons were capable of sending 1.5 ton projectiles over 25 nautical miles (46 km). The ship's side armor was 410 mm. Despite her enormous weight, the Yamato reached a speed of 27 knots, although she was inferior to the lighter American battleships with their speed of 33 knots.

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Unlike the Bismarck, the main Japanese battleship remained idle for a long time, as the Japanese command saved the battleships for the alleged general battle of the Japanese and American fleets. During the time of inactivity and transitions between the islands, the Yamato, while standing in the port, received a hole from a torpedo from an American submarine. This battleship also died not from shells from American ships, but from bombs and torpedoes from US naval aviation. It happened on April 7, 1945, off the coast of Okinawa, where the Yamato, along with other ships, was sent to support the island's garrison, who was dying in unequal battles and suicidal attacks.

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The first two battleships "Iowa" and "New Jersey" of the class "Iowa" proved themselves during the war in pacific ocean. On account of their many battles and victories. The Missouri, belonging to this class, did not have time to prove itself in battles, but went down in history as the ship on which General MacArthur accepted the surrender of Japan. This ship remained in the service of the US Navy for a long time, although it was withdrawn from the main fleet. Missouri fired its last salvo in 1991 during the Gulf War.

"October Revolution" and "Marat"

Both battleships of the Baltic Fleet of the Sevastopol project were laid down and built before the start of the First World War and before the Great Patriotic War already considered obsolete. They did not participate in naval battles, since the exit to the Baltic Sea was mined on both sides, so neither our ships could safely leave the Gulf of Finland, nor the Germans could enter there.

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"October Revolution" and "Marat" participated in the defense of Leningrad, supporting the defenders of the city with fire from 305-mm and 120-mm guns. Both ships were seriously damaged (especially the Marat) during enemy air raids in September 1941, but remained afloat and continued to defend Leningrad after repairs. Anchors and anti-aircraft gun (Ivan Tombasov's gun) " October revolution”after the decommissioning of the ship in 1956, they were installed on Anchor Square in Kronstadt in memory of the heroic defense of besieged Leningrad.

"Paris Commune"

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The British fleet dominated the Mediterranean Sea, and the passage through the Strait of Gibraltar was reliably protected, so German ships did not even dream of getting into the Black Sea. The only battleship of the Black Sea Fleet "Paris Commune" took part in the defense of Sevastopol, destroying the ground forces of the enemy besieging the city. In total, the main caliber guns of the battleship fired three thousand shots. Anti-aircraft artillery successfully repulsed 21 air attacks, thanks to which the ship did not receive a single serious damage throughout the war.

World War II became the swan song of the great battleships. Operations in the Pacific made it clear that dominance of the sea had shifted from battleships to aircraft carriers. Since then, the United States has relied on aircraft carrier groups, which have become the main instrument of global dominance. But that's a completely different story.

There is a myth according to which the fleet that helped the United States win the war, America began to build on the morning of December 8, 1941, when it recovered a little from the Japanese defeat of Pearl Harbor that had happened on the eve. Myth. In fact, the American militarists began building all ten high-speed battleships that brought victory to Washington on their decks at least ten months before the samurai attack on Pearl Harbor. The North Carolina-class battleships were laid down at two-week intervals in June 1940 and entered service in April and May 1941. In fact, three of the four South Dakota-class battleships were launched before December 7, 1941. Yes, the fleet that crushed Japan had not yet been built, but even more so it could not have been built by rolling up its sleeves only on the morning of December 8th. In this way. The strike of Japanese aviation on the main base of the US Pacific Fleet played absolutely no role in the fate of the high-speed battleships of the US Navy.

Fast battleships in World War II and after

The Washington Treaty of 1922 stopped the production of heavy ships for the US Navy. Due to the intrigues of politicians, the construction of seven battleships and six battlecruisers had to be stopped or not started at all. It got to the point that on February 8, 1922, it was decided to dismantle the battleship Washington (BB47), which was in 75% of the readiness stage - a blatant act of vandalism! The Washington Treaty limited the number of battleships in the US and British navies to 18 and 20 respectively. Japan was allowed to have ten such ships, France and Italy - a few. In the ten years that have passed since the conclusion of the treaty, only two battleships have entered service in the world - the British Nelson and Rodney. The construction of these ships began in 1922 and was specifically stipulated in the Washington Treaty, because the frankly weak Grand Fleet at that time had only extremely outdated battleships. The world “vacation” in battleship building ended in 1932 with the laying of the Dunkirk ship with a displacement of 26,500 tons in France.

In the US Navy, the conclusion of the Washington Treaty was treated with mixed feelings. The admirals mourned over the missing battleships and cruisers, but those of them. who were considered realists, understood the complexity of the political and economic situation in the country and the world that developed after the end of the First World War. Although for the United States, this situation was rather favorable. To the first world war The United States entered as the third largest naval power in the world. And after the war, the US Navy became one of the two great fleets of the world, and most experts agreed that in a short time the US Navy would become the No. 1 fleet in the world. The grandeur of the Grand Fleet, unattainable before, was fading into history. The war clearly demonstrated the strategic role of the fleet. Only the fleet was able to ensure the passage of convoys across the Atlantic. After the war, the US Navy was de facto the only serious enemy - the Japanese navy. Everything was fun and rosy for the American admirals, but then the Great Depression suddenly happened.

The global economic crisis contributed to the coming to power in a number of countries that did not firmly defend the ideals of freedom and democracy, authoritarian regimes. In Italy, Duce Mussolini came to power, in Germany - the Fuhrer Hitler. Well, in the USA - Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Roosevelt was at one time related to the affairs of the US Navy, served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy. In 1932, the ex-assistant became the President of the United States from the Democratic Party. Roosevelt considered the adoption and implementation of an ambitious shipbuilding program one of the ways to bring the country out of the Great Depression. However, the first "naval" budget, adopted in the time of Roosevelt, provided for the construction of aircraft carriers, cruisers and destroyers, it did not say anything about the construction of battleships. Japan's sudden declaration of refusal to comply with the terms of the Washington Treaty, made in 1934, changed the situation by 1936 in the most dramatic way. For the first time in ten years, American designers rolled up their sleeves, washed their hands, took a drawing board, drawing paper and drawing pen, after which they began to draw the outline of a battleship of the future. The process has begun. It remains to deepen it.

The design of the battleship after 1922 was determined to a greater extent not by technology, but by politics. The British constantly insisted on limiting the size, displacement and armament of battleships due to the simple fact that they themselves had decrepit, small and poorly armed battleships. They all wanted the same. The British demanded that new battleships not be armed with artillery above 14 inches, although the Washington Treaty set the limit for the main caliber of battleships at 16 inches. Surprisingly. but the Americans were the first to benefit from the requirements of the British in terms of displacement and size. The size and displacement of all American ships were limited by the capacity of the Panama Canal - the requirement for ships to pass through the canal from the Pacific to the Atlantic and back was mandatory when designing any American ship or vessel. At the same time, American admirals began to swear in American style when they heard about the limitation of the main caliber of a battleship to 14 inches. The restrictions imposed by the Panama Canal, combined with restrictions on the main battery, promised the US Navy a battleship weaker than the British Nelson or the Japanese Nagato. Japan withdrew from the treaty and put 16-inch guns on the battleship. The British demanded 14 inches from everyone but themselves, also arming the Nelson with 16-inch main battery artillery. In October 1935, US representatives began negotiations with British representatives regarding the limitations of the Washington Treaty in the light of the perfidy of the Japanese military. The parties came to an agreed opinion on April 1, 1937 ... after which the permitted main caliber of battleships automatically increased to 16 inches.

On September 14, the North Carolina was hit by a torpedo fired by the Japanese submarine 1-19. The submarine then fired six torpedoes in one gulp, three of them hit the USS Wasp, one hit the destroyer O'Brien, and one hit the battleship. 1 main caliber.The explosion destroyed the battleship's armor belt.The battleship listed five degrees, but retained the ability to maneuver at high speed.On October 11, 1942, the battleship was put in dry dock for repairs at Pearl Harbor.

The decision to increase the caliber gave rise to new problems. The design of battleships for the US Navy in 1937 was already in full swing, and now even more powerful guns were required to develop new larger and heavier turrets, then "fit" new turrets into the design of the already designed ship. A well-thought-out position was once taken by Admiral Standley, who ordered the design of universal three-gun turrets of the main caliber, designed for mounting both 14-inch guns and 16-inch guns. The size and caliber of battleship guns even became a subject of debate during the 1936 presidential election campaign. Republicans criticized Democrat Roosevelt for publicly speaking in favor of increasing the main caliber of battleship artillery, pointing out that such statements promote an increase in the arms race and are a tangible blow to detente international tension. Ordinary Americans did not heed the arguments of the Republicans, electing Roosevelt president for a second term and, thereby, confirming the obvious fact that America has always been a reserve of rabid imperialism. Japan, on the other hand, did not react at first to the statements of the American Democrats. believing that the unclear international situation will delay the design of new battleships for the US Navy. Only on March 27, 1937, did the Japanese government publicly speak out against the new terms of the Washington Treaty. It was then that a decision was made in Japan to build Yamato-class battleships with a displacement of 64,000 tons armed with 18-inch artillery.

In the interval between firing the main battery, the sailors walk along the poop of the battleship "Massachusetts". Two huge American flags are raised on the mast - a faint hope that the French will not shoot at their sincere American friends, with whom they fought shoulder to shoulder with the Boches during the First World War.

Even the refusal of the Japanese to comply with the 14-inch limit on the caliber of battleship artillery did not cause sharp statements in the USA and Great Britain. Roosevelt was the first politician to advocate arming his own ships with guns larger than 14 inches. The British began in 1937 to build a new series of battleships of the "King George V" type with 14-inch guns, although the former Secretary of the Navy, a certain Winston Churchill, sharply objected to this.

Roosevelt, however, reconsidered his decision regarding the main caliber of battleships - in favor of 14 inches. Specialists from the Naval Design Bureau felt offended and even outraged somewhere. Meanwhile - in vain: they should read the newspaper "Pravda" more often. After all, the venality of bourgeois politicians has long been known to the whole world, who weave any fairy tales in order to attract the votes of voters, and immediately after the elections they forget about fairy tales and voters. In fact, the choice in favor of a larger caliber battleship artillery is not so unambiguous. as it may seem to amateurs. A 14-inch projectile weighs 680 kg. Projectile caliber 16 inches - 450 kg. Due to a more powerful powder charge, a 14-inch projectile flies further than a 16-inch one, due to its greater mass it has a greater destructive ability, and wear on an expensive gun barrel causes less wear. However, as representatives of the design bureau noted in their excited message dated May 17, 1937 to the President of the United States: the real difference lies in the "dead" zone of the guns. In this case, a dead zone is not considered to be a zone that cannot be penetrated due to an insufficiently small angle of descent of the guns, but a zone in which the projectile is not even theoretically capable of penetrating armor of a certain thickness. That is, the "dead" zone is not adjacent to the ship, but far away from it. Experts made calculations based on the average thickness of the armor of battleships - 12 inches of the main armor belt and 5-6 inches of armored deck. It turned out that at short firing distances, the armor penetration of 14 and 16 caliber shells is approximately the same. At long firing distances, at which a naval battle is actually conducted, a 14-inch projectile is significantly inferior to a 16-inch one, about ten times!

Iowa

Roosevelt, in response to the message, promised to think or come up with something. The President kept his word. In the early days of June 1937, he suggested that Ambassador Gru once again turn to the Japanese side with a proposal to agree to limit the main caliber of battleships to 14 inches. While the court - yes, the case - Roosevelt puts forward a proposal, the Japanese discuss it, then prepare an answer - the design of battleships could not stand still. This time it didn't take long for an answer. The Japanese agreed to the proposal of the US President, with a slight amendment: subject to the limitation of the total number of battleships in the US Navy and the British Navy - ten American and ten British. Such an amendment was completely unacceptable for Roosevelt, so on July 10, 1937, the president gave the command to design battleships with 16-inch artillery.

The debate over the main caliber of battleships delayed the design of battleships for several months. But as soon as the decision was made, the design moved forward by leaps and bounds. The budget for the 1938 financial year allocated financial flows for the construction of two battleships "North Carolina" and "Washington" with the laying, respectively, on October 27, 1937 and June 14, 1938. According to the budget for the 1939 financial year, July 5, 1939 was laid "South Dakota", after 15 days - "Massachusetts". November 20, 1939 "Indiana" and February 1, 1940 "Alabama". The budget for fiscal year 1941 called for the bookmark "Missouri" on January 6, 1941 and "Wisconsin" on January 25, 1941.

The Two Oceans Navy Act, passed in 1940 by Congress, provided for the construction of seven more battleships - two more Iows (Illinois and Kentucky) and five Montana-class monsters armed with four towers with three 16-inch tools in each and on each. Due to their width, the Montanas would no longer be able to pass the Panama Canal. The last two Iowas were laid down, the first two Montans were ordered, but their construction was abandoned in 1943. The Kentucky was no longer considered a modern ship, which is why discussions were held for a very long time on what to do with the hull of the unfinished battleship. The corps occupied an empty slipway for five long years. In the end, the unfinished ship was launched in 1950. J. but they did not finish building it, and in 1958 they sold it for scrap.

There is a myth according to which the fleet that helped the United States win the war, America began to build on the morning of December 8, 1941, when it recovered a little from the Japanese defeat of Pearl Harbor that had happened on the eve. Myth. in fact, the American militarists began building all ten high-speed battleships that brought victory to Washington on their decks at least ten months before the samurai attack on Pearl Harbor. The North Carolina-class battleships were laid down at two-week intervals in June 1940 and entered service in April and May 1941. In fact, three of the four South Dakota-class battleships were launched before December 7, 1941. Yes, the fleet that crushed Japan had not yet been built, but even more so it could not have been built by rolling up its sleeves only on the morning of December 8th. In this way. The strike of Japanese aviation on the main base of the US Pacific Fleet played absolutely no role in the fate of the high-speed battleships of the US Navy.

The U-boats of the Kriegsmarine began to pose a mortal threat to England. It was the presence of such a threat that forced the command to shift priorities in the development plans of the US Navy. In 1941, the American fleet was involved on an ever-larger scale in escorting Atlantic convoys. First of all, not the Pacific, but the Atlantic fleet was strengthened. In the US Navy. as well as in the White House, they clearly underestimated the yellow danger. The calculation was based on that the power of the Pacific Fleet would be enough to defend the Philippines from a possible Japanese attack while Hitler was dealt with in Europe. Intended for operations off the East Coast of the United States, the North Carolinas and the aircraft carrier Hornet were sent to the Atlantic. But after Pearl Harbor, both battleships were transferred to the Pacific Ocean.

While not yet fully commissioned, the Washington became the first high-speed American battleship to take part in the hostilities. The battleship was transferred from the base in Casco Bay to the base of the British fleet of Scapa Flow, from where she, together with Her Majesty's ship Wasp, set off on a campaign in March 1942. the purpose of which was to support the landing of New Zealand troops on Madagascar. In early May, the Washington took part in the escort of the PQ-15 and QP-11 convoys to and from Murmansk. Together with the British battleship King George V, the American ship patrolled the waters between Norway and Iceland in case the Kriegsmarine ships appeared. The naval battle did not take place then, but the adventures happened. A British battleship collided with a British destroyer. "Washington" went on a military campaign from Scapa Flow again. On June 28, 1942, he, along with the battleship Duke of York, went out to guard the ill-fated convoy PQ-17. To defeat the convoy, the Germans initiated Operation Rosselsprung. Four large surface ships of the Kriegsmarine appeared in the Alta Fjord. including Tirpitz. Well, "Tirpitz", he alone was able to smash the entire combined Anglo-American fleet to smithereens. And here - as many as four large ships of the German fleet. The order of the British Admiralty to leave convoys to the warships to their fate looks quite understandable under such conditions. In fact, the German ships never left Norwegian waters, which did not save the convoy. Participation, or rather non-participation, in guarding the PQ-17 convoy was the last combat (type of combat) operation of the battleship Washington in the Atlantic. With a short stop on the West Coast, the battleship was transferred to the Pacific Ocean.

The beginning of the campaign in the Pacific turned out to be the hardest losses for the Americans in aircraft carriers. By mid-May 1942, the Lexington was sunk, the Saratoga was torpedoed, and the Yorktown was badly damaged. The fleet was in urgent need of replenishment. The USS Wasp hurried to the rescue, escorted by the battleship North Carolina. By the time the Panama Kapal ships passed, the peak of the crisis in the Pacific campaign had passed safely for the Americans, but the Yorktown was lost in the Battle of Midway and the Pacific Fleet needed a new aircraft carrier even more urgently. Wasp, North Carolina, and four cruisers made up the TF-18 formation. The formation arrived in San Diego on June 15, 1942, and then headed for the South Pacific. Along the way, "North Carolina" was isolated from TF-18 and became part of the TG-61 group. 2 guarding the USS Enterprise. Enterprise aircraft were involved in Operation Watchtower, the landing on Guadalcanal, which began on August 7, 1942. As part of TG-61. 2 "North Carolina" took part in a two-day battle off the Eastern Solomon Islands. August 23-24, 1942 At one point in the battle, the battleship's anti-aircraft guns became so dense that the North Carolina disappeared in clouds of smoke. A request was received from the Enterprise - what is wrong with the ship, do you need help? In eight minutes, the battleship's anti-aircraft gunners shot down 18 Japanese aircraft and damaged seven (or seventy - it was not possible to establish exactly). Thanks to the art of the North Carolina anti-aircraft gunners, the American fleet then had no losses.

Despite clear success in the first battle, North Carolina failed to protect the USS Wasp in the next. Perhaps that battle was the most successful example of the use of torpedo weapons in history. On September 14, 1942, the Japanese submarine 1-19 fired a salvo of six torpedoes at an aircraft carrier from a distance of approximately 1400 m. One covered a distance of ten miles, passing the keels of two destroyers along the way. after which it stuck into the left side of the nose of the "North Carolina" below the armored belt. As a result of the explosion of a torpedo, a hole of 32 square meters was formed in the board. foot through which the ship received 1000 tons of water. Two torpedoes passed in front of the nose of the aircraft carrier, one of them hit the destroyer O'Brien (also in the left bow of the hull, the torpedo passed 11 miles). The remaining three torpedoes hit the starboard side of the aircraft carrier. The consequences of the torpedo explosions became catastrophic for the aircraft carrier. The ship did not sank, but its repair did not make sense. "O" Brien lost her nose and sank three days later. "North Carolina" acquired a negative pitch angle of 5 degrees, the bow cellar of the battleship's ammunition was flooded. Attempts to tow the battleship were unsuccessful. Nevertheless, the battleship continued to guard the aircraft carrier Enterprise under its own vehicles. sometimes developing a stroke of 25 knots. There was no danger of flooding, but the damage to the battleship turned out to be great. The ship was sent to Pearl Harbor for repairs, and the Enterprise went there along with the battleship. The battleship was under repair until January 1943.

The American fleet in the South Pacific remained without high-speed battleships for only three weeks - Washington came from the Atlantic to Noumea already on October 9, 1942. A week later, South Dakota and Enterprise (reorganized) left Pearl Harbor for the South Pacific. connection TF-6I). "Washington" became part of the TF-64 compound. along with three cruisers and six destroyers. This connection was intended to escort convoys between Noumea and Gaudalcanal. the formation was commanded by Rear Admiral Wills A. "Ching" Lee. formerly served as Chief of Staff to the Commander of the Pacific Fleet, Vice Admiral William F. "Bill" Halsey. Lee would spend most of the war as commander of TF-64. The Admiral was in right time and in the right place. Subsequent events culminated in the confrontation between American and Japanese battleships in the Pacific. The month of the war of battleships has come.

The month began with an attempt by Japanese aircraft carriers to make another raid in the area of ​​the Solomon Islands. Again, the aircraft carriers of the United States fleet rushed to intercept them, and again, high-speed battleships provided an escort for carrier-based aircraft carriers. "South Dakota" was still guarding the "Enterprise", retaining the aircraft carrier in a tough case at Santa Cruz, which took place on October 26, 1942. Then the battleship's anti-aircraft gunners shot down at least 26 Japanese airplanes. The next day, the battleship Washington was nearly hit by a torpedo fired by the submarine I-15. On the same day, the South Dakota became the target of a Japanese submarine attack. Dodging a torpedo, the South Dakota collided with the destroyer Mahan. Fortunately, none of the ships received serious damage.

Admiral Lee's battleships went into action again two weeks later. On November 11, 1942, the TF-64 formation was reorganized, it included the battleships "South Dakota" and "Washington", the destroyers "Winham" and "Welk". The connection was intended to give additional protection to the TF-16 grouping, the core of the bark was the aircraft carrier Enterprise. Two days later, after the dramatic first naval battle at Guadalcanal, TF-64 was reinforced by the destroyers Preston and Gwin. The unit was ordered to go to Guadalcanal in case of a possible second coming of the Japanese Admiral Kondo. On November 14, Lee approached the strait, and from the other end Kondo sailed here with his battleship Kirishima, heavy cruisers Rakao and Atagi, light cruisers Nagara and Sendai, and eight destroyers.

The forces of the opponents, who inexorably walked towards each other, were theoretically approximately equal. The Japanese had more ships, and Lee had more large-caliber artillery. In addition, Admiral Lee had the opportunity to use radar, which the Japanese were completely deprived of. But the Japanese had excellent training for naval battles at night and far surpassed the Americans in the art of using torpedo weapons. Kondo led his forces in four separate columns. Lee lined up his squadron with the destroyers at the head, followed by the Washington and South Dakota.

The Japanese discovered the American fleet at 10:15 p.m. on November 14, 1942, identifying the enemy forces as four destroyers and two heavy cruisers. At 2245 Lee changed course, heading south. At 23.00, the radar of the battleship "Washington" spotted Japanese ships. Minutes later, eye contact was made. At 23:17, the battleship Washington opened fire with its main caliber on the Japanese destroyers. The destroyers withdrew undamaged. The return fire of the Japanese heavy ships and the main group of destroyers led to horrific consequences for the American destroyers. The two lines of enemy ships diverged on opposite courses. The Japanese put all their artillery and all their torpedo tubes into action. The destroyer "Priston" came under concentrated fire from the cruiser "Nagara" and destroyers. The destroyer exploded at 23.27 and disappeared from the surface nine minutes later. The destroyer Welk was next in sight of the Nagara gunners. It was hit by a torpedo at 23:32. The ship sank 11 minutes later.

However, the fight was not at all like a one-sided game. As soon as the American battleships entered the business, events quickly took a completely different turn. The lead Japanese destroyer "Ayanami" received three gifts of the main caliber from the "South Dakota" at 23.32, after which it was engulfed in flames.

Eight minutes later, the fire reached the magazines of the ammunition, and after seven minutes, "Annami" went down in history. The fight, however, was far from over. Another American destroyer in the line - "Gwin" - received a portion of 1-inch shells from the "Nagara" at 23.37, after which it was forced to withdraw from the battle. Benham, the last American destroyer, received a torpedo in her bow a minute later. Its speed immediately dropped to 5 knots, but the ship still remained afloat, although it was no longer possible to continue the battle.

Suddenly, silence hung over the gray waves of the greatest of the oceans of the planet Earth. Relative silence: the noise of ship engines after the rumble of artillery reminded the sailors of the chirping of grasshoppers among the fields of Arizona and the fields of Fujiyama. The guns fell silent, for at 23.43 the column of the Japanese samurai of Nagara went beyond the firing range of the American ships. The two battleships of the US Navy still held out to the west. The lull was just an episode on the way to a climax. The main forces of the Japanese appeared on the scene - the Kondo column consisting of the battleship Kirishima, two heavy cruisers and two destroyers. And here is Lee. at the most critical moment, an unfortunate incident occurred: the radar of the main battery fire control system on the battleship South Dakota failed. Another problem faced by the American naval commander. there was a violation of battle formation by battleships. The ships walked in the wake of each other for a very short time. To avoid a collision with sinking and damaged destroyers, the South Dakota took to the north, as a result of which it was a good few hundred meters closer to the Japanese than the Washington. Unexpectedly, at 2350, South Dakota was illuminated by the searchlight of the Japanese battleship Kirishima. At the same time, all five Japanese ships fired on the battleship of the US Navy. In a short time, 27 shells with a caliber of 5 inches or more hit South Dakota. The South Dakota was unable to return fire to fire. The third tower of the main caliber was temporarily out of order, a fire spread through the superstructure, among the team 58 people were killed and 60 injured. The South Dakota turned south.

However, the South Dakota situation also had some positive side. Behind the flaming Dakota, the Japanese did not see the Washington, whose radar worked properly in normal mode. Around midnight, the Washington opened fire with its main caliber from a distance of 8000 m. The battleship in the shortest possible time laid nine 16-inch shells and more than 40 5-inch caliber shells in the Kirishima. On the Kirishima, the poorly armored steering gear failed, after which the Japanese battleship began to describe a wide circulation. Kondo had only one thing left - to give the order to withdraw, so as not to give up. "Washington" tried to pursue the enemy for several miles, but then the Yankees decided: "Game over." "Kirishima", unable to stay on course, was flooded by the Japanese themselves at 3.20 November 15, 1942.

For the first and last time in the entire war, American high-speed battleships met face to face in open battle with their Japanese opponent, the battle was won by ships of the United States fleet. It is worth noting that the conditions of the battle are not quite equal. "Kirishima" at a venerable age, which was approaching 30 years old, was two generations older than the American battleships, that is, they were fit for their grandfathers. The Kirishima began its life as a battlecruiser designed by the British during the First World War, and then, with successive steps, it was turned into a high-speed battleship. Booking "Kirishima" was half inferior to booking "Washington" or "South Dakota". Was it armor? Kirishima's sister ship, the Hiei battleship, two days earlier, also in a night battle, the Americans took out of the battle with one hit of an 8-inch projectile on the steering machine. The Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal ended in victory for the American fleet, but the price, as in many other cases that took place in the waters of the Solomon Islands, was high. Three American destroyers sank (Benham sank by the end of the day), another destroyer and the battleship South Dakota were heavily damaged. It took seven months to repair the battleship.

Meanwhile, other South Dakota-class ships had completed combat training and were ready to take part in the fighting. "Massachusetts" received a baptism of fire on November 8, 1942 off the coast of North Africa, where the battleship escorted transports with landing forces that took part in Operation Torch. The American battleship also took part in the "neutralization" of the French battleship Jean Bar. The Massachusetts hit the Jean Bart with five 16-inch shells and disabled the French ship's only active main battery turret. By the evening of November 8, the invasion fleet began to be threatened by several destroyers of the Vichy government fleet. One 16-inch Massachusetts shell and several 8-inch shells fired through the Tuscaloosa's gun barrels sank the destroyer Fogue. In this battle, Massachusetts was nearly hit by a torpedo fired by a French submarine. The torpedo missed the battleship's hull only 15 feet away. By nightfall, a 16-inch shell from the American battleship's guns pierced the bow of the French destroyer Milan, after which the latter withdrew from the battle. At about 11 p.m., Massachusetts was hit by a 5-inch cannon shell from the French destroyer Boulogne, which soon disappeared in a flurry of concentrated artillery fire from the battleship Massachusetts and the light cruiser Brooklyn. The battle ended with a direct hit by a 16-inch shell from the battleship Massachusetts on the French flagship, the light cruiser Primakyu. The French fought bravely, but their light forces stood no chance against the latest fast battleship in the US Navy. The commander of the French squadron gave the order to return to port.

"Indiana" at the end of November 1942 was in the waters of. Tonga, where she, along with the Washington and the repaired North Carolina, provided cover for the aircraft carriers Enterprise and Saratoga during operations off Guadalcanal. Here, there was not much work for the battleships, since both the Japanese and the Americans had not yet recovered from the fierce naval battles off the Solomon Islands. For the first almost six months of 1943, there were almost no major naval battles in the South Pacific. Most of this period, teams of fast American battleships spent on Noumea. where they periodically hunted the wild animals of New Caledonia, took them for food, washing down the meat with excellent Australian champagne. Time worked for America. When, in mid-1943, the US Navy resumed offensive operations in the Pacific Ocean, then a much stronger fleet was already at the disposal of the command.

The activity of the American fleet in 1943 resumed in June both in the Pacific and in the Atlantic. The refurbished South Dakota joined the Alabama at Scapa Flow. enabling the British to send the battleships of the Home Fleet Hove and King George V to Sicily to participate in Operation Husky. Together with the remaining British battleships of the Anson Home Fleet. Duke of York and Malaya, cruisers Augusta and Tuscaloosa, two American battleships took part in a demonstration off the coast of Norway in order to divert the attention of the Kriegsmarine command from the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately for the Allies, German intelligence did not detect the movements of the Anglo-American fleet. Shortly after the demonstration, the South Dakota left the hospitable waters of Great Britain, leaving for the Pacific Ocean, where the battleships Washington, North Carolina and Indiana formed the TF3 formation. 3, designed to support Operation Cartwil, the June 30 invasion of New Georgia. It was the first of the typical landing operations, in which high-speed battleships of the US Navy were involved - three battleships escorted aircraft carriers (in this case, the American Saratoga and the British Victorius), while the "old" battleships provided fire support for the invasion forces. Later, "Indiana" will be involved in the escort of the first raid of aircraft carriers, during which, on August 31, carrier-based aircraft hit Makin. The aircraft carriers Yorktown, Essex and Independence took part in that raid.

Indiana returned to the Gilbert Islands on November 19, 1943 as part of TF50 formation. 2 with the battleship North Carolina. The battleships came in the escort of the aircraft carriers Enterprise, Belly Wood and Monterey, involved in Operation Galvanic, the invasion of Makin. Washington, South Dakota, and Massachusetts made up the TF50 compound. 1, which also included the aircraft carriers Yorktown, Lexington and Cowpens, which covered the landing on Mile. At the end of August, carrier-based aircraft softened the Japanese defenses on the Gilbert Islands, so the samurai resisted the invasion for no more than a week. The Japanese were able to hold out only on Makin and, to a greater extent, on Tarawa. The same five high-speed battleships were brought together again by December 8 to cover the movement of aircraft carriers in the direction of Kwajalein. All five battleships became part of one formation, TF50. 8, commanded by Rear Admiral Lee. The battleships advanced to Nauru under the cover of aircraft from the aircraft carriers Bunker Hill and Monterey, where they fired 810 16-inch caliber shells and 3400 5-inch caliber shells at the small Japanese garrison of the island. By return fire, the Japanese sank one destroyer guarding the American squadron.

High-speed battleships again found themselves in the fire of battle January 29, 1944 - Operation Flintlock, the invasion of the Marshall Islands. Now there were already eight battleships, the Alabama (came from the Atlantic) and the first two Iowas (Iowa and New Jersey) were added. Again, the battleships were divided between aircraft carrier groups. "Washington", "Indiana" and "Massachusetts" were attached to the connection TG58. 1 ("Enterprise", "Yorktown" and "Belli Wood"), operating in the waters of the islands of Roy and Namur (Kwajalein). "North Carolina", "South Dakota" and "Alabama" escorted the aircraft carriers "Essex", "Intrepid" and "Cabot" of the TG58 formation. 2 in the waters of Maloelap. The newest "Iowa" and "New Jersey" worked in the interests of TG58. 3 ("Bunker Hill", "Monterey" and "Cowpens") in the Enewetok area. In the early hours of February 1, the battleships Indiana and Washington collided in the waters of Kwajalein. The ships were not seriously damaged, but their combat activity was interrupted for several months.

Six surviving high-speed battleships took part in the raid under code name Hailstone, undertaken against Truk Island on February 17–18, 1944, Iowa and New Jersey were assigned to TG50. 9. Then Admiral Spruance chose the battleship New Jersey as his flagship. The other four battleships, along with the escort aircraft carriers, made up the TG58 formation. 3, it played an auxiliary role in the operation. A month later, on March 18, the Iowa and New Jersey, again under Rear Admiral Lee, escorted the USS Lexington and seven destroyers in TG50. 10 during the bombardment of Milli Atoll, south of Majuro. During the operation, Iowa received several direct hits from 6-inch shells fired by Japanese coastal batteries, which, however, did not cause serious damage to the ship. The battleship remained in the battle line. A similar grouping was formed on May 1, it was again commanded by our good friend Lee (already vice admiral!). for a raid on Ponape Island from the Caroline Archipelago. Seven fast battleships (Indiana was suspended) and ten destroyers, supported by aircraft from aircraft carriers of the TF58 formation. 1 fired back at the island without interference.

For the next raiding operation, seven battleships were again brought together, although now the place of Massachusetts was taken by Washington (with a new bow); "Massachusetts" went for repairs. The battleships formed the core of the TG58 group. 7. intended for shelling the enemy as part of Operation Forager - the invasion of the Mariana Islands. Spruance expected opposition Japanese fleet. The expectations of the American naval commander were justified - on June 18, 1944, an epic naval battle unfolded in the Philippine Sea, well known as the Great Marianas Rout. Lee's battleships then formed the core of the 5th Fleet. Throughout the day, the American battleships were subjected to sporadic raids by Japanese aircraft, the main target of which was actually the US Navy aircraft carriers. "South Dakota" then received one direct hit by an air bomb, another bomb exploded under the side of the "Indiana".

Spruance's strategies in that three-day battle, according to modern critical experts, lacked aggressiveness at times. Most of the questions are caused by the decision of the admiral to turn away from Ozawa's fleet on the evening of the 18th, leaving the initiative in the hands of the Japanese naval commander. Spruance's decision was then very much influenced by Lee, who did not want to risk his as yet undamaged battleships in a night battle with the Japanese, known for their art of warfare at night. Lee reasonably doubted the possibility of his ships, which had never yet operated in a single battle formation, to inflict more damage on the enemy than the enemy would inflict on them.

The damage inflicted on the South Dakota did not become a reason for sending the battleship for repairs to Pearl Harbor. At the same time, the North Carolina went to the West Coast of the States for repairs, which this ship needed more than the South Dakota. Thus, six high-speed battleships remained available, capable of taking part in Admiral Halsey's TF38 raid in the Philippine Sea in September - October 1944.

And again, the grouping of fast battleships was dismembered. "Iowa" and "New Jersey" (Admiral Halsey's flagship) gave the TG38 compound. 3. Four other battleships ("Washington", "Indiana", "Massachusetts" and "Alabama") entered TG38. 3. "Washington" - the flagship of Admiral Lee. These forces supported raids on Palatz (September 6–8), Mindanao (September 10), Visayas (September 12–14) and Luzon (September 21–22). During the short pause that followed the strike on Luzon. "South Dakota" was replaced by "Indiana"; "South Dakota" went for repairs. The strikes resumed with a raid against Okinawa (October 10), then again against Luzon (October 11), then Formosa (October 12-14), Luzon again (October 15). In anticipation of the invasion of Leyte Gulf, which began on October 17, Washington and Alabama were transferred from TG38. 3 in TG38. 4.

The Imperial Japanese Navy responded to the American invasion of the Philippines by bringing together all of its main forces for the last time. The last time Lee's battleships had an excellent chance, with a high probability of a successful outcome, to meet face-to-face with their opponents without intermediaries in the form of aircraft carriers. This chance did not work out for Lee.

The fast battleships were distributed in pairs among Admiral Halsey's aircraft carrier formation, most day of October 24, located in the San Bernardino Strait. By the main forces of the Japanese fleet, the squadron of Admiral Kuri. carrier-based aircraft of the American fleet worked. The planes sank the super-linker Musashi, and the Kurita formation was partly sunk and partly dispersed. By the evening of October 24, aircraft carriers Northern Fleet Admiral Ozawa, who acted independently, were spotted by the Americans north of Luzon. At 15:12 Halsey ordered Lee's fast battleships to head north, separating them into a separate formation, TF34.

Lee protested against the exclusion of his battleships from the general fleet and the immediate dispatch of ships from the San Bernardino Strait. He protested twice, both of which had no effect on Halsey. There were not even radar patrol destroyers left in the San Bernardino Strait.

In a slow and dangerous night maneuver, Lee regrouped his forces, concentrating his battleships in a screen in front of the carriers. Maneuvering took most of the night. At dawn on October 25, TF34 was formed and, at the head of Halsey's fleet, began to pursue Ozawa's aircraft carriers at high speed, the American fleet filled the entire horizon. Three hours after Halsey's departure from the strait, the ships of Admiral Kurita's Central Squadron arrived here. Accurately at the time of Halsey's first attack on Ozawa's ships, Admiral Kincaid, who was in Leyte Gulf, 300 miles to the south, radioed for help. Admiral Nimitz at Pearl Harbor heard Kincaid's calls and did not understand how the Japanese had gone undetected right on the Taffy-3 compound and why the Japanese had not been intercepted by Lee's battleships. At 10:00 Nimitz radioed Halsey:

- FROM WITH IN PAC ACYION COM TFIRD FLEET INFO COMINCH CTF77 X WHERE IS RPT WHERE IS TF34 RR THE WORLD WONDERS

The last three words were added to the radiogram to confuse Japanese cryptographers, but Halsey took them personally. Halsey flew into a rage, believing that he was put up as an eccentric with the letter "M" in front of Admiral King (COMINCH) and Admiral Kincaid (CTF77). The admiral had a stroke, almost an hour passed before he gave the order to Admiral Lee at 10.55 at full speed to help. TF34 returned to the channel at 01:00 on October 26, having left Kurita three hours earlier. The irony of fate - at the time of receiving the order to return to San Bernardino, Lee's battleships were only 42 miles from Ozawa's aircraft carriers. There was a chance for a successful battle both at the starting point and at the end point of the route. As a result, it didn't work out. not here. Four battleships scurried across the sea-ocean in a completely indecent way.

The chance for the last general battle of the battle fleets turned out to be missed, to the great indignation of naval historians of all countries and generations - how many lost fees! It's one thing to criticize Halsey and Lee, it's another to describe the battle. The number of printed characters, directly proportional to the amount of the fee, in the latter case increases many times over. Well - so lay the cards of historical solitaire.

Having missed the chance to put an end to the sunset of their historical career, American battleships escorted aircraft carriers for the rest of the war, occasionally being involved in shelling Japanese coastal positions. Of the significant events, it is worth noting that the New Jersey and the newest Wisconsin campaign to Cam Ranh Bay in January 1945 guarding a cruiser and destroyer in order to shoot at the surviving ships of Kurita, who allegedly found their refuge in Cam Ranh. The campaign was interrupted, as on January 12, aviation reconnaissance was convinced of the absence of Kurita in Cam Ranh.

With the exception of the campaign to Cam Ranh, high-speed battleships were engaged until the end of the war exclusively in escorting aircraft carriers. Battleships, together with aircraft carriers, passed from November 1944 to March 1945 Luzon, Okinawa, Indochina, mainland China, Formosa and the waters of the Japanese islands. On January 25, the Indiana bombarded Iwo Jima once, firing 203 16-inch shells. In April 1945, the main efforts of the American fleet were directed to Okinawa, then high-speed battleships fired several times at Japanese positions on the island. When the carriers returned to Japanese waters in July, the fast battleships came with them. The South Dakota, Indiana, and Massachusetts bombarded Kamaishi Island on July 14. 29–30 July aircraft factory at Hamamatsu and again on 9 August 1945 Kamaishi Island.

Victory Day over Japan found the fast battleships of the US Navy in Tokyo Bay divided into four aircraft carrier groups. The fact that the South Dakota was the flagship of Admiral Nimitz, and the signing of the Japanese Surrender Act on board the Missouri completely obscured the very modest contribution that high-speed battleships actually made to the outcome of the Pacific campaign. In fact, except for the first battles, these ships acted only as high-speed armored floating batteries.

With the end of World War II, heated discussions unfolded in the United States about reducing appropriations for military needs, as well as about ways to further build the armed forces in general and the Navy in particular. Including discussed the fate of the ten newest battleships. These ships became the crown of development, but the crown of development, according to most experts, no longer had a future. Battleships couldn't fly. Aircraft have finally become the main caliber of the navy.

In 1946, the battleship Missouri took part in the very successful Operation Goodwill, a campaign in the Mediterranean Sea, undertaken to limit the activity of the communist movement in Greece and Turkey. The operation of large ships with numerous crews required significant costs, while the role of such ships remained not entirely clear. In this light, the decision to withdraw battleships from the combat strength of the fleet looks logical. September 11, 1946, exactly one year after the Victory Day over Japan, the Indiana was withdrawn from the Navy. "North Carolina" and three other "South Dakotas" followed the path laid by "Indiana" in 1947, "New Jersey" and "Wisconsin" were excluded from the lists of the fleet in 1948, "Iowa" - in 1949.

At the start of the Korean War in 1950, the only battleship remaining in the US Navy was the Missouri. He arrived off the coast of Korea in mid-September 1950 and immediately began using his large guns to very remarkable effect. The assessment of the combat work was so high that it was decided in 1951 to put three battleships of the Iowa type back into operation.

The second "round" of the Iowa combat service turned out to be longer than the first. The interested parties signed a truce in 1952, but before the truce, the main caliber of four American battleships actively fought against the threat of communism, shelling Korea from the left and right, in the sense from the East and from the West. Two years after the armistice, four battleships remained in the combat composition of the Navy, while in their further fate again, legislators who decided to cut defense spending did not intervene. The first on February 26, 1955, the Missouri was excluded from the lists of the combat strength of the Navy. The following year, the "sisters" "Missouri" were sent to rest. The Mississippi was withdrawn from the Navy on March 8, 1958 - for the first time since 1895, not a single battleship remained in the US Navy.

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One after another, the battleships went to the cutting, although there were also supporters of the continuation of the active service of battleships. In the early 1950s, the possibility of increasing the full speed of six old "high-speed" battleships to 31 knots was studied, so that they could again be used to escort aircraft carriers. The price of such an improvement turned out to be prohibitively high, which is why the idea had to be abandoned. The North Carolina and Washington were scrapped on June 1, 1960 (the North Carolina, however, was preserved as a memorial ship). Two years later, it was time for the four South Dakotas. Two of them, "Massachusetts" and "Alabama", put on eternal parking. If the Vietnam War had not happened, then a similar fate would most likely have awaited Iowa. The Vietnam War made me think about battleships - a decision was made to modernize and commission the New Jersey. The battleship once again entered the combat structure of the US Navy on April 8, 1968. The participation of the battleship in the Vietnam events turned out to be very short-lived, despite the extremely positive effect of its main caliber. Anxious diplomats made a fuss about "... destabilizing influence ..." in fear of a possible super-response of the enemy. December 17, 1969 "New Jersey" was again pushed into the reserve.

A ray of light in the dark life of old battleships flashed again in the 70s. Many narrow-minded people from among the inhabitants of the Pentagon have repeatedly criticized the authorities for their desire to store expensive relics of the Second World War. However, at the end of the decade, prominent analysts, mainly outside the Pentagon, began to work out new scenarios for naval policy, in which there was a place for battleships. Since the mid-1960s, the US Navy has been undergoing a rather slow process of replacing surface ships built during the Second World War with new ships focused on use in the oceans under the dominance of aircraft carriers and submarines as the main means of waging war at sea. At that time, the armament of the majority navies The world (but not the Navy) received relatively small and relatively weak ships, which were intended to combat aircraft and submarines. In most cases, they did not have body armor at all, and their superstructures were generally made of aluminum. Artillery, on the other hand, was represented at best by a caliber of 5 inches. The ships were intended to protect aircraft carriers or to hunt for enemy submarines. The main work was assigned to carrier-based aviation.

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In the late 1970s, this approach to the construction of the Navy was criticized by prominent representatives of the expert community. The Vietnam War showed that the development of air defense systems is progressing as rapidly as the development of aviation. This conclusion was confirmed during the Middle East war of 1973. At that time, the Israeli Air Force fulfilled the tasks assigned to them only at the cost of very large losses in people and equipment. Even if the level of losses in tactical aircraft participating in the raid is 1% (a very optimistic estimate), their cost becomes fabulous - the price of one aircraft already then went off scale for a million dollars. In addition, again with a loss level of 1%, two aircraft carriers (the standard composition of the US Navy aircraft carrier group) are not capable of providing close air support to the ground forces in the required volume for more or less a long time. None of the above problems could have been solved by the guns of the ships of that time. 5-inch caliber shells did not have sufficient damaging effect to destroy coastal fortifications. The big question is that ships that are not protected by armor will be able to withstand the fire of ground artillery and tanks. Aluminum burns, and the superstructures of many American ships were made of aluminum to save weight. What a fire on an “aluminum” ship can lead to was well shown by the collision of the Belknap cruiser with the Kennedy aircraft carrier in 1975. The British lost four destroyer-frigate class ships in the Falklands campaign, and several more ships failed due to damage, which would hardly have been fatal for ships of a similar class during the Second World War.

An alternative to the use of aviation, insufficient and sometimes inadequate, analysts saw in the high-speed battleships of the Second World War. At the end of the 1970s, the issue of introducing ships of the Iowa type into the combat structure of the US Navy again arose on the agenda. The logic is simple: aircraft from two aircraft carriers will deliver 420 tons of explosives to the coast in about 12 hours of operations. while a battleship armed with nine 6-inch guns is capable of bringing down a similar "payload" on coastal installations in just 18 minutes. On the other hand, the range of carrier-based aircraft is several hundred miles, while the firing range of a battleship's main battery is only 20 miles. However, the experience of the Vietnam War showed that in 80% carrier-based aircraft worked on targets that could be fired from the guns of a battleship. In terms of accuracy of ammunition delivery and response time to a threat, a battleship is preferable to an aircraft. If we take naval artillery, then the 5-inch / 45-caliber guns that were widespread at that time on the ships of the US Navy simply should not be compared with the 16-inch monsters of the Iowa-class battleships. Let's compare anyway. The five-inch projectile weighs about 70 kg, the firing range is about 13 nautical miles; the projectile is capable of penetrating a 90 cm thick concrete floor. The mass of a 15-inch caliber projectile is from 860 to 1220 kg, the firing range is more than 20 nautical miles, the projectile pierces a concrete floor up to 9 m thick. New technologies have made it possible to increase the firing range of 16-inch guns to 50 nautical miles. With 12 inches of armor and an all-steel construction, the Iowa-class battleships were virtually immune to the French Exocet-type anti-ship missiles or the 500-pound bombs that had inflicted such heavy losses on the British fleet at the Falklands.

Despite the weight of the arguments of supporters of the next advent of battleships, cuts in the military budget during the presidency of Jimmy Carter made the return of the Iows to the US Navy impossible. Only the rise to power in 1980 of Ronald Reagan ignited hope in the hearts of battleship supporters. Reagan, immediately after his housewarming party, announced the start of a program to build a 600-ship navy. Appropriations allocated for fiscal year 1981 provided for the commissioning of the battleship New Jersey, appropriations for fiscal year 1982 for the commissioning of the Iowa. In the future, it was planned to modernize and commission the battleships Missouri and Wisconsin. Budget cuts and revisions of plans are typical of US politicians at the end of the 20th century, which is why the plans were not fully implemented, and the battleship commissioning program itself slowed down. The commissioning ceremony of the battleship "New Jersey" was furnished in Hollywood style, it took place on December 28, 1982 at a shipyard in Long Beach. Iowa underwent a deeper modernization, in full, and not in a truncated form like New Jersey. Iowa entered service on April 28, 1984. Congress blocked the allocation of funds for the modernization and commissioning of two other battleships. "New Jersey" proved to be excellent in the first year of service after commissioning in Nicaragua and Lebanon.

According to the plan, the New Jersey was to become the core of an autonomous formation of surface ships designed to strike at the coast and enemy ships.