{{short description|Cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy}} {{other ships|Japanese ship Chiyoda}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}} {{Infobox ship |section1={{Infobox ship/image |image= Japanese cruiser Chiyoda.jpg |image_caption=''Chiyoda'' around 1900 }}
|section2={{Infobox ship/career |hide_header= |country=[[Empire of Japan]] |flag={{shipboxflag|Empire of Japan|naval}} |name=''Chiyoda'' |namesake= |ordered= 1888 Fiscal Year |builder= [[J & G Thomson]] |laid_down=4 December 1888 |launched= 3 June 1890 |completed= 1 January 1891 |acquired= |commissioned= |decommissioned= 28 February 1927 |in_service= |out_of_service= |struck= |homeport= |honours= |fate= Expended as target 5 August 1927 |notes= }}
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics |hide_header= |header_caption= |type= [[Cruiser]] |displacement={{convert|2439|LT|t|0|lk=in|abbr=on}} |length={{convert|94.49|m|ftin|abbr=on}} [[Length at the waterline|w/l]] |beam={{convert|12.81|m|ftin|abbr=on}} |draught={{convert|4.27|m|ftin|abbr=on}} |propulsion=2-shaft [[vertical triple expansion]], 6 locomotive boilers, {{convert|5678|hp|abbr=on}} |speed={{convert|19|kn|mph km/h}} |range= |complement=350 |armament=*10 × [[QF 4.7-inch Gun Mk I–IV|QF 4.7 inch /40 naval guns]] *14 × [[QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss]] guns *3 × 11-mm, 10-barrel [[Nordenfelt gun]]s *3 × {{convert|356|mm|in|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s |armour=*[[Belt armor|Belt]]: {{convert|82|-|92|mm|in|abbr=on}} *[[Deck (ship)|Deck]]: {{convert|30|-|35|mm|in|abbr=on}} *[[Conning tower]]: {{convert|30|mm|in|abbr=on}} |notes= }} }}
{{nihongo|'''''Chiyoda'''''|千代田}} was a [[cruiser]] of the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]], which served in the [[First Sino-Japanese War]], [[Russo-Japanese War]] and [[World War I]].
==Background== ''Chiyoda'' was ordered by the [[Meiji government]] as a replacement for the ill-fated {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Unebi||2}}, and paid for with insurance money received from the [[France|French government]] after that ship disappeared without a trace somewhere in the [[South China Sea]] en route to Japan.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Laughton|first1= Leonard George Carr |last2=Anderson |first2=Roger Charles |year=2007 |title=Chiyoda |journal=The Mariner's Mirror |volume=93 |pages=488 |publisher=The Society for Nautical Research }}</ref> However, unwilling to use a French shipyard after the ''Unebi'' disaster, the Imperial Japanese Navy placed its order in 1889 to [[J & G Thomson]] of [[Glasgow]], [[Scotland]]. Construction was supervised by Arai Yukan and by [[Ijuin Gorō]], and on 11 April 1891, ''Chiyoda'' arrived safely at [[Yokosuka, Kanagawa|Yokosuka]]. On 5 September 1892, command of ''Chiyoda'' was assigned to Captain (later [[Fleet Admiral]]) [[Prince Arisugawa Takehito]].
==Design== ''Chiyoda'' was a 'belted cruiser' based on a much scaled-down version of the [[Royal Navy]]'s {{sclass|Nelson|cruiser|2}}s. The hull comprised 84 watertight compartments, protected with [[Harvey armor]].<ref name=Jentsura>Jentsura, '' Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy'', pages 72</ref> Originally designed to carry 12.6-inch [[Canet gun]]s, the plan was abandoned due to excessive top weight. Instead, the design was changed so that her [[main battery]] consisted of ten [[QF 4.7-inch Gun Mk I–IV|QF 4.7-inch /40 naval gun]]s in single mounts, mounted one each in the bow and stern, and four on each side in [[sponson]]s. The use of the Elwick quick-firing technology resulted in an increase in the rate of fire by six-fold over previous cruiser designs. Her secondary battery consisted of 14 [[QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss]] and three 11-mm, 10-barrel [[Nordenfelt gun]]s. She was also equipped with three {{convert|356|mm|in|abbr=on}} [[Whitehead torpedo]] tubes mounted on the main deck. As was standard practice at the time, the [[prow]] was reinforced for [[Naval ram|ramming]].<ref name=Conway>Chesneau, '' Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905'', pages 231–233</ref>
==Service record== With the outbreak of the [[First Sino-Japanese War]], ''Chiyoda'' was assigned to patrol duties off of the coasts of [[Korea]], [[China]], [[Russia]], and occasional patrols to [[Hokkaidō]]. She was present at all of the significant battles of the war, including the crucial [[Battle of Yalu River (1894)|Battle of Yalu River]] and the [[Battle of Weihaiwei]]. ''Chiyoda'' was also among the Japanese fleet units that participated in the [[Japanese invasion of Taiwan (1895)|invasion of Taiwan]] in 1895 and saw action on 3 June 1895 at the [[shore bombardment|bombardment]] of Chinese coastal forts at [[Battle of Keelung (1895)|Keelung]].<ref>Davidson, 298–99</ref>
After the war, ''Chiyoda'' went into [[dry dock]] at [[Kure Naval Arsenal]], where the locomotive boilers on her [[triple expansion steam engine]]s were replaced with more modern [[Belleville boiler]]s, and the [[fighting top]]s on her three raked masts were removed to improve stability.<ref name=Conway/> On completion of the retrofit in 1898, ''Chiyoda'' was re-designated a 3rd class cruiser. Later that year, during the [[Spanish–American War]], she was based at [[Manila]] to safeguard Japanese civilians and economic interests in the [[Philippines]]. During the [[Boxer Rebellion]], she was stationed at [[Taku Forts|Taku]] and [[Yantai]] in northern China.
During the [[Russo-Japanese War]] (1904–1905), ''Chiyoda'' had a prominent role in the opening [[Battle of Chemulpo Bay]] while commanded by Captain [[Murakami Kakuichi]] and subsequently fought at the [[Battle of the Yellow Sea]] and the [[Battle off Ulsan]]. On 27 July 1904, ''Chiyoda'' stuck a Russian [[naval mine]] but was towed to [[Dalian]], where repairs were completed in time for her to participate in the [[Battle of Tsushima]].<ref name=Conway /> On 12 January 1905, ''Chiyoda'' was captained by Captain (later [[Fleet Admiral]]) [[Prince Higashifushimi Yorihito]].
On 28 August 1912, ''Chiyoda'' was re-designated as a 2nd-class [[Coastal defence ship|coastal defense vessel]].
During the [[Siege of Tsingtao]] in [[World War I]], ''Chiyoda'' was part of the Japanese fleet sent to capture the [[Imperial German Navy]] base at [[Qingdao|Tsingtao]] in [[Shandong|Shandong, China]].<ref>Howarth, ''The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun''</ref> Afterwards, based out of [[Manila]], she took part in [[Allies of World War I|Allied]] patrols of the China coast against German [[commerce raiding|commerce raiders]].
On 14 April 1921, ''Chiyoda'' was downgraded to a [[destroyer tender]] and was used for various odd tasks, including a [[submarine tender]] and as a school ship for naval cadets.
''Chiyoda'' was officially decommissioned on 28 February 1927 and sunk as a target during [[live fire exercise]]s on 5 August 1927 in [[Bungo Channel]] by the [[heavy cruiser]] {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Furutaka||2}} under review of [[Emperor Hirohito]].
After its dismantling, the [[bridge (ship)|bridge]] of ''Chiyoda'' was preserved at the [[Imperial Japanese Naval Academy]] at [[Etajima, Hiroshima]] as a reviewing stand over the parade grounds.
==Gallery== <gallery> File:Chiyoda.jpg|c. 1880s File:Japanese cruiser Chiyoda 2.jpg|In parade flags after the Russo-Japanese War, 1905–1907 </gallery>
==Notes== {{commons category|Chiyoda (ship, 1891)}} {{reflist}}
==References== * {{cite book|last= Chesneau |first= Roger|title= Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. |publisher= Conway Maritime Press |year=1979|isbn=0-85177-133-5}} * [[James W. Davidson|Davidson, J. W.]], ''The Island of Formosa, Past and Present'' (London, 1903) * {{cite book|last1=Evans|first1=David C.|author-link2=Mark Peattie|last2=Peattie |first2=Mark R.|title=Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887–1941|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, MD|year=1997|isbn=0-87021-192-7}} * {{cite book|title=Steam, Steel and Shellfire, The Steam Warship 1815-1905|editor=Gardiner, Robert|year=2001|publisher=Chartwell Books, Incorporated |isbn=0-7858-1413-2}} * {{cite book|last=Howarth|first=Stephen|title=The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895-1945|publisher=Atheneum|year=1983|isbn=0-689-11402-8}} * {{cite book|last=Jentsura|first=Hansgeorg|title=Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869-1945|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, MD|year=1976|isbn=0-87021-893-X}} * {{cite book|last=Milanovich|first=Kathrin|title=''Chiyoda'' (II): First "Armoured Cruiser" of the Imperial Japanese Navy|editor=Jordan, John|publisher=Conway's|location=London|year=2006|series=Warship 2006 |pages=126–136|isbn=1-84486-030-2}} * {{cite book|last= Roberts |first= John (ed). |title='Warships of the world from 1860 to 1905 - Volume 2: United States, Japan and Russia |publisher= Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Koblenz |year=1983|isbn=3-7637-5403-2}} * {{cite book|last= Roksund |first= Arne |title=The Jeune École: The Strategy of the Weak|publisher= Brill |location= Leiden |year=2007|isbn=978-90-04-15723-1}} * {{cite book|last=Schencking|first=J. Charles|title=Making Waves: Politics, Propaganda, And The Emergence Of The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1868-1922|publisher=Stanford University Press|year=2005|isbn=0-8047-4977-9}}
{{IJNOrder1894-95}} {{Russo-JapaneseWarJapaneseShips}} {{WWI Japanese ships}} {{1927 shipwrecks}} {{Coord|32.909|N|132.25|E|format=dms|display=title|region:JP_type:waterbody}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chiyoda}} [[Category:Cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy]] [[Category:Ships built on the River Clyde]] [[Category:1890 ships]] [[Category:Naval ships of Japan]] [[Category:First Sino-Japanese War cruisers of Japan]] [[Category:Russo-Japanese War cruisers of Japan]] [[Category:World War I cruisers of Japan]] [[Category:Shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean]] [[Category:Ships sunk as targets]] [[Category:Maritime incidents in 1927]]