Light Cruiser Tatsuta

Tatsuta (龍田) was the second and final ship of the Tenryu-class light cruisers, laid down at Sasebo Naval Arsenal on 24 July 1917, launched on 29 May 1918, and commissioned on 31 March 1919. Named after the Tatsuta River in Nara Prefecture, she was the sister ship of Tenryu and shared the same role as a destroyer flotilla flagship.

Like her sister, Tatsuta displaced approximately 3,230 tons and was armed with four 14 cm guns and six 53.3 cm torpedo tubes. During the interwar period, both ships served as flagships for various destroyer squadrons and participated in training exercises.

During World War II, Tatsuta was involved in the Wake Island invasion (December 1941), the Rabaul invasion (January 1942), and various convoy escort duties across the Pacific. As the war progressed and newer ships became available, Tatsuta was increasingly assigned to escort and transport duties.

On 13 March 1944, while escorting a troop convoy bound for Saipan, Tatsuta was torpedoed by the American submarine USS Sand Lance (SS-381) about 40 miles off Hachijōjima, south of Honshu. The torpedo struck starboard aft and flooded her engine rooms; her crew fought the flooding for some twelve hours before she sank that afternoon. Twenty-six men were killed and ten wounded.