| Type 41 203 mm 45 caliber naval gun | |
|---|---|
| Type |
Naval gun Coast defense gun |
| Place of origin |
 Empire of Japan |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1908-1945 |
| Used by |
 Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Wars |
World War I World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1914 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 18.75 – 19.4 metric tons |
| Length | 9.487 meters |
| Barrel length | 9.114 meter bore |
|
| |
| Caliber | 203 millimetres (7.99 in) |
| Action | manual |
| Breech | single motion interrupted screw |
| Elevation | -5° - 24° |
| Traverse | +/- 150° |
| Rate of fire | 2 rounds per minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 2,480 ft/s (760 m/s) |
| Effective firing range | 18000 meters |
The 20.3 cm/45 Type 41 naval gun was a Japanese naval artillery and coast defense gun used on cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy from the end of the Russo-Japanese War through the end of World War II.
Design and development[]
The 20.3 cm/45 Type 41 naval gun was an indigenous development of the British-designed Elswick Patterns “S”, “U” and “W” QF 4.7 inch Gun Mk I - IV, which had been previously produced by Ansaldo in Italy to equip Italian-built armored cruisers, and which had been received by the Japanese as part of the equipment supplied with the Italian-built Nisshin. The weapon was officially re-designated as Type 41 on 25 December 1908, and re-designated again on 5 October 1917 in centimeters.
The weapon was used on the armored cruisers Azuma, Asama, Iwate, Izumo, Kasuga, Nisshin, Tokiwa and Yakumo, and the Chikuma-class cruiser, as well as some of the later protected cruisers, including Takasago. Many of these ships were disarmed under the conditions of the Washington Naval Treaty or subsequent London Naval Treaty and their guns converted into coastal artillery batteries, including installations at Tokyo Bay, Tarawa and later at Wake Island during World War II.
References[]
- Bishop, Chris (eds) The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. Barnes & Nobel. 1998. ISBN 0-7607-1022-8
- Campbell. John. Naval Weapons of World War Two", Naval Institute Press (1986). ISBN 0-87021-459-4
External links[]
- DiGiulian, Tony. "Japanese 20.3 cm/45 Type 41". NavWeaps.com. http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNJAP_8-45_EOC.htm.
The original article can be found at 20.3 cm/45 Type 41 naval gun and the edit history here.