Warships of the US Navy: Battleships, Tennessee-class

Tennesee-class battleships

The Tennessee-class consisted of two dreadnought battleships—Tennessee and California—built for theUnited States Navy in the late 1910s, part of the "standard" series.The class wasin most respects a repeat of the preceding New Mexico class, withthe primaryimprovements being a significantly strengthened underwaterprotection system,and increased elevation of the main battery guns to allowthem to fire at muchgreater ranges. They carried the same main battery oftwelve 14-inch (356 mm)guns in four triple turrets, and had the same top speedof 21 knots (39 km/h;24 mph). Both ships served in the Pacific Fleet for theduration of theircareers, which included an extensive training program duringthe interwarperiod of the 1920s and 1930s.

Both ships were present in Battleship Row in Pearl Harbor when theJapaneseattacked on 7 December 1941; California was torpedoed and sunk butTennesseewas only minimally damaged. California was refloated and both shipswereheavily rebuilt between 1942 and 1944. The pair thereafter sawextensiveservice as bombardment vessels supporting the island-hopping campaignacrossthe central Pacific. Tennessee took part in the Aleutian Islands campaigninmid-1943, the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign in late 1943 andearly1944, and the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign in mid-1944, by whichtimeCalifornia had returned to the fleet as well.

They both took part in the Philippines campaign in late 1944, and werepresentat the Battle of Surigao Strait on 24 October, the final battleshipengagementin history. A refit for Tennessee kept her from participating in theBattle ofLingayen Gulf in January 1945, where California was hit by a kamikaze,which inturn kept her from supporting Marine Corps troops during the Battle ofIwoJima. Tennessee was heavily engaged in the fighting there and thesubsequentBattle of Okinawa, where she, too, was hit by a kamikaze. The twoships spentthe rest of the war patrolling the East China Sea until the officialJapanesesurrender in September. After briefly participating in the occupation of Japan,they were recalled to the United States and assigned to the AtlanticReserveFleet. They remained there until 1959, when they were sold forscrap.(Wikipedia)

(USN Photo)

U.S. Navy battleshipUSS Tennessee (BB-43) underway on 12 May 1943. Tennessee was damaged in theJapanese attack on Pearl Harbor 7 December 1941 and was afterwards given a veryextensive reconstruction. This gave her the enormous beam apparent in this photograph.

USS Tennessee (BB-43)was the lead ship ofthe Tennessee class of dreadnought battleships built forthe United States Navyin the 1910s. The Tennessee class was part of thestandard series of twelvebattleships built in the 1910s and 1920s, and weredevelopments of thepreceding New Mexico class. They were armed with a batteryof twelve 14-inch(356 mm) guns in four three-gun turrets. Tennessee served inthe Pacific Fleetfor duration of her peacetime career. She spent the 1920s and1930sparticipating in routine fleet training exercises, including the annualFleetProblems, and cruises around the Americas and further abroad, such asagoodwill visit to Australia and New Zealand in 1925.

Tennessee was moored in Battleship Row when the Japanese attacked PearlHarboron 7 December 1941, which brought the United States into World War II.She wasnot seriously damaged, and after being repaired she operated off theWest Coastof the US in 1942. In 1943, Tennessee and many of the olderbattleships werethoroughly rebuilt to prepare them for operations in thePacific War and inJune–August, she took part in the Aleutian Islands Campaign,providing gunfiresupport to troops fighting to retake the islands. The Gilbertand MarshallIslands campaign followed from November 1943 to February 1944,including theBattles of Tarawa, Kwajalein, and Eniwetok. In March, she raidedKavieng todistract Japanese forces during the landing on Emirau, and from JunethroughSeptember, she fought in the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign,bombardingJapanese forces during the Battles of Saipan, Guam, Tinian, andAngaur.

The Philippines campaign followed in September, during which the ship operatedas part of the bombardment group at the Battle of Leyte. The Japanese launchedamajor naval counterattack that resulted in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, a seriesoffour naval engagements. During the Battle of Surigao Strait, Tennesseeformedpart of the US line of battle that defeated a Japanese squadron; thiswas thelast battleship engagement in history. Tennessee shelled Japaneseforces duringthe Battle of Iwo Jima in February 1945 and the Battle of Okinawafrom March toJune. During the latter action, she was hit by a kamikaze but wasnot seriouslydamaged. In the final months of the war, she operated primarilyin the EastChina Sea, and after Japan's surrender in August, she participatedin theoccupation of Japan before returning to the US late in the year. In thepostwarreduction of naval forces, Tennessee was placed in the reserve fleet in 1946and retained, out of service, until 1959, when the Navy decided to discardher.The ship was sold to Bethlehem Steel in July and broken up for scrap. (Wikipedia)

(USN Photo)

U.S. Navy battleship USS Tennessee (BB-43) underway in Puget Sound, Washington (USA), on 12 May 1943, after modernization.

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USS California (BB-44), 1921.

USS California (BB-44) was the second oftwo Tennessee-class battleships built for the United States Navy between herkeel laying in October 1916 and her commissioning in August 1921. The Tennesseeclass was part of the standard series of twelve battleships built in the 1910sand 1920s, and were developments of the preceding New Mexico class. They werearmed with a battery of twelve 14-inch (356 mm) guns in four three-gun turrets.California served as the flagship of the Battle Fleet in the Pacific Ocean forthe duration of her peacetime career. She spent the 1920s and 1930sparticipating in routine fleet training exercises, including the annual FleetProblems, and cruises around the Americas and further abroad, such as agoodwill visit to Australia and New Zealand in 1925.

California was moored in Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 when the Japaneseattacked the port, bringing the United States into World War II. The ship wasmoderately damaged by a pair of torpedoes and a bomb, but a fire disabled theship's electrical system, preventing the pumps from being used to keep the shipafloat. California slowly filled with water over the following three days andeventually sank. Her crew suffered 165 casualties and four men were awarded theMedal of Honor for their actions during the attack. She was raised in April1942, repaired and heavily rebuilt, and returned to service in January 1944.

The ship thereafter supported the amphibious operations conducted during thePacific War, including the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign (though she wasdamaged in a collision with Tennessee and thus missed the Battle of Peleliu)and the Philippines campaign, during which she took part in the Battle ofSurigao Strait. She was hit by a kamikaze during the invasion of Lingayen Gulfin January 1945, but after undergoing repairs, she rejoined the fleetsupporting troops fighting on Okinawa during the Battle of Okinawa. Her crewtook part in the occupation of Japan after the end of the war, and afterreturning to the United States via the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, was laid upin Philadelphia in 1946. She remained in the fleet's inventory until 1959, whenshe was broken up for scrap. (Wikipedia)

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USS California (BB-34) sunk in shallow water at Pearl Harbor after the attack.

(USN Photo)

USS California (BB-34) underway, probably in the Puget Sound area, circa January 1944. The ship is painted in camouflage Measure 32, Design 16-D.