Japanese battleship Haruna

High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Haruna, named after Mount Haruna, was a battleship of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War I and World War II. She was the fourth and last ship of her class, and was designed by the British naval engineer George Thurston. Laid down as a battlecruiser in 1912 at Kôbe, Haruna was formally commissioned in 1915, as the last of the four most powerful capital ships in the Imperial Japanese Navy at the time. Haruna saw minor patrolling action during World War I, and was lightly damaged by a turret explosion in 1920. Haruna underwent two major reconstructions during her maritime career. The first of these, in 1926, rebuilt her as a battleship, strengthening her armour and improving her speed and power capabilities. The second, in 1933, completely rebuilt her superstructure, upgraded her speed capabilities, and equipped her with floatplanes. Capable of the speeds necessary to accompany Japan's carrier-fleet, Haruna was reclassified as a fast battleship following her second reconstruction.