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USS
WASHINGTON
Model battleship BB-56
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USS
Washington (BB-56) was the second and final member of
the North Carolina
class of fast battleships,
By 1937, the restrictions on
battleship construction set forth by the Washington
Naval Treaty of 1922 had become essentially moot.
The treaty had been put in place to control the
production of warships by the five world powers of
the time - Britain, the United States, Italy, the
Empire of Japan, and France - limiting maximum
surface displacement and main gun calibers for all
capital-class vessels.
In 1930, the treaty was modified to regulate
submarine warfare and further shipbuilding. In 1936,
another revision - this becoming the Second London
Naval Treaty - was presented. However, Japan and
Italy would not abide by the treaty and Germany
remained relatively unmoved by the restrictions for
it had already been tied down by the limitations
inherent in the Treaty of Versailles set up after
World War 1. The German nation was given most of the
blame for the war and punished accordingly. However,
despite the treaty, Germany set about in secretly
building her war machine nonetheless.
Japan refused to ratify the
Second London Naval Treaty and dismissed its
limitations, opting to build warships that would
suit its upcoming Pacific endeavors. After World War
1, the British maintained the world's largest power
at sea and they were followed by the burgeoning
numbers of the United States Navy while the Empire
of Japan maintained the third most considerable
force on water. It was during the period that the
naval treaties were still in effect that the United
States Navy made a move to procure a pair of modern
battleships within the 35,000 displacement limit
that could exhibit a 28-knot top speed and main gun
armament consisting of 14-inch main guns in
quadruple mountings.
However, with Japan refusing
to ratify the 1936 London Naval Treaty, the United
States similarly moved on its twin battleship
endeavor with renewed fervor and opted to fit them
with 16-inch guns instead. As the selected gun
caliber was larger than the intended 14-inch, each
turret would only sport three such guns instead of
the intended four. Main armament would be centered
along three independently operating turret
emplacements fitted to a conventional hull and field
an applicable superstructure amidships with close-in
defense via cannons and machine guns. Armor
protection, being designed to sustain direct hits
from 14-inch strikes, was not addressed further to
deal with potential damage from enemy 16-inch guns.
The new class of battleship was christened "North
Carolina" in honor of the American state and the two
vessels were ordered built - the lead ship to become
the USS North Carolina (BB-55) followed by her
sister - the USS Washington (BB-56). Washington was
ordered on August 1st, 1937 and laid down on June
14th, 1938 by the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. On
June 1st, 1940, USS Washington was launched on June
1st, 1940 and underwent the typical shakedown cruise
before being officially commissioned on May 15th,
1941 with Captain Howard H. J. Benson at the helm.
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The USS Washington weighed in at 36,900 Standard
Tons and up to 44,800 tons on a full load. She
measured a length of 729 feet with a beam of 108
feet and a draught of 38 feet. She had a top speed
of 27 knots.
With some of the British naval forces being
committed near Madagascar in early 1942, USS
Washington was allowed to serve with the British
Home Fleet in the North Atlantic where she became
the flagship vessel of Task Force 39. TF39 was
charged with escorting supply convoys destined for
Archangel and Murmansk in Russia as part of the
Len-Lease Act the Allies arranged in assisting the
Soviet Union in their fight against Nazism. Since
the KMS Tirpitz - sister ship to the German
battleship KMS Bismarck - was also a threat to the
region, Washington served as a watchful pair of guns
in support of the British Royal Navy. Washington
served with TF39 for four months before returning
stateside in July of 1942 for her first overhaul.
Her next deployment was out to the Pacific Theater
where she sailed in August - and would ultimately
spend most of her time during the war. From Casco,
Maine, Washington next headed towards Scapa Flow.
Rear Admiral John Walter Wilcox was then lost
overboard en route when heavy seas rattled the
vessel. The vessel then fell under the command of
Rear Admiral Willis Augustus Less. From August 23rd
1942 on, the USS Washington went on to serve in
Pacific waters for a total of 34 months.
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Arriving at Tonga in
September of 1942, Washington was put to work just
two months later. Her first major assignment was the
interception of a Japanese Navy Task Force nearing
Guadalcanal. She was paired with the USS South
Dakota among other USN surface ships. During the
ensuing night time action - this making up the Third
Battle of Savo - USS Washington teamed with the
South Dakota against the IJN battleship Kirishima.
While South Dakota took heavy damage to her topside
facings, the guns of the USS Washington kept the
battle in check for the Americans, delivering heavy
damage to the Kirishima in turn. IJN Kirishima was
deemed beyond repair and scuttled by her crew and
the last major Japanese naval offensive at
Guadalcanal was repulsed - USS Washington's first
battleship-to-battleship confrontation was a
success. In fact, Washington became the only US Navy
capital ship to best an enemy capital ship in the
whole of the war. Washington's guns were also
credited with sinking the IJN destroyer Ayanami in
the same battle. Through most of 1943, the USS
Washington served as an all-important defensive
escort to American aircraft carriers in the Theater.
Her anti-aircraft gun network was key to protecting
the aircraft-laden carrier vessels.
For a time, USS Washington
was the only USN battleship class warship in the
Pacific. She undertook important patrols around
enemy held waters for five straight weeks, often
working on her own. For nearly 80 days, the
Washington and her crew were on the run, resulting
in the vessel setting a record of 31,494 miles
steamed. During this period, she was refueled at sea
some 16 times but also fueled passing Allied
destroyers 59 times herself.
Washington next brought her
guns to bear - along with five other USN battleships
- in the bombardment of Japanese positions across
Nauru in December of 1943. In the early hours of
February 1944, the Washington accidentally rammed
the USS Indiana as the latter cut in front of the
Washington's bow to refuel awaiting destroyers. The
collision resulted in non-combat deaths to some of
her crew and some 60 feet of area across the
Washington's bow was damaged to the point that she
was sent back to Pearl Harbor to undergo repairs.
However, damage was severe enough that engineers at
Pearl gave the battleship a temporary bow so she
could steam safely back to Puget Sound Navy Yard for
thorough repairs. By the middle of 1944, the USS
Washington was back in action with the American
fleet in the Pacific.
The USS Washington was
called up again to bombard enemy locations, this
time at Saipan and Tinian. After these actions, she
was part of the US naval presence during the Battle
of the Philippine Sea - also known as the "Great
Marianas Turkey Shoot". In the ensuing action, the
USN Fifth Fleet under Raymond A. Spruance tangled
with an IJN combined fleet under Admirals Jisaburo
Ozawa and Kakuji Kakuta. Seven USN fleet carriers, 8
light carriers, 7 battleships, 28 submarines and
nearly 1,000 aircraft of the USN faced off against 5
fleet carriers, 4 light carriers, 5 battleships and
750 aircraft of the IJN. The battle took place
between June 19th and 20th, 1944 in the Philippine
Sea proper and resulted in a decisive American
victory - netting 3 aircraft carriers and 2 oilers
sunk with another 6 ships heavily damaged. More
importantly, 600 enemy aircraft were destroyed in
the fighting (hence the "turkey shoot" terminology).
In contrast, the USN lost 123 aircraft but still
managed to save 80 of these crew. The major
difference in the battle became the USN
carrier-based fighter aircraft as well as the net of
anti-aircraft defense protecting the carrier groups.
After victory, Washington
opened fire against Japanese locations at Iwo Jima
(the battle lasting from February - March 1945) and
Okinawa (from April to June 1945), supporting the
inevitable American amphibious landings by US
Marines and Army personnel. After much bloodshed by
ground troops on both sides, the islands eventually
fell to the advancing American ground forces. On
July 1st, 1945, USS Washington was called back
stateside for another overhaul. Her stay at Puget
Sound Navy Yard was extended until October to which
the war against Japan had already completed in
August of 1945 and was finalized in total surrender
on September 2nd on the decks of the fabled
Iowa-class battleship, the USS Missouri.
By the end of World War 2,
the USS Washington had amassed 289,609 miles during
her sailing tenure. In all, she expelled 3,535
rounds from her 16-inch guns and 28,062 projectiles
of 5-inch ammunition. Outdoing them both were her
20mm gun crews that tallied over 350,000 cannon
rounds. She participated in the repulsion of some 53
incoming enemy air attacks as well and destroyed
multiple enemy surface vessels - from battleships
and destroyers to support ships and transports - no
enemy vessel, it seemed, was safe from the USS
Washington.
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The USS Washington was one of those special US Navy
ships that ultimately served through to the end of
World War 2 and earned herself 13 Battle Stars in
the process. With the Pacific War now behind her,
Washington made her way back to the American east
coast and took part in the scheduled "Navy Day"
celebrations. Soon after, Washington participated in
"Operation Magic Carpet" and returned American
soldiers back home from their overseas deployments.
The vessel was then officially decommissioned on
June 27th, 1947 and formally struck from the Naval
Register on June 1st, 1960 - exactly 20 years after
her commissioning.
As with other fighting US
Navy vessels after the war, the USS Washington was
sold for scrap on May 24th, 1961.
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This primarily wood USS Washington BB-56
battleship model
has beautiful wood
deck. It is
47" long x 14"
tall x 8" wide
sale,
only one is available
$3,500  shipping
and insurance in the contiguous US included. Other
places: $500 flat rate. This model is in stock and can be shipped within 5
business days.
23.5" long
$2,900
shipping and insurance in the contiguous US included. Other
places: $300 flat rate.
Model is built per commission only. We require only a
small deposit to start the process (not full amount, not
even half) $500  The
remaining balance won't be due until the model is
completed.
Please click here for
lead time.
Learn more about the USS Washington here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Washington_(BB-56)
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