View source for Japanese cruiser Tone (1937)

{{Short description|Lead ship of the Tone-class heavy cruisers}}
{{other ships| Japanese ship Tone}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{More footnotes needed|date=October 2020}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=Tone 1942 (cropped).jpg
|Ship caption=''Tone'' in early 1942. Taken from battleship ''[[Japanese battleship Hiei|Hiei]]''.
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Empire of Japan]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Empire of Japan|naval}}
|Ship name=''Tone''
|Ship namesake=[[Tone River]]
|Ship ordered=1932 Fiscal Year
|Ship builder=[[Mitsubishi Heavy Industries|Mitsubishi]]
|Ship laid down=1 December 1934
|Ship launched=21 November 1937
|Ship commissioned=20 November 1938<ref>Lacroix, ''Japanese Cruisers'', p. 794</ref>
|Ship struck=20 November 1945
|Ship fate=Sunk 24 July 1945 by [[USN]] aircraft at [[Kure, Hiroshima]] {{coord|34|14|N|132|30|E|region:JP-34_type:event|display=inline, title}}. Raised postwar and broken up at Kure in 1948.
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Ship class={{sclass|Tone|cruiser|0}} [[heavy cruiser]]
|Ship displacement=11,213 [[ton]]s ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]]); 15,443 (final){{Clarify|date=October 2011}}<!--full load? normal?-->
|Ship length= {{convert|189.1|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam= {{convert|19.4|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught= {{convert|6.2|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*Gihon geared turbines{{Clarify|date=October 2011}}<!--how many?-->
*8 oil-fired boilers
*{{convert|152,000|shp|kW|abbr=on}}
*4 [[Drive shaft|shaft]]s 
|Ship speed={{convert|35|kn|km/h|adj=on}}
|Ship range={{convert|8,000|nmi|km|abbr=on}} at {{convert|18|kn|km/h}}
|Ship complement=874
|Ship armament=*8 × [[20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval gun|20cm/50 caliber Type 3]]s (4x2)
*8 × [[12.7 cm/40 Type 89 naval gun|{{convert|127|mm|in|0|abbr=on}}/40]] guns<!--DP guns?-->
*12 × [[Type 96 25&nbsp;mm AT/AA Gun|Type 96 {{convert|25|mm|in|abbr=on}}]] AA guns (6x2)
*12 × {{convert|610|mm|in|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s (4x3)<!--# reloads?-->
|Ship armor=*{{convert|100|mm|in|abbr=on}} ([[Belt armor|belt]])
*{{convert|65|-|30|mm|in|abbr=on}} ([[Deck (ship)|deck]])
|Ship aircraft=6 x [[Aichi E13A]] [[floatplane]]s
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

{{nihongo|'''''Tone'''''|利根}} was the [[lead ship]] in the two-vessel {{sclass|Tone|cruiser|4}} of [[heavy cruiser]]s in the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]]. The ship was named after the [[Tone River]], in the [[Kantō region]] of [[Japan]] and was completed on 20 November 1938 at [[Mitsubishi Heavy Industries|Mitsubishi]]'s [[Nagasaki, Nagasaki|Nagasaki]] shipyards. ''Tone'' was designed for long-range scouting missions and had a large [[seaplane]] capacity. She was extensively employed during [[World War II]] usually providing scouting services to their [[aircraft carrier]] task forces.  She almost always operated in this capacity in conjunction with her [[sister ship]] {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Chikuma|1938|2}}.

==World War II==

===Early Pacific War===
At the end of 1941, ''Tone'' was assigned to CruDiv 8 with her sister ship, ''Chikuma'', and was thus present during the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]]. That day, 7 December 1941, ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' each launched one [[Aichi E13A|Aichi E13A1]] "Jake" floatplane for a final weather reconnaissance over [[Oahu]]. At 0630, ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' each launched short-range Nakajima E4N2 Type 90-2 Reconnaissance Seaplane to act as pickets and patrol south of the Striking Force. ''Tone''{{'}}s floatplane flew to [[Lahaina Roads|Lahaina]], but found no American fleet units present. During the subsequent attack, the [[battleship]]s {{USS|Arizona|BB-39|2}}, {{USS|Oklahoma|BB-37|2}}, {{USS|West Virginia|BB-48|2}} and {{USS|California|BB-44|2}} were sunk and {{USS|Nevada|BB-36|2}}, {{USS|Pennsylvania|BB-38|2}}, {{USS|Tennessee|BB-43|2}}, {{USS|Maryland|BB-46|2}} and many smaller ships were damaged.

On 16 December, CruDiv 8 was ordered to assist in the second attempted invasion of [[Wake Island]]. ''Tone'' launched two [[Nakajima E8N]] "Daves" for anti-submarine patrols. After the [[Battle of Wake Island|fall of Wake Island]], CruDiv 8 returned to [[Kure, Hiroshima]]. By 14 January 1942, CruDiv 8 was based out of [[Chuuk Lagoon|Truk]] in the [[Caroline Islands]], and covered the landings of Japanese troops at [[Rabaul]], [[New Britain]] as well as attacks on [[Lae]] and [[Salamaua]], [[New Guinea]]. On 24 January, ''Tone''{{'}}s floatplanes attacked the [[Admiralty Islands]]. After 1 February air raid on [[Kwajalein]] by [[Vice Admiral]] [[William Halsey, Jr]] aboard the [[aircraft carrier]] {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6|2}}, ''Tone'' departed Truk with the Carrier Striking Force in an unsuccessful pursuit. ''Chikuma'' and ''Tone'' later participated in the [[Bombing of Darwin (February 1942)|Raid on Port Darwin]], [[Australia]] on 19 February, which destroyed 15 aircraft and sinking 11 ships. ''Tone'' launched a floatplane to report in weather conditions prior to the attack, but the plane’s radio failed and it returned without reporting. Later, another floatplane had greater success, and shot down a [[PBY Catalina]] of the [[Royal Australian Air Force|RAAF]].

===Battle of the Java Sea===
On 1 March 1942, ''Tone'' spotted the old American [[destroyer]] {{USS|Edsall|DD-219|2}}, {{convert|250|mi|km}} SSE of [[Christmas Island]]. Four days later, floatplanes from ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' took part on the strike against [[Tjilatjap]]. On 6 March, ''Tone'' rescued a British seaman who had been adrift since his ship had been sunk off Java on 27 February.

===Indian Ocean Raids===
On 5 April 1942, ''Tone'' was part of a major task force which launched 315 aircraft against British-held [[Colombo|Colombo, Ceylon]]. The old destroyer {{HMS|Tenedos|H04|6}}, [[armed merchant cruiser]] {{HMS|Hector|F45|6}} and 27 aircraft were destroyed and over 500 killed in the harbor, while cruisers {{HMS|Cornwall|56|6}} and {{HMS|Dorsetshire|40|2}} were destroyed at sea. ''Tone'' and the rest of the task force returned to Japan in mid-April 1942, when it was almost immediately assigned to the unsuccessful pursuit of Admiral Halsey's Task Force 16.2 with the aircraft carrier {{USS|Hornet|CV-8|6}} after the [[Doolittle Raid]].

===Battle of Midway===
At the crucial [[Battle of Midway]], ''Tone'' and CruDiv 8 was part of Vice Admiral [[Chūichi Nagumo]]'s Carrier Striking Force. On 4 June, ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' each launched two "Jakes" to search out {{convert|300|mi|km}} for American carriers. ''Tone''{{'}}s floatplane discovered American ships, but owing to internal bureaucracy in their command structure its report was not immediately delivered to Admiral Nagumo. As a result, he had already ordered his aircraft to prepare for another attack on Midway before he received the report. ''Tone'' was attacked by enemy carrier aircraft during the battle, but sustained no damage, except the loss of a "Dave" with its crew. ''Chikuma'' and ''Tone'' were then detached to support Vice Admiral [[Boshiro Hosogaya]]'s Aleutian invasion force. However, the anticipated American counter-attack failed to materialize. CruDiv 8 cruised northern waters uneventfully.

Rear Admiral [[Chuichi Hara]] assumed command of CruDiv 8 from 14 July 1942. With the US invasion of [[Guadalcanal]], ''Chikuma'' and ''Tone'' were ordered south again on 16 August with the aircraft carriers {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Shōkaku||2}}, {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Zuikaku||2}}, {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Zuihō||2}}, {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Jun'yō||2}}, {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Hiyō||2}} and {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Ryūjō||2}}. They were joined by the battleships {{ship|Japanese battleship|Hiei||2}}, {{ship|Japanese battleship|Kirishima||2}}, [[seaplane tender]] {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Chitose||2}}, and cruisers {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Atago||2}}, {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Maya||2}}, {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Takao|1930|2}}, {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Nagara||2}}.

===Battle of the Eastern Solomons===
On 24 August 1942, CruDiv 7's {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Kumano||2}} and {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Suzuya|1934|2}} arrived to join the reinforcement fleet for Guadalcanal. The following morning, a [[Consolidated PBY Catalina]] spotted ''Ryūjō'', which [[Douglas SBD Dauntless]]es and [[Grumman TBF Avenger]]s from ''Enterprise'' unsuccessfully attacked. Seven floatplanes from ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' were launched to locate the American fleet. One of ''Chikuma''{{'}}s planes spotted the Americans, but was shot down before its report could be relayed. However, a second floatplane was more successful, and the Japanese launched an attack against ''Enterprise'', hitting it with three bombs which set her wooden deck on fire. However, in the meantime, the Americans located the Japanese fleet, and ''Ryūjō'' was sunk by planes from the carrier {{USS|Saratoga|CV-3|2}}. ''Tone'' was attacked unsuccessfully by two Avengers whose Mark 13 torpedoes missed, returning to Truk safely.

===Battle of Santa Cruz===
Through October, ''Chikuma'' and ''Tone'' patrolled north of the [[Solomon Islands]], awaiting word of recapture of [[Henderson Field (Guadalcanal)|Henderson Field]] by the Japanese. On 19 October, ''Tone'' (with the destroyer {{ship|Japanese destroyer|Teruzuki|1941|2}}) was detached on an independent mission to scout for American ships. Both ships operated off the [[Santa Cruz Islands]] until a [[Kawanishi H6K]] "Emily" from [[Jaluit Atoll]] sighted a carrier off the [[New Hebrides]]. On 26 October 1942, {{convert|250|mi|km}} northeast of Guadalcanal, [[Rear Admiral]] [[Hiroaki Abe]]'s task force launched seven floatplanes to scout south of Guadalcanal. They located the American fleet, and Abe followed with an attack by carrier planes which sank the carrier {{USS|Hornet|CV-8|2}} and damaged the battleship {{USS|South Dakota|BB-57|2}} and cruiser {{USS|San Juan|CL-54|2}}. However, two of the four aircraft launched by ''Tone'' during the attack were shot down.

''Tone'' supported Japanese reinforcement efforts at [[Guadalcanal]] through mid-November 1942, and was then assigned to patrols from its base in Truk through mid-February 1943. After returning to [[Maizuru]] for refit on 21 February, two additional twin-mount Type 96 25-mm AA guns were installed along with a Type 21 air-search [[radar]]. On 15 March 1943 Rear Admiral Kishi Fukuji assumed command of CruDiv 8, and ''Tone'' was ordered back to Truk. However, on 17 May, ''Chikuma'' and ''Tone'' were tasked to accompany battleship {{ship|Japanese battleship|Musashi||2}} back to Tokyo for the [[state funeral]] of Admiral [[Isoroku Yamamoto]]. ''Tone'' was back in Truk by 15 July, having avoided numerous submarine attacks along the route. From July to November, ''Tone'' was engaged in making troop transport runs to Rabaul, and to patrols of the [[Marshall Islands]] in unsuccessful pursuit of the American fleet. While back at Kure on 6 November, ''Tone'' gained additional 25-mm AA guns, bringing its total to 20. CruDiv 8 was disbanded on 1 January 1944, and both ''Tone'' and ''Chikuma'' were reassigned to CruDiv 7 (with ''Suzuya'' and ''Kumano'') under Rear Admiral [[Shoji Nishimura]]. ''Tone'' returned to Truk on 2 January. In February, ''Tone'' assisted with the evacuation of Japanese forces from Truk to [[Palau]].

From 1 March 1944, ''Tone'' was assigned to [[Japanese Indian Ocean raid (1944)|commerce raiding in the Indian Ocean]]. On 9 March, ''Tone'' sank the British freighter {{MV|Behar|1943|2}}, taking aboard 108 survivors against orders. Of the survivors, 32 were disembarked as prisoners of war at Batavia. [[Admiral]] [[Naomasa Sakonju]] aboard the cruiser {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Aoba||2}}, ordered that the remaining prisoners be "disposed of", and they were taken out to sea and beheaded. (Following the war, Sakonju was executed for [[war crime]]s, including the murder of these prisoners, while the former commander of ''Tone'', [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[Haruo Mayazumi]], was sentenced to seven years imprisonment.)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cofepow.org.uk/pages/ships_behar.htm |title=MV 'The Behar' |website=Cofepow.org.uk |access-date=26 September 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160801053829/http://www.cofepow.org.uk/pages/ships_behar.htm |archive-date=1 August 2016 }}</ref> On 20 March 1944, Rear Admiral [[Kazutaka Shiraishi]] assumed command of CruDiv 7.

===Battle of the Philippine Sea===
On 13 June 1944, Admiral [[Soemu Toyoda]] activated "Operation A-GO" for the defense of the [[Mariana Islands]]. ''Tone'' was assigned to Force "C" of Vice Admiral [[Jisaburo Ozawa]]'s Mobile Fleet, which proceeded through the [[Visayan Sea]] to the [[Philippine Sea]] headed towards [[Saipan]]. On 20 June, after the battleships {{ship|Japanese battleship|Haruna||2}}, {{ship|Japanese battleship|Kongō||2}} and carrier {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Chiyoda||2}} were attacked by aircraft from the carriers {{USS|Bunker Hill|CV-17|2}}, {{USS|Monterey|CVL-26|2}} and {{USS|Cabot|CVL-28|2}} and the bulk of the Japanese air cover was destroyed in the "[[Battle of the Philippine Sea|Great Marianas Turkey Shoot]]", ''Tone'' retired with the Mobile Fleet to [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]], and from there to Kure. While at Kure from 26 June to 8 July 1944, ''Tone'' gained additional Type 96 25-mm AA, bringing its total to 57. Two new Type 22 surface-search radars and a Type 13 air-search radar were also fitted. After ferrying army troops to Okinawa, ''Tone'' was reassigned back to [[Singapore]] in July.

===Battle of Leyte Gulf===
On 23 October 1944, ''Tone'' along with the cruisers ''Kumano'', ''Suzuya'' and ''Chikuma'', sortied from [[Brunei]] towards the [[Philippines]] with Admiral [[Takeo Kurita]]'s First Mobile Striking Force. The battle group was [[Battle of Leyte Gulf#The submarine action in Palawan Passage (23 October)|attacked by submarines]] while steaming through the [[Palawan Passage]].  The cruisers ''Atago'' and ''Maya'' were sunk, and ''Takao'' was damaged. As the force entered the Sibuyan Sea on 24 October, the Center Force suffered [[Battle of Leyte Gulf#Battle of the Sibuyan Sea|eleven raids]] by aircraft from the carriers of  Task Group 38.2. ''Musashi'' was sunk and ''Tone'' was hit by bombs. The following day during the [[Battle off Samar]], the battleships {{ship|Japanese battleship|Yamato||2}}, {{ship|Japanese battleship|Nagato||2}}, ''Haruna'' and the cruiser {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Myōkō||2}} were damaged. ''Tone'' engaged the American destroyer {{USS|Heermann|DD-532|2}} but was driven away by air attack. She escaped back through the [[San Bernardino Strait]] without further damage, but ''Tone''{{'}}s sister ship ''Chikuma'' was lost, along with the cruisers {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Chōkai||2}} and ''Suzuya''.

===Drydock and use as a training ship===
On 6 November, ''Tone'' departed [[Brunei]] towards [[Manila]], and onward to [[Makung|Mako]] in the [[Pescadores]] and Kure. Back in dry dock in Maizuru, ''Tone'' gained four additional triple-mount 25-mm AA guns aft, bringing its total to 62. The Type 21 radar was replaced with a Type 22. CruDiv 7 was disbanded 21 November and ''Tone'' reassigned to CruDiv 5 with ''Kumano''. Once repairs were completed on 18 February 1945, ''Tone'' relocated to [[Etajima]], where it was moored for use as a training ship. It was slightly damaged in [[Attack on Kure (March 1945)|an air raid]] on 19 March.

===Sinking during the bombing of Kure===
[[File:The wreck of Tone in Kure (2).jpg|thumb|''Tone'' sunk in Etajima Bay]]
On 24 July 1945, Task Force 38 launched a [[Bombing of Kure (July 1945)|large air raid against Kure]] aimed at the final destruction of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Nine aircraft from the light carrier ''Monterey'' hit ''Tone'' with three bombs, causing her to settle to the bottom of the bay. The hulk was attacked again on 28 July by rockets and armor-piercing bombs dropped by planes from the carriers {{USS|Wasp|CV-18|2}}, {{USS|Bataan|CVL-29|2}} and {{USS|Ticonderoga|CV-14|2}}. ''Tone'' was removed from the Navy List on 20 November 1945 and scrapped after the war from 1947–1948.

==References==

===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Books===
*{{cite book
 | last = Brown
 | first = David
 | year = 1990
 | title = Warship Losses of World War Two
 | publisher = Naval Institute Press
 | isbn = 1-55750-914-X
}}
*{{cite book
 | last = D'Albas
 | first = Andrieu
 | year = 1965
 | title = Death of a Navy: Japanese Naval Action in World War II
 | publisher = Devin-Adair Pub
 | isbn = 0-8159-5302-X
}}
*{{cite book
 | last = Dull
 | first = Paul S.
 | year = 1978
 | title = A Battle History of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1941–1945
 | publisher = Naval Institute Press
 | isbn = 0-87021-097-1
 | url-access = registration
 | url = https://archive.org/details/battlehistoryofi0000dull
 }}
*{{cite book
 | last = Howarth
 | first = Stephen
 | year = 1983
 | title = The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895–1945
 | publisher = Atheneum
 | isbn = 0-689-11402-8
}}
*{{cite book
 | last = Jentsura
 | first = Hansgeorg
 | year = 1976
 | title = Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945
 | publisher = Naval Institute Press
 | isbn = 0-87021-893-X
}}
*{{cite book
 | last1 = Lacroix
 | first1 = Eric
 | last2 = Wells
 | first2 = Linton
 | year = 1997
 | title = Japanese Cruisers of the Pacific War
 | publisher = Naval Institute Press
 | isbn = 0-87021-311-3
}}
*{{cite book
 | last = Whitley 
 | first = M. J.
 | year = 1995
 | title = Cruisers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia 
 | publisher = Naval Institute Press
 | isbn = 1-55750-141-6
}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Tone (ship, 1938)|Japanese cruiser ''Tone'' (1937)}}
*{{cite web
 | last1 = Parshall
 | first1 = Jon
 | last2 = Hackett
 | first2 = Bob
 | last3 = Kingsepp
 | first3 = Sander
 | last4 = Nevitt
 | first4 = Allyn 
 | url = http://www.combinedfleet.com/tone_c.htm 
 | title = ''Tone'' class
 | work = Imperial Japanese Navy Page (Combinedfleet.com)
 | access-date = 2016-07-31
}} 
* Tabular record:  [http://www.combinedfleet.com/tone_t.htm  CombinedFleet.com: ''Tone'' history] (Retrieved 26 January 2007.)
* [http://www.wtj.com/articles/brehm/tone.htm Interview with Paul Brehm of ''Ticonderoga'' describing the attack on ''Tone'' on 28 July 1945]
Two photos of ''Tone'', but you must type ''Tone'' in the pic search window, 
* [http://www.world-war.co.uk/index.php3 World War II Cruisers]
* [http://militarytimes.com/citations-medals-awards/recipient.php?recipientid=19441 Military Times]
* https://imodeler.com/2017/06/scout-4-is-late/ - discussion of what is often reported as a catapult jam in the early stages of the Battle of Midway
{{Tone class cruiser}}
{{July 1945 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tone}}
[[Category:Tone-class cruisers]]
[[Category:Ships built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries]]
[[Category:1937 ships]]
[[Category:World War II cruisers of Japan]]
[[Category:Attack on Pearl Harbor]]
[[Category:Cruisers sunk by aircraft]]
[[Category:Ships sunk by US aircraft]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Inland Sea]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in July 1945]]
[[Category:Japanese war crimes]]