The were a class of

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

s of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...

(IJN), serving during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Six vessels were built in 1937–1939 under the Maru 3 Keikaku.

Background

* Project number I4. Improved model of the . They were built to update timeworn ''No.7'' class, ''No.9'' class and ''No.11'' class.''No.7'' (ex.-), ''No.8'' (ex.-), ''No.9'' (ex.- ''Nara''), ''No.10'' (ex.-), ''No.11'' (ex.- ''Nagatsuki'') and ''No. 12'' (ex.- ''Kikutsuki'') Kampon deleted minelayer facility from them, because IJN hoped they act in

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...

. And they added to one naval gun for engage with National Revolutionary Army. Therefore, the ''No.7'' class had the silhouette which resembled the and s.

Ships in class

Footnotes

Bibliography

* Ships of the World special issue Vol.45, ''Escort Vessels of the Imperial Japanese Navy'', , (Japan), February 1996 * The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.50, ''Japanese minesweepers and landing ships'', (Japan), April 1981 {{DEFAULTSORT:7-class minesweeper World War II mine warfare vessels of Japan Minesweepers of Japan Mine warfare vessels of the Imperial Japanese Navy Gunboats of the Imperial Japanese Navy Mine warfare vessel classes