Japanese destroyer Kisaragi (1925)

Kisaragi (如月) was one of twelve Mutsuki-class destroyer destroyers, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy following World War I. Advanced for their time, these ships served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, but were considered obsolescent by the start of the Pacific War. Kisaragi had the distinction of being the second major Japanese warship sunk during the war (after JAPANESE DESTROYER Hayate earlier the same day). She should not be confused with an earlier World War I period Kamikaze class destroyer with the same name.

History
Construction of the Mutsuki-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's build up following the abandonment of the Washington Naval Treaty from fiscal 1923. The class was a follow-on to the earlier Minekaze-class destroyer and Kamikaze class destroyers, with which they shared many common design characteristics. Kisaragi, built at the Maizuru Naval Arsenal was laid down on June 3, 1922, launched on June 5, 1925 and commissioned on December 21, 1925. Originally commissioned simply as “Destroyer No. 21”, it was assigned the name Kisaragi on August 1, 1928.

World War II history
As part of the attack on Pearl Harbor during the opening days of World War II in the Pacific Ocean, the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff ordered the seizure of Wake Island, then garrisoned by the United States Marine Corps. Kisaragi was part of Desron 6 under Destroyer Division 30 in the IJN 4th Fleet, and deployed from Truk under command of Lieutenant Commander Yoichiro Ogawa.

Early on the morning of December 11, 1941, in what was later termed the Battle of Wake Island, the American garrison repulsed the first Japanese landing attempts by the Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF), which was screened by the light cruisers JAPANESE CRUISER Yubari, JAPANESE CRUISER Tenryū, and JAPANESE CRUISER Tatsuta; and destroyers with JAPANESE DESTROYER Yayoi, JAPANESE DESTROYER Hayate,  JAPANESE DESTROYER Mutsuki,  Kisaragi, JAPANESE DESTROYER Oite, and JAPANESE DESTROYER Asanagi,  two old Momi-class destroyer  converted to patrol boats (Patrol Boat No. 32 and Patrol Boat No. 33), and two troop transports containing 450 SNLF troops.

The American defenders fired at the invasion fleet with their six 5"/51 caliber coastal artillery guns, which had been removed from scrapped battleships, sinking Hayate. The cruiser Yubari was also hit eleven times. Kisaragi was sailing away from the engagement when it came under air attack by four F4F Wildcat fighter planes from Wake armed with 100-pound bombs. One Wildcat, piloted by Henry "Hammering Hank" Elrod, dropped his bombs on Kisaragi's stern, which was packed with depth charges. This caused the ship to explode and sink with all hands about 30 mi southwest of Wake Island at location 18.91667°N, 166.28333°W The sinking of Kisargi would contribute to Elrod being posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Kisaragi was struck from the navy list on January 15, 1942. Despite this setback, the Japanese successfully completed the invasion of Wake Island at the end of December.