Kongō Maru-class armed merchantmen

The Kongō Maru-class armed merchant cruiser was a class of two armed merchant cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Background
The Kongō Maru-class vessels were originally built by IHI Corporation at Kawasaki shipyard in Kobe as combined cargo-passenger ships. They were converted to "auxiliary cruiser" role in September–December 1941 (and therefore armed). The ships Kashii Maru, Kagu Maru and Kinugasa Maru from the same civilian series were converted to seaplane tenders, forming the Kashhi Maru-class.

Design
The original design featured unusually high speed for a cargo ship (16-19 knots), as well as 6 luxury rooms for 2 occupants each.

List of Ships

 * Kongō Maru
 * Kyosumi Maru