Japanese battleship Hiei Starting in 1929 , " Hiei " was converted to a gunnery training ship to avoid being scrapped under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty . She served as Emperor Hirohito ' s transport in the mid - 1930s . Starting in 1937 , she underwent a full - scale reconstruction that completely rebuilt her superstructure , upgraded her powerplant , and equipped her with launch catapults for floatplane s . Now fast enough to accompany Japan ' s growing fleet of aircraft carrier s , she was reclassified as a fast battleship . On the eve of World War II , she sailed as part of Vice - Admiral Chuichi Nagumo ' s Combined Fleet , escorting the six carriers that attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 . As part of the Third Battleship Division , " Hiei " participated in many of the Imperial Japanese Navy ' s early actions in 1942 , providing support for the invasion of the Dutch East Indies as well as the Indian Ocean raid of April 1942 . During the Battle of Midway , she sailed in the Invasion Force under Admiral Nobutake Kondō , before being redeployed to the Solomon Islands during the Battle of Guadalcanal . She escorted Japanese carrier forces during the battles of the Eastern Solomons and Santa Cruz Islands , before sailing as part of a bombardment force under Admiral Kondō during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal . On the evening of 13 November 1942 , " Hiei " engaged American cruiser s and destroyer s alongside her sister ship . After inflicting heavy damage on American cruisers and destroyers , " Hiei " was crippled by enemy vessels . Subjected to continuous air attack , she sank on the evening of 14 November 1942 . Design and construction . " Hiei " was the second of the Imperial Japanese Navy ' s s , a line of capital ship s designed by the British naval architect George Thurston . The class was ordered in 1910 in the Japanese Emergency Naval Expansion Bill after the commissioning of in 1908 . The four battlecruisers of the " Kongō " class were designed to match the naval capabilities of the other major powers at the time ; they have been called the battlecruiser versions of the British ( formerly Turkish ) battleship . With their heavy armament and armor protection ( the latter of which made up 23 . 3 % of their approximately 30 , 000 ton displacement ) , " Hiei " and her sister ships were vastly superior to any other Japanese capital ship afloat at the time . The keel of " Hiei " was laid down at Yokosuka Naval Arsenal on 4 November 1911 , with most of the parts used in her construction manufactured in Britain . She was launched on 21 November 1912 , and fitting - out began in December 1913 . On 15 December 1913 , Captain Takagi Shichitaro was assigned as her chief equipping officer . She was completed on 4 August 1914 . Armament . " Hiei " s main battery consisted of eight heavy - caliber main guns in four twin turrets , two forward and two aft . The turrets were noted by the US Office of Naval Intelligence to be " similar to the British 15 - inch turrets " , with improvements made in flash - tightness in the gun chambers . Each of her main guns could fire high - explosive or armor - piercing shells at a rate of two shells per minute . < ref name = 14 / 45 > < / ref > In keeping with the Japanese doctrine of deploying more powerful vessels than their opponents , " Hiei " and her sister ships were the first vessels in the world equipped with guns . The main guns carried ammunition for ninety shots and had an approximate gun - life of 250 – 280 shots . In 1941 , dyes were introduced for the armor - piercing shells of the four " Kongo " - class battleships to assist their gunners in distinguishing the hits from a distance , with " Hiei " s armor - piercing shells using black dye . Her secondary battery was originally sixteen 50 - caliber medium guns in single casemate s ( all located amidships ) , eight guns and eight submerged torpedo tubes . The sixteen 6 - inch / 50 caliber guns were capable of firing between 5 and 6 rounds per minute , with a barrel life of 500 rounds . The 6 - inch / 50 caliber gun was capable of firing both antiaircraft and antiship shells , though the positioning of the guns on " Hiei " made antiaircraft firing impractical . The eight 5 - inch / 40 caliber guns added later could fire between 8 and 14 rounds per minute , with a barrel life of 800 – 1500 rounds . These guns had the widest variety of shot type of " Hiei " s guns , being designed to fire antiaircraft , antiship , and illumination shells . " Hiei " was also armed with a large number of Type 96 antiaircraft autocannons . Service . 1914 – 1929 : Battlecruiser . On 4 August 1914 , " Hiei " was formally commissioned and assigned to the Sasebo Naval District , before being attached to the Third Battleship Division of the First Fleet two weeks later . On 23 August 1914 , Japan declared war on the German Empire , occupying the former German colonies in Palau and in the Caroline , Marshall and Mariana Islands . In October 1914 , " Hiei " departed Sasebo alongside " Kongō " to support Imperial Japanese Army units in the Siege of Tsingtao , but she was recalled on the 17th . On 3 October 1915 , " Hiei " and " Kongō " participated in the sinking of , a Russian pre - dreadnought captured in 1905 during the Russo - Japanese War that had subsequently served in the Japanese Navy under the name " Iki " as a coastal defense ship . In April 1916 , she patrolled the Chinese coast with her newly launched sisters and . From 1917 to the end of World War I , " Hiei " remained primarily at Sasebo , patrolling the Chinese and Korean coasts with her sister ships on several occasions . Following the end of World War I , the Japanese Empire gained control of former German possessions in the central Pacific per the terms of the Treaty of Versailles . Due to Japan ' s warm relations with the British Empire and the United States at the time , " Hiei " and other Japanese warships became significantly less active after the war . Other than a patrol alongside " Haruna " and " Kirishima " off the Chinese coast in March 1919 , " Hiei " remained in the Japanese home ports . On 13 October 1920 , she was placed in reserve . Following the Great Kanto Earthquake of September 1923 , the capital ships of the Japanese Navy assisted in rescue work until the end of the month . " Hiei " arrived at Kure Naval Base on 1 December 1923 for a refit which increased the elevation of her main guns from 20 to 33 degrees and rebuilt her foremast . With the conclusion of World War I , the world powers attempted to stem any militarization that might re - escalate into war . Under the terms of Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 , the Imperial Japanese Navy was significantly reduced , with a ratio of 5 : 5 : 3 required between the capital ships of the United Kingdom , the United States , and Japan . The treaty also banned Japan from building any new capital ships until 1931 , with no capital ship permitted to exceed 35 , 000 tons . Provided that further additions did not exceed 3 , 000 tons , existing capital ships were allowed to be upgraded with improved torpedo bulges and deck armor . By the time the Washington Treaty had been fully implemented in Japan , only three classes of World War I - era capital ships — the ( i . e . " Yamashiro " ) and s , and the " Kongō " - class battlecruisers — remained active . In July 1927 , Crown Prince Takamatsu — Emperor Hirohito ' s younger brother — was assigned to " Hiei " . From October to November 1927 , the ship underwent a minor refit at Sasebo to accommodate two Yokosuka E1Y floatplane s , though no launch catapults were added . On 29 March 1928 , " Hiei " departed Sasebo alongside " Kongō " and the battleships and to patrol off the Chusan Archipelago , before arriving in the company of " Kongō " in Port Arthur in April 1928 . In October 1929 , she returned to Kure in preparation for her demilitarization and reconstruction . 1929 – 1937 : Demilitarization and training ship . To avoid having to scrap " Hiei " under the terms of the Washington Treaty , the Imperial Japanese Navy decided to convert her into a demilitarized training ship . On 15 October 1929 , she went into drydock at Kure Naval Arsenal . Her aft 14 - inch gun turrets were removed , and she was stripped of all eight of her submerged torpedo tubes , as well as her 6 - inch guns and armor belt . All but nine of her boilers were taken out , reducing her speed to , and one of her three funnels was removed . She was reclassified as a reserve ship at the end of November 1929 . On 24 April 1930 , reconstruction was halted due to the signing of the London Naval Treaty , which further restricted battleship construction and possession amongst the great naval powers , and preservation work was begun at Sasebo . Reconstruction would not resume until July 1931 . In September 1931 , Japanese army units invaded the Chinese province of Manchuria , transforming it into the puppet state of Manchukuo . In December 1932 , " Hiei " was reassigned to the Imperial Japanese Navy ' s training squadron . On 25 February , the League of Nations ruled that Japan had violated Chinese sovereignty and international law in her invasion of Manchuria . Refusing to accept the League ' s judgment , the Empire of Japan withdrew from the League the same day . This also signaled its exit from the Washington and London Naval Treaties , which removed all restrictions on the Imperial Japanese Navy ' s construction of capital ships . From the end of May 1933 to 13 August , " Hiei " received upgrades that allowed her to perform regular duties for the Emperor , and she served as the Emperor ' s observation ship for the Imperial Naval Review three days later . From January to March 1934 , her No . 4 turret and ammunition magazine were refitted . In November 1935 , " Hiei " served as the Emperor ' s ship for his official visit to the Kagoshima and Miyazaki Prefecture s . 1937 – 1941 : Reconstruction and fast battleship . No longer bound by the restrictions of the Washington and London Treaties , the Imperial Japanese Navy proceeded to reconstruct " Hiei " along the same lines as her sisters . She received eight new oil - fired Kampon boilers and geared turbines , while her stern was lengthened by to increase speed . Her aft 14 inch turret was refitted and fire control systems installed for all four main turrets . The elevation of her main and secondary guns was increased , and she was equipped with two Nakajima E8N " Dave " and Kawanishi E7K " Alf " reconnaissance floatplanes . To this end , catapults and launch - rails were also fitted aft of turret # 3 . Fourteen of her 6 inch guns were refitted , and an antiaircraft suite of eight 5 inch dual - purpose guns and ten twin mounts of Type 96 25 mm autocannons were mounted . Her superstructure was rebuilt as a prototype of the tower - mast that would eventually be used on the , then still in the design phase . " Hiei " s armor was also extensively upgraded . Her main belt was reapplied and strengthened to a uniform thickness of 8 inches ( as opposed to varying thicknesses of 6 – 8 inches before the upgrades ) , while diagonal bulkheads of a depth ranging from reinforced the main armored belt . The turret armor was strengthened to , while were added to portions of the deck armor . The armor around her ammunition magazines was also strengthened over the course of the refit . Though still less heavily armored than other Japanese battleships , " Hiei " was significantly faster . The reconstruction was declared complete on 31 January 1940 . Capable of speeds of up to , " Hiei " was reclassified as a fast battleship . She participated in the Imperial Fleet Review in October 1940 , where she was inspected by Emperor Hirohito , members of the royal family , Navy Minister Koshirō Oikawa , and Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto . In November , she was assigned to the Third Battleship Division of the First Fleet . On 26 November 1941 , " Hiei " departed Hitokappu Bay , Kurile Islands , in the company of " Kirishima " and six Japanese fast carriers of the First Air Fleet Striking Force ( , , , , , and ) under the command of Vice - Admiral Chuichi Nagumo . On 7 December 1941 , aircraft from these six carriers attacked the United States Pacific Fleet at their home base of Pearl Harbor , sinking four US Navy battleships and numerous other vessels . Following the attack and the declaration of war by the United States , " Hiei " returned to Japan . 1942 : Combat and loss . On 17 January 1942 , " Hiei " departed Truk Lagoon Naval Base with the Third Battleship Division to support carrier operations against Rabaul and Kavieng . In February , she deployed alongside a force of carriers and destroyers in response to American raids on Japanese bases in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands . On 1 March , following carrier operations against Darwin and Java ( in the Dutch East Indies ) , " Hiei " , " Kirishima " and — which were acting as escorts for the carrier task force — engaged the destroyer , with " Hiei " firing 210 14 - inch and seventy 6 - inch shells . When the ships failed to score any hits , dive - bombers from three of Admiral Nagumo ' s carriers immobilized the destroyer , which was then sunk by gunfire from the three ships . In April 1942 , " Hiei " and the Third Battleship Division joined five fleet carriers and two cruisers in a massive raid against British naval forces in the Indian Ocean . On 5 April — Easter Sunday — the Japanese fleet attacked the harbor at Colombo , Ceylon while seaplanes from the spotted two fleeing British cruisers , both of which were later sunk by aerial attack . On 8 April , Japanese carrier aircraft attacked the Royal Navy base at Trincomalee , only to find that all of Admiral James Somerville ' s remaining warships in the British Eastern Fleet had withdrawn the previous night . Returning from the attack , a floatplane from " Hiei " s sister ship " Haruna " spotted the aircraft carrier HMS " Hermes " , which was quickly sunk by massive aerial attack . The fleet then returned to Japan , arriving at the home bases on 23 April . On 27 May 1942 , " Hiei " sortied with " Kongō " and the heavy cruisers , , , and as part of Admiral Nobutake Kondō ' s Invasion Force during the Battle of Midway . Following the disastrous loss of four of the Combined Fleet ' s fast carriers on 4 June , Kondō ' s force withdrew to Japan . In July , " Hiei " was drydocked for refits to her aircraft complement and the addition of single and twin 25 - mm gun mounts . In August , she escorted the Japanese carrier " Shōkaku " during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons . In October , " Hiei " sortied as part of Rear Admiral Abe ' s Vanguard Force , and maintained distant cover as " Kongō " and " Haruna " nearly destroyed Henderson Field on Guadalcanal on the night of 13 October . From 26 – 30 October , " Hiei " and her sisters participated in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands . On 10 November 1942 , " Hiei " departed Truk alongside " Kirishima " and eleven destroyers in preparation to shell American positions near Henderson Field in advance of a major convoy of Japanese troops . Under the command of Rear Admiral Hiroaki Abe , the force was spotted by US Navy reconnaissance aircraft several days in advance . A force of two heavy cruisers , three light cruisers and eight destroyers was deployed under the command of Rear Admiral Daniel J . Callaghan in Ironbottom Sound to meet them . At 01 : 24 on 13 November , the Japanese force was detected out by the light cruiser . Because Abe had not anticipated resistance , his battleships ' main guns were loaded with high - explosive shells for bombarding Henderson Field , and thus they were unable to open fire immediately while the switch was made to armor - piercing shells . At 01 : 50 , " Hiei " activated her searchlights and opened fire on the light cruiser , commencing the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal . Though " Atlanta " s guns succeeded in disabling the searchlight , " Hiei " was able to concentrate her main batteries on the bridge , crippling the light cruiser and killing Rear Admiral Norman Scott . " Hiei " and " Kirishima " then disabled two American destroyers ( one of which later sank ) . In turn , " Hiei " became the target of the majority of the American firepower , with the American 5 - inch guns inflicting severe damage on " Hiei " s superstructure at close range ; Admiral Abe himself was later injured after shelled the bridge with her own guns , killing his chief of staff . This concentration enabled " Kirishima " to evade the American barrage and cripple , killing Admiral Callaghan . However , shells from " San Francisco " disabled " Hiei " s steering machinery . With one of his battleships crippled , Abe ordered the remainder of the Japanese fleet to withdraw at 02 : 00 . " Kirishima " attempted to tow " Hiei " to safety , but water flooded her steering compartments , jamming her rudder to starboard . Throughout the morning of 14 November , " Hiei " was subjected to attack from American Army B - 17 Flying Fortress bombers . She continued circling starboard at . At 11 : 30 , two torpedoes launched from Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo - bombers struck " Hiei " . After suffering several more torpedo and dive - bomber attacks throughout the day , the order was given for her crew to abandon ship before her escorting destroyers scuttled her . " Hiei " sank sometime in the evening on 14 November with the loss of 188 of her crew , the first battleship ever lost in action by Japan . She was removed from the Navy List on 20 December 1942 .