was the lead vessel in the heavy cruisers, active in World War II with the Imperial Japanese Navy. These were the largest cruisers in the Japanese fleet, and were intended to form the backbone of a multipurpose long-range strike force. Her sister ships were , and . Background The Takao-class ships were approved under the 1927 to 1931 supplementary fiscal year budget, and like her sister ships, was named after a mountain. Mount Takao (高雄山) is located outside Kyoto and is not to be confused with the similar Mount Takao (高尾山) located outside Tokyo, or the city of Takao (高雄), in Taiwan. Design The Takao-class cruisers were an improved version of the previous design, incorporating technical elements learned with the development of the experimental light cruiser . They had a distinctive profile with a large, raked main funnel, and a smaller, straight, second funnel. Intended to address issues with the Myōkō class, the Takao class had thicker armor, dual-purpose main guns which could be used against aircraft, and torpedo launchers moved to the upper deck for greater safety. However, as with its predecessors, the Takao class was also top-heavy. The Takao class displaced . Takao was long, with a beam of , draft of and were capable of 35.25 knots. Propulsion was by 12 Kampon boilers driving four sets of single-impulse geared turbine engines, with four shafts turning three-bladed propellers. The ship was armored with a side belt, and armored deck; the bridge was armored with armored plates. Takao’s main battery was ten 20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval guns, the heaviest armament of any heavy cruiser in the world at the time, mounted in five twin turrets. Her secondary armament included eight Type 10 12cm dual purpose guns in four twin mounts on each side, and 16 Type 90 torpedoes in four quadruple launchers. She was very deficient in anti-aircraft capability, with only two anti-aircraft guns. Takao was repeatedly modernized and upgraded throughout her career in order to counter the growing threat of air strikes, and in her final configuration was armed with ten 20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval guns (5x2), eight Type 89 dual purpose guns, (4x2), and 16 Type 93 Long Lance torpedoes in four quadruple launchers (plus 8 reloads). Anti-aircraft protection included 24 triple-mount and 12 twin-mount and 26 single-mount Type 96 25 mm AT/AA Guns and four AA machine guns. Operational history Early operations