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The ''New Orleans'' class cruisers were a class of seven heavy cruisers built for the United States Navy (USN) in the 1930s. Originally called the ''Astoria''-class cruiser, the class was renamed after ''Astoria'' was sunk and the surviving ships of the class underwent substantial reconstruction. These ships participated in the heaviest surface battles of the Pacific War. ''Astoria'', ''Quincy'', and ''Vincennes'' were all sunk in the Battle of Savo Island, and three others were heavily damaged in subsequent battles in the Guadalcanal campaign. Only ''Tuscaloosa'', the single ship of the class to spend most of World War II in the Atlantic, got through the war without being damaged. Collectively, ships of the class earned 64 battle stars. The four surviving ships were laid up immediately after the end of the war, and sold for scrap in 1959. ==Design== The ''New Orleans'' class design was a test bed for innovations in cruiser design, which is why there were three distinct designs within this class. * Design #1: ''New Orleans'', ''Astoria'', and ''Minneapolis''. * Design #2: ''Tuscaloosa'' and ''San Francisco''. * Design #3: ''Quincy'' and ''Vincennes''. This class was the direct ancestor for all subsequent USN gun cruisers. From them came the , , , and the class cruisers. While the Washington Naval Treaty was still being observed, new technology was implemented in the ''New Orleans'' class because the USN knew that if and when war came, they would need this knowledge to build ships (which were already in the planning stage) beyond the treaty limits. The USN came to the conclusion that no 10,000 ton cruiser could adequately perform the roles given. Originally the was the lead ship of this class, but , and , laid down as ''Portland''-class ships, were reordered to the ''Tuscaloosa'' design in 1930; and were being built in civilian rather than Navy yards and were completed as originally designed. Three ships of the class (''Astoria'', ''Quincy'', and ''Vincennes'') were lost in the Battle of Savo Island in 1942. Immediately following the Guadalcanal campaign the remaining ships of the class went through major overhauls in order to lessen top heaviness due to new electrical and radar systems (as well as more anti-aircraft weaponry) which was being added as technology advanced. In doing so, the ships took on a new appearance, most notably in the bridge area and became known as the ''New Orleans''-class. The four survivors were decommissioned shortly after the war ended, and scrapped in 1959–1961. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「New Orleans-class cruiser」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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