Battle of the Portcullia Strait
| Battle of the Portcullia Strait | |||||||
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| Part of the Pan-Septentrion War | |||||||
 HMS Warchild under fire, in a photo taken from a Tyrannian destroyer behind the main battle line. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Greater Menghean Empire | New Tyran | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Cho Sŭng-chŏl |
Andrew Hurst Charles Norton | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
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Total: 64 combat ships 7 battleships 3 aircraft carriers 6 heavy cruisers 11 light cruisers 37 destroyers |
Total: -- combat ships 4 battleships 1 aircraft carrier 1 escort carrier 3 heavy cruisers | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
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1 battleship 1 light cruiser 3 destroyers |
1 battleship* 1 aircraft carrier 1 escort carrier 1 heavy cruiser 2 light cruisers *excluding HMS Resolute | ||||||
The Battle of the Portcullia Strait was a naval battle fought between the Tyrannian Royal Navy and the Imperial Menghean Navy during the Pan-Septentrion War. Also present was a single Dayashinese aircraft carrier and its light escort group. It was fought over the course of two days, with coordinated Menghean and Dayashinese air attacks on the 15th and a surface engagement on the 16th. This made it a doubly significant battle in the generational shift in naval technology; it was both the first battle to involve the use of carrier-based strikes on another carrier, and the last in which both sides used a traditional line of battle formation.
The battle resulted in a decisive Axis victory. The Royal Navy's East Meridian Fleet lost its sole fleet carrier, and all four of its capital ships were put out of action, with one sunk and three severely damaged. The surviving vessels first retreated to Moradabad, then to Acheron Island. HMS Resolute was sunk by a Dayashinese submarine three months later, and HMS Indefatigable was out of action in New Tyran until 1940, leaving the damaged HMS Warchild as the only Tyrannian capital ship in the Khalistan theatre. The Imperial Menghean Navy also lost one battleship and had to withdraw three for major repairs, but the remaining three were still operational, giving Axis forces naval supremacy in the East Helian Ocean. This allowed Menghe to carry out its planned amphibious attacks on Portcullia and Khalistan without fear of major Tyrannian interference, and it allowed greater safety in Menghe-Ostland shipment than the Axis would enjoy at any time in the war. This situation would last until late 1940, when the Organized States of Columbia entered the war on New Tyran's side and contributed its own fleets to the East Helian theatre.
Background
Geopolitical background
Menghe declared war on New Tyran on June 10th, 1938. With the Sylvan and Maverican navies already defeated, the Imperial Menghean Navy's leadership was feeling confident in its capabilities, and was free to concentrate its forces on a new operational effort. Dayashina, Menghe's ally, had been at war with New Tyran since the preceding year, and Menghe was now free to support them with an attack on Khalistan. Tyrannian naval forces in the area were stretched thin due to simultaneous wars against Ostland in the West and Dayashina in the East, and Menghean commanders saw an opportunity to concentrate their strength against New Tyran.
At the time the war declaration was issued, the Imperial Menghean Navy's battleships were divided on either side of Innominada, with the Strait of Portcullia running in between. The Third Battleship Division, which consisted of three Songrimsŏng-class battleships, was performing coastal bombardment duties outside the city of León, where Sylvan forces were besieged. Four more Menghean battleships, divided into the First Division (Anchŏn and Haeju) and Second Division (Chŏngdo and Sunju), were anchored in Puerto Alegre as a heavy reserve force. The Fourth Division, which consisted of the "capital cruisers" Hwaju and Baekjin, remained in the city of Emil-si, where they were taking on supplies after suffering damage in engagements against the Maverican Confederate Navy.
For several weeks before the war declaration was issued, the IMN had consulted extensively with the political leadership in order to prepare its opening operation against New Tyran. In overall terms, New Tyran had more capital ships than Menghe, and the Navy's top commanders aimed to lure their Tyrannian counterparts into an immediate decisive battle in order to establish naval supremacy. This would then open the way for amphibious landings in Khalistan and Portcullia, and ultimately Khalistan's liberation.
The Menghean plan was to deploy the fast battleships Chŏngdo and Sunju as bait, drawing the Royal Navy's battleships out of Moradabad by attempting to pass through the strait. The First Battleship Division would follow behind, and the Third Division would sail along the Innominadan coast, with both forces regrouping just behind the Second Division. These battleships would move under strict radio silence, and naval auxiliary ships nearby would generate radio chatter under the battleships' associated callsigns, giving the impression that the Chŏngdo and Sunju were moving alone. The two fast battleships would then lure the Royal Navy into a trap, drawing them toward the combined First and Third Divisions' battle line.
Tyrannian battle plan
Due to the greater emphasis placed on fighting Dayashina and Ostland, Royal Navy planners had neglected the western portion of the Eastern Fleet to some degree, giving other theatres priority in ships and reinforcements. The RN's assets in the area, however, were still daunting: two battleships, two battlecruisers, a fleet carrier, and two escort carriers, as well as a number of cruisers and destroyers. Most of this force, including all of the capital ships, was docked in Moradabad, but the carrier HMS Furious and the escort carrier HMS Dorchester were based in the Acheron Islands, where they had been preparing for operations against the Imperial Dayashinese Navy.
Tyrannian commanders recognized that the overall balance of forces gave Menghe a roughly 2:1 advantage in capital ships overall, and sought to pursue a strategy of defeat in detail. As long as they controlled the Strait of Portcullia, the Royal Navy could prevent the two Menghean battleship formations from regrouping, and would be able to engage each of them on equal terms.
On the evening of June 13th, Tyrannian intelligence sources reported that the Second Battleship Division was leaving Puerto Alegre with a light escort force, apparently having been transferred to sea raiding duties in the Helian Ocean. The Eastern Fleet's ships in the Khalistan were hastily reorganized into Task Force Q, a combined command which would rendezvous north of Moradabad to head off the Menghean force. Their signals interception intelligence indicated that the Third Battleship Division was still loitering around Salvador and the First was still docked in Puerto Alegre, giving the Royal Navy a valuable chance to confront the IMN with a 2:1 advantage.
The operation soon fell behind schedule, as the HMS Furious and her escorts experienced delays in leaving port and were still en route to Khalistan when the Menghean Second Division departed. Rather than first gathering the entire task force at Moradabad, Task Force Q changed its plans to a rendezvous at sea on the 16th, which would be their last chance to confront Menghe's fast battleships head-on. The revised plan left the eastern portion of the task force with no reconnaissance aircraft apart from the floatplanes carried by the warships themselves, a serious constraint which allowed the remaining Menghean battleships to continue their course undetected.
Order of Battle
Battleships: 4
- Indomitable-class (2): HMS Indomitable, HMS Indefatigable
- Resolute-class (2): HMS Resolute, HMS Warchild
Carriers: 1
- Furious-class (1): HMS Furious
Escort Carriers: 2
- Dorchester-class (2): HMS Dorchester, HMS Greenwich
Heavy Cruisers: 3
- Centurion-class (3): HMS Challenger, HMS Centurion, HMS Confiance
Light Cruisers: 6
- Defender-class (3): HMS Dragon, HMS Despatch, HMS Dagger
- Leander-class (3): HMS Lawford, HMS Lawson, HMS Laura
Destroyers: 12
- F-class (6): HMS Foxhound, HMS Foresight, HMS Fury, HMS Forward, HMS Firebrand, HMS Firm
- H-class (6): HMS Havoc, HMS Haste, HMS Hunter, HMS Harrier, HMS Hurst, HMS Hound
Battleships: 7
- Chŏngdo-class (2): Chŏngdo, Sunju (2nd Battleship Division)
- Anchŏn-class (2): Anchŏn, Haeju (1st Battleship Division)
- Songrimsŏng-class (3): Gyŏngsan, Songrimsŏng, Daegok (3rd Battleship Division)
Aircraft Carriers: 3
- Menggang-class (1): Menggang
- Sōryū-class (2): Sōryū, Hiryū (Dayashina)
Heavy Cruisers: 6
- Taegisan-class (4): Taegisan, Obongsan, Munsusan, Unmunsan
- Hasŏlsan-class (2): Hasŏlsan, Illaksan
Light Cruisers: 11
- Gijang-class (2): Gijang, Uljin
- Ichŏn-class (2): Ichŏn, Buyŏ
- Taean-class (2): Taean, Gangjin
- Jinan-class (1): Jinan
- Sunchang-class (4): Sunchang, Chunchŏn, Janghŭng, Sŏngju
Destroyers: 37
- Imsil-class (8): Imsil, Sabuk, Sinsong, Mundung, Dochon, Baeksu, Pyŏnghae, Chunchŏn
- Sangdong-class (4): Sangdong, Sangha, Chŏngsŏng, Jiksan
- Sŏnsan-class (6): Sŏnsan, Hwasun, Myŏnwŏn, Sŏnghwan, Baeksa, Yugu
- Daejŏng-class (8): Daejŏng, Hanrim, Tongjin, Jŏngsŏn, Sanggyŏng, Ansa, Danggang, Jangha
- Jindo-class (11): Gampo, Yechŏn, Gŏchang, Bingang, Juta, Gunwi, Manbŏk, Iri, Anpa, Sohŭl, Gwangchŏn
June 15: initial skirmishes
<imgur thumb="yes" w="300" comment="Map showing the overall movement of naval forces during the battle, with carrier and battleship engagements marked separately.">Z7T1KtW.png</imgur>
Cruiser engagement
The first fighting of the Battle of the Portcullia Strait took place in the early morning hours of June 15th, when a group of Tyrannian cruisers and destroyers which had sortied from Moradabad stumbled into the advance screen for the Second Battleship Division. Due to foggy conditions, the two sides only spotted one another at a distance of 5,000 meters. Accurate fire from the Tyrannian cruisers sank the Menghean destroyer Jŏnggwan and severely damaged the light cruiser Gijang, forcing the crew to scuttle the ship to avoid capture.
Alarmed at these early losses, and thinking that he had encountered an advance screen supported by Task Force Q's capital ships, the commander of the Menghean formation gave the order to retreat. Had he pressed forward, his flagship, the heavy cruiser Chillyongsan, might have turned the tide, but the risks of encountering heavier opposition were too great. One more Menghean destroyer was sunk during the withdrawal, as was one Tyrannian destroyer, with a Tyrannian light cruiser damaged; the Royal Navy eventually broke off the pursuit, aware that there were two fast battleships operating in the area.
Carrier battle
At 1210 hours on June 15th, a Dayashinese submarine spotted the Tyrannian carrier HMS Furious and her escorts steaming toward the strait. Following the reported coordinates, the Dayashinese carrier Akagi launched its own complement of aircraft in two staggered attack waves. The Menghean carrier Rogang, which was shadowing the Third Division, sent fighters and attack planes to provide support, but its torpedo bombers were only armed with 250-kilogram bombs to extend their loiter time for reconnaissance.
A Royal Navy combat air patrol detected the incoming aircraft, and the HMS Furious was able to launch fighters to intercept them. Dayashinese dive bombers suffered relatively high losses and did not manage to break through the carrier's armored flight deck, but the torpedo bombers scored four direct hits, all on the starboard side. Dive bombers flying in the second wave had better luck with the light carrier HMS Dorchester, starting a fire in the hangar. Concerned that stored fuel and ordnance would ignite, the captain ordered his crew to abandon ship.
Flooding heavily, the Furious developed a serious list to starboard, preventing her fighters from landing after the Dayashinese and Menghean aircraft retreated. Many landed on the remaining escort carrier, which was already at full capacity, forcing the crew to push landing aircraft off the deck after the pilots climbed out. At first, the captain of the Furious was determined to hold his course and reach the naval base at Moradabad, which was the only one in the area capable of servicing the damage to the carrier's hull. The ship's engines went dead at 2132 hours, and the Rear Admiral transferred his command to the heavy cruiser HMS Centurion. The Confiance, which had also sustained damage in the aerial attack, took on survivors from the carrier and transported them to Mathura.
June 16: line battle
Opening conditions
At around midnight, the remainder of Task Force Q set out from Moradabad, with the intention of carrying out the intercept operation. News about the loss of the HMS Furious had only recently trickled in, and while some officers were hesitant to risk a sortie, Rear Admiral Hurst insisted on carrying out the operation as planned in order to prevent the Menghean fast battleships from breaking through to the open ocean.
Having lost one fleet carrier and one escort carrier, Task Force Q had very few aerial reconnaissance assets. Due to disagreements and conflicting priorities up the chain of command, land-based aircraft prioritized the search for the Dayashinese carrier, and provided inadequate support in the strait itself. After sunrise, the battleships launched three of their own floatplanes to conduct reconnaissance, but all were shot down by Menghean carrier-based fighters while on patrol. Rather than risk more pilots, Hurst instead organized a forward destroyer screen to conduct surface reconnaissance. Up until the battle began, Tyrannian commanders remained oblivious to the presence of the First and Third Battleship Divisions, which had entered the straits from opposite sides during the night and formed into a single line of battle.
Task Force Q engages the Chŏngdo and Sunju
At 1025 hours local time, the Tyrannian destroyer screen spotted the Menghean battleships Chŏngdo and Sunju, which were sailing east to west with an escort of two light cruisers and four destroyers. Task Force Q adjusted its course to intercept, pulling back the advance screen so that it wouldn't engage on its own.
The lead capital ship, HMS Resolute, opened fire from 24,000 meters. Soon after the shells landed, the two Menghean battleships turned hard to starboard and began sailing northeast. This allowed each vessel to train its three aft turrets on the Tyrannian fleet. Hurst ordered his ships to make full speed ahead. The two formations began exchanging fire, though at a range of over 20 kilometers, neither side scored any significant hits. HMS Resolute took a direct hit to the foredeck, but the shell did not reach the armored citadel, and only damaged the anchor chains and some of the crew quarters. Sunju, the rearmost ship in the Menghean battle line, suffered a glancing blow to her Y turret, but the shell did not penetrate.
Admiral Cho, the commander of the Second Battleship Division, ordered his formation to reduce speed to 22 knots, which would close the range of the pursuit. The Sunju suffered two more hits, one of which came close to disabling her steering equipment. HMS Warchild saw a single shell bounce off her deck armor. Neither side suffered serious damage, as the range of the engagement remained rather long and both formations were facing each other head-on-stern.
The battle line forms
<imgur thumb="yes" w="400" comment="Map of the line battle on June 16th. Important moments in the battle described below are marked with their time.">sI7WeV6.png</imgur> At 1132 hours, Task Force Q spotted five additional silhouettes on the horizon. Admiral Cho's plan had unfolded just as planned - lured in by the pursuit of the fast battleships, the Royal Navy had sailed directly into the First and Third Battleship Divisions, which were now grouped in a single line and sailing due west at 14 knots. Running perpendicular to Task Force Q, these ships had crossed the T, and were able to bring all of their guns to bear on the enemy. Rear Admiral Hurst ordered his ships to turn to port and form a new line running parallel to the Menghean one. Ahead, the Chŏngdo and Sunju made a slower turn to port and took up their new positions at the head of the Menghean line of battle, which now consisted of seven well-armored capital ships against the Tyrannian four.
The two lines were now engaging one another at a range of 18,000 meters, and were scoring more hits. Anchŏn and her sister ship Haeju drew the most fire, suffering five and seven main-battery shell hits respectively, but their engines and magazines remained intact. The battleship Gyŏngsan, which was sailing directly behind the Haeju, suffered heavier damage, with the Indomitable and Indefatigable switching their focus to her. Even with the added weight of post-treaty refits, the main armor belt on the Gyŏngsan did not extend far below the surface of the ocean, and her torpedo bulkheads used an outdated arrangement of fuel and air compartments. By 1235, the ship had suffered two severe hits below the waterline, but her captain refused to withdraw, instead hoping that the damage control team would be able to contain the flooding.
The situation was more severe on the Tyrannian side, where four capital ships came under fire from seven. HMS Resolute, the lead battlecruiser in Task Force Q's line, saw a 40-centimeter shell rip through her upper superstructure at 1204, which knocked out her fire-control center. Three more shells impacted over the course of the hour that followed, jamming the two forward turrets but failing to detonate the magazine. Her captain refused to withdraw from the line of battle out of concern that it would hurt morale, but the ship was unable to fire accurately for the remainder of the engagement, severely cutting into Task Force Q's heavy-caliber firepower and taking more fire away from the lead ships in the Menghean battle line.
At 1257 hours, a shell fired by the Haeju struck HMS Indomitable below her B turret and penetrated the belt armor, detonating the forward main battery magazine. The explosion tore off the bow of the ship and killed more than half of her crew, including Rear Admiral Hurst. HMS Indefatigable, sailing a mere 500 yards behind, had to rapidly change course in order to avoid sailing into the burning wreckage. In the course of the sudden hard turn, her rudder gears temporarily jammed, sending the ship into a counterclockwise loop away from the battle line.
With Rear Admiral Hurst dead, command of Task Force Q passed to Commodore Charles Norton, who was aboard the HMS Warchild. Seeing that his own flagship was the only capital ship still fully operational, Commodore Norton made up his mind to retreat, but only after the slower Indefatigable could fix its rudder controls and join the retreating battle line.
Seeing a chance to finish the decisive battle plan, Admiral Cho ordered the fast battleships at the head of the formation to accelerate to flank speed and execute a turn to port, cutting off their opponents from the front and crossing their T again. Sensing another trap and concerned that the faster enemy might loop around them entirely, Commodore Norton ordered the remaining ships to break formation and immediately head due south away from the Menghean fleet. By this time, the Indefatigable had recovered control of her rudder, but she had drawn fire from most of the surviving Songrimsŏng-class battleships during her spiral and was severely damaged above the waterline. The lead battlecruisers reduced their speed to cover the burning hulk as it rejoined the line, in the process buying time for the Chŏngdo and Sunju to complete their turn and close the distance.
On the Menghean side, the battleship Gyŏngsan was beginning to list heavily to port, as flooding spread through the ruptured internal compartments. Concerned that the slowing battleship might obstruct the largely unscathed Songrimsŏng and Daegok behind her, Captain Min ordered his ship to break off from the formation at 1305 and set a northeasterly course for Las Playas. Seeing that the lead battlecruisers were withdrawing, the Gyŏngsan's two sister ships remained behind to cover her against any Tyrannian cruisers or destroyers trailing the enemy line.
Pursuit and conclusion
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The Tyrannian battlecruisers now cut a southerly path, with the Resolute having merged back into the line behind the Warchild. Her fire-control systems were still not operational, and she began drawing heavy fire from the Sunju and Chŏngdo, which were sailing alongside and slightly behind. HMS Indefatigable was still to the east, running her engines at full speed in an effort to catch up with the formation.
As the fleets traded shells, the Sunju and Chŏngdo pushed their engines harder, threatening to overtake the Tyrannian battlecruiser line again. Admiral Cho planned to execute another flanking curve in front of the enemy, which would place them between Task Force Q and its bases in Khalistan. Further aft, the battered First Division turned to pursue the enemy ships from behind, forcing them to continue onward alongside the Menghean fast battleships, but the Anchŏn experienced a worsening flooding problem in one of her bow compartments after attempting to reach flank speed, and both ships slowed down to leave the chase to the fast battleships ahead of them.
Just as the situation looked most dire, a shell fired by HMS Warchild landed a direct hit on the bridge of the Sunju at 1348 hours. The lower conning tower, encased in 45 centimeters of armor, survived, but the superstructure partially collapsed, the captain was killed, and a fire broke out amidships. A second hit, landed in the next salvo, struck Sunju forward and near the waterline. Unsure of the extent of the damage, the fast battleship's first officer requested permission to break formation and withdraw. Admiral Cho reluctantly approved the request, unwilling to risk losing one of Menghe's two largest battleships if the fire continued.
Initially, Cho continued the pursuit aboard the Chŏngdo, but with the First and Third Battleship Divisions lingering behind and the Sunju withdrawing, he now found himself engaging two battlecruisers alone. The Chŏngdo fired five more salvos in all, focusing on the Warchild as it was the only opposing ship laying down accurate fire. He scored two more hits, but also suffered non-penetrating hits to his own ship's belt armor, and when the Indefatigable appeared on the horizon he decided to break off the pursuit, firing salvos to the rear as he did so. Seeing his opportunity, Commodore Norton regrouped with the Indefatigable and ordered all surviving ships to head southwest toward Moradabad.
Further back, the battered Gyŏngsan was in worsening condition. Her crew had flooded some of the starboard-side compartments in an effort to regain balance, but it soon became clear that in order to compensate for the flooding on the port side an unsafe number of compartments would have to be flooded. The Gyŏngsan lost engine power at 1517, by which time her list was in excess of 15 degrees. Seeing that he would not reach the Innominadan shore, Captain Min gave the order to abandon ship; the surviving crew were rescued by the Daegok. Min himself refused to leave his post, choosing to remain behind on the bridge until the battleship slipped below the waves.
June 21: Task Force Q survivors relocate to Jahrabad
After the fleet engagement on the 16th, the surviving elements of Task Force Q sought refuge in Moradabad, home to the largest Tyrannian naval base in the area. The initial plan was to carry out preliminary repairs there, and then send the most damaged ships back to New Tyran for more thorough reconstruction.
Irked that their coastal aviation assets did not play any role in the decisive battle, the top-ranking commanders of the Imperial Menghean Army Air Force demanded that they be given responsibility for finishing off the surviving battleships. Using airbases in southern Innominada, Menghean Type 37s conducted a rotating bombing campaign against Moradabad's port facilities, hoping to destroy the battleships while they were still docked and stationary.
This plan, however, quickly fell short of expectations. Land-based Menghean fighter aircraft lacked the range to escort bombers all the way across the strait, and poor Army/Navy coordination meant that the bombers had no air cover from carrier-based aircraft either. This forced them to fly fast and high as they approached the target, in the hopes of slipping past Gloster Gladiator fighters and small-caliber anti-aircraft fire. The bombers also flew with reduced payloads to further improve their speed, range, and ceiling. These conditions, combined with the rudimentary nature of early Menghean bombsights, meant that in the course of four days of routine bombing sorties the IMAFC only scored two bomb hits, both on the Indefatigable and both non-critical.
Menghean air raids did, however, convince the Royal Navy that Moradabad was not a safe location for the damaged fleet. Some of the bombs that missed the docked battleships hit nearby warehouses and repair yards, and the Commodore commanding the base refused to authorize major maintenance work on the basis that it was too risky. This left Commodore Norton with a difficult choice: he could either attempt repairs anyway and risk severe damage if a bomb did hit, or attempt to move the fleet to a safer location.
In the end, after inspecting the damage to the surviving capital ships, Nelson concluded that they were adequately seaworthy and took the second option. Late in the afternoon on the 21st, the remaining warships in Moradabad sailed out of the port and began moving west, keeping within range of coastal batteries as they went. They rounded the peninsula north of Moradabad at nightfall, and made the most dangerous leg of the journey under the cover of darkness. Menghean reconnaissance aircraft only detected the fleet's absence the following morning, by which time it was halfway to Jahrabad and outside the range of Menghean coastal bombers. Outraged at this development, the Imperial Menghean Navy took responsibility for all subsequent anti-shipping operations, though sparring between the two branches' air services would continue until the end of the war.
Refuge at Jahrabad, New Tyran's second-largest naval base in the region, would last until 1939, when Menghean bombers launched from bases in Khalistan proper were able to reach it once more. HMS Indefatigable and Resolute only stayed there temporarily so that dockyard workers could prepare them for the voyage home; both had developed leaks during the rapid flight along Khalistan's coast, likely a complication of existing battle damage.
Outcome
The Battle of the Portcullia Strait was a decisive victory for Menghe. In the course of two days, the Royal Navy had lost one battleship and one fleet carrier, with three more capital ships put out of action due to severe damage. Indefatigable would be undergoing refits and repairs until 1940, and three months later, HMS Resolute would be sunk by a Dayashinese submarine while attempting the voyage from the Acheron Islands to New Tyran. Tyrannian repair teams were able to put the HMS Warchild back in manageable condition while keeping her at Acheron, but this still left the Royal Navy with only one operational capital ship off the coast of Khalistan.
In absolute terms, the Imperial Menghean Navy had taken similar losses, with one battleship lost and three seriously damaged. The Anchŏn and her sister ship Daegok would spend the next year and a half in the city of Gyŏngsan undergoing major repairs, which effectively halved the number of active Menghean battleships armed with 40-centimeter guns. It also took up additional drydock space at the Gyŏngsan Naval Yard, slowing down construction of the new Hyangchun-class battleships. Sunju suffered less damage to her hull, but her entire forward superstructure had to be rebuilt.
Yet the Songrimsŏng and Daegok, which had been sailing at the tail of the battle line, were virtually unscathed, and after brief servicing in Puerto Alegre they were able to provide coastal artillery support for the Menghean landings on Portcullia itself in late July and early August. Until the Anchŏn and her sister ship were fully repaired, these two battleships would also handle most patrol and bombardment duties along the west coast of Khalistan. Damage to the Chŏngdo was more severe, but she was still fully operational, and was able to take part in commerce raiding missions in the East Helian Ocean before the end of the year.