Kaibokans: Japanese Coastal Defense Vessels of WWII

These ships were numerous and played a very active role in Pacific naval combat but have never been the subject of a book in English until now.

During the Second World War, the Imperial Japanese Navy used the term kaibōkan to refer to several classes of ships. The kaibōkans slotted below Imperial Japanese destroyers, comparable to the British Royal Navy’s frigates and corvettes or American destroyer escorts. A total of 171 vessels were completed in the kaibōkan family, making it one of if ...