The directory contains information about the tactical and technical elements and career of specially built warships that were part of active formations, under construction, or included in the shipbuilding programs of the Imperial Japanese Navy in the period from 10.1918 to 8.1945. Their appearance is schematically shown in two projections during different periods of service, a longitudinal section and a reservation diagram. The course of hostilities in the Indian and Pacific Oceans during the Second World War is briefly described. The reference book is intended for historians, students and cadets of naval educational institutions, as well as for all those interested in the history of the war at sea.