Kyūjitai
''Kyūjitai'' ( ja, 舊字體 / 旧字体, lit=old character forms) are the traditional forms of kanji, Chinese written characters used in Japanese. Their simplified counterparts are ''shinjitai'' ( ja, 新字体, lit=new character forms, lab ...
:
Shinjitai
are the simplified forms of kanji used in Japan since the promulgation of the Tōyō Kanji List in 1946. Some of the new forms found in ''shinjitai'' are also found in Simplified Chinese characters, but ''shinjitai'' is generally not as extensiv ...
: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the
navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
of the
Empire of Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...
Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
(JMSDF) was formed between 1952–1954 after the dissolution of the IJN.
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the third largest navy in the world by 1920, behind the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
and the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
(USN). It was supported by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service for aircraft and airstrike operation from the fleet. It was the primary opponent of the
Western Allies
The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy ...
in the Pacific War.
The origins of the Imperial Japanese Navy go back to early interactions with nations on the Asian continent, beginning in the early
medieval period
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
and reaching a peak of activity during the 16th and 17th centuries at a time of
cultural exchange
Cultural diplomacy is a type of public diplomacy and soft power that includes the "exchange of ideas, information, art, language and other aspects of culture among nations and their peoples in order to foster mutual understanding". The purpose ...
with
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
Age of Discovery
The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafarin ...
. After two centuries of stagnation during the country's ensuing seclusion policy under the ''
shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamak ...
'' of the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...
, Japan's navy was comparatively backward when the country was forced open to trade by American intervention in 1854. This eventually led to the
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
. Accompanying the re-ascendance of the
Emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
, before being largely destroyed in World War II.
Origins
Japan has a long history of naval interaction with the Asian continent, involving transportation of troops between
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
and Japan, starting at least with the beginning of the Kofun period in the 3rd century.
Following the attempts at
Mongol invasions of Japan
Major military efforts were taken by Kublai Khan of the Yuan dynasty in 1274 and 1281 to conquer the Japanese archipelago after the submission of the Korean kingdom of Goryeo to vassaldom. Ultimately a failure, the invasion attempts are of m ...
by
Kubilai Khan
Kublai ; Mongolian script: ; (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder of the Yuan dynasty of China and the fifth khagan-emperor of the ...
in 1274 and 1281, Japanese '' wakō'' became very active in plundering the coast of China. In response to threats of Chinese invasion of Japan, in 1405 the shogun
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu
was the third '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate, ruling from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was Ashikaga Yoshiakira's third son but the oldest son to survive, his childhood name being Haruō (). Yoshimitsu ...
capitulated to Chinese demands and sent twenty captured Japanese pirates to China, where they were boiled in a cauldron in
Ningbo
Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...
.
Japan undertook major naval building efforts in the 16th century, during the
Warring States period
The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...
when feudal rulers vying for supremacy built vast coastal navies of several hundred ships. Around that time Japan may have developed one of the first ironclad warships when Oda Nobunaga, a ''
daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...
'', had six iron-covered Oatakebune made in 1576. In 1588
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
, otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...
issued a ban on Wakō piracy; the pirates then became vassals of Hideyoshi, and comprised the naval force used in the Japanese invasion of Korea (1592–1598).
Japan built her first large ocean-going warships in the beginning of the 17th century, following contacts with the Western nations during the Nanban trade period. In 1613, the ''daimyō'' of Sendai, in agreement with the Tokugawa
Bakufu
, officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakura ...
galleon
Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch W ...
-type ship that transported the Japanese embassy of
Hasekura Tsunenaga
was a kirishitan Japanese samurai and retainer of Date Masamune, the daimyō of Sendai. He was of Japanese imperial descent with ancestral ties to Emperor Kanmu. Other names include Philip Francis Faxicura, Felipe Francisco Faxicura, and Phi ...
to the Americas, which then continued to Europe. From 1604 the Bakufu also commissioned about 350 Red seal ships, usually armed and incorporating some Western technologies, mainly for
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
n trade.
Western studies and the end of seclusion
For more than 200 years, beginning in the 1640s, the Japanese policy of seclusion ("'' sakoku''") forbade contacts with the outside world and prohibited the construction of ocean-going ships on pain of death. Contacts were maintained, however, with the Dutch through the port of
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
, the Chinese also through Nagasaki and the Ryukyus and Korea through intermediaries with Tsushima. The study of Western sciences, called "''
rangaku
''Rangaku'' (Kyūjitai: /Shinjitai: , literally "Dutch learning", and by extension "Western learning") is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of West ...
''" through the Dutch enclave of
Dejima
, in the 17th century also called Tsukishima ( 築島, "built island"), was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1854). For 220 years, i ...
in Nagasaki led to the transfer of knowledge related to the Western technological and
scientific revolution
The Scientific Revolution was a series of events that marked the emergence of modern science during the early modern period, when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology (including human anatomy) and chemistry transfo ...
which allowed Japan to remain aware of naval sciences, such as
cartography
Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an i ...
,
optics
Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultrav ...
and mechanical sciences. Seclusion, however, led to the loss of any naval and maritime traditions the nation possessed.
Apart from Dutch trade ships, no other Western vessels were allowed to enter Japanese ports. A notable exception was during the
Napoleonic wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
when neutral ships flew the Dutch flag. Frictions with the foreign ships, however, started from the beginning of the 19th century. The
Nagasaki Harbour Incident
HMS ''Phaeton'' was a 38-gun, fifth rate of Britain's Royal Navy. This frigate was most noted for her intrusion into Nagasaki harbour in 1808. John Smallshaw (Smallshaw & Company) built ''Phaeton'' in Liverpool between 1780 and 1782. She part ...
involving in 1808, and other subsequent incidents in the following decades, led the shogunate to enact an
Edict to Repel Foreign Vessels
The was a law promulgated by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1825 to the effect that all foreign vessels should be driven away from Japanese waters.
An example of the law being put into practice was the ''Morrison'' Incident of 1837, in which an Ameri ...
. Western ships, which were increasing their presence around Japan due to whaling and the trade with China, began to challenge the seclusion policy.
The
Morrison Incident
The of 1837 occurred when the American merchant ship, ''Morrison'' headed by Charles W. King, was driven away from " sakoku" (isolationist) Japan by cannon fire. This was carried out in accordance with the Japanese Edict to Repel Foreign Vesse ...
in 1837 and news of China's defeat during the
Opium War
The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...
led the shogunate to repeal the law to execute foreigners, and instead to adopt the Order for the Provision of Firewood and Water. The shogunate also began to strengthen the nation's coastal defenses. Many Japanese realized that traditional ways would not be sufficient to repel further intrusions, and western knowledge was utilized through the Dutch at Dejima to reinforce Japan's capability to repel the foreigners; field guns, mortars, and firearms were obtained, and coastal defenses reinforced. Numerous attempts to open Japan ended in failure, in part to Japanese resistance, until the early 1850s.
During 1853 and 1854, American warships under the command of
Commodore Matthew Perry
Matthew Calbraith Perry (April 10, 1794 – March 4, 1858) was a commodore of the United States Navy who commanded ships in several wars, including the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). He played a leading role in the op ...
, entered
Edo Bay
is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous ...
and made demonstrations of force requesting trade negotiations. After two hundred years of seclusion, the 1854
Convention of Kanagawa
The Convention of Kanagawa, also known as the Kanagawa Treaty (, ''Kanagawa Jōyaku'') or the Japan–US Treaty of Peace and Amity (, ''Nichibei Washin Jōyaku''), was a treaty signed between the United States and the Tokugawa Shogunate on March ...
led to the
opening of Japan
was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji government. ...
galleon
Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch W ...
Ishinomaki
is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 138,538, and a population density of 250 persons per km2 in 61,919 households. The total area of the city is .
Geography
Ishinomaki is in northeastern Miya ...
File:Gaiban-Shokan ship1.jpg, Painting of a 17th-century Red Seal Ship of the Araki clan, sailing out of
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
sailing frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
''Shōhei Maru'' (1854) was built from Dutch technical drawings.
Development of shogunal and domain naval forces
As soon as Japan opened up to foreign influences, the Tokugawa shogunate recognized the vulnerability of the country from the sea and initiated an active policy of assimilation and adoption of Western naval technologies. In 1855, with Dutch assistance, the shogunate acquired its first steam warship, , and began using it for training, establishing a
Naval Training Center
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It inc ...
at Nagasaki.
Samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
such as the future Admiral Enomoto Takeaki (1836–1908) was sent by the shogunate to study in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
for several years. In 1859 the Naval Training Center relocated to
Tsukiji
Tsukiji (築地) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, Japan. Literally meaning "reclaimed land", it lies near the Sumida River on land reclaimed from Tokyo Bay in the 18th century during the Edo period. The eponymous Tsukiji fish market opened in 193 ...
in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
. In 1857 the shogunate acquired its first screw-driven steam warship and used it as an escort for the 1860 Japanese delegation to the United States. In 1865 the French naval engineer
Léonce Verny
François Léonce Verny, (2 December 1837 – 2 May 1908) was a French officer and naval engineerSims, Richard. (1998) ''French Policy Towards the Bakufu and Meiji Japan 1854-95: A Case of Misjudgement and Missed Opportunities,'' p. 246./ref> ...
was hired to build Japan's first modern naval arsenals, at
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
and
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
.
The shogunate also allowed and then ordered various domains to purchase warships and to develop naval fleets,
Satsuma Satsuma may refer to:
* Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit
* ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails
Places Japan
* Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town
* Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture
* Satsuma Domain, a sou ...
, especially, had petitioned the shogunate to build modern naval vessels. A naval center had been set up by the Satsuma domain in Kagoshima, students were sent abroad for training and a number of ships were acquired. The domains of Chōshū,
Hizen
was an old province of Japan in the area of the Saga and Nagasaki prefectures. It was sometimes called , with Higo Province. Hizen bordered on the provinces of Chikuzen and Chikugo. The province was included in Saikaidō. It did not incl ...
, Tosa and Kaga joined Satsuma in acquiring ships. These naval elements proved insufficient during the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
's
Bombardment of Kagoshima
The Bombardment of Kagoshima, also known as the , was a military engagement fought between Britain and the Satsuma Domain in Kagoshima from 15 to 17 August 1863. The British were attempting to extract compensation and legal justice from ''daim ...
in 1863 and the Allied bombardments of Shimonoseki in 1863–64.
By the mid-1860s the shogunate had a fleet of eight warships and thirty-six auxiliaries. Satsuma (which had the largest domain fleet) had nine steamships, Choshu had five ships plus numerous auxiliary craft, Kaga had ten ships and Chikuzen eight. Numerous smaller domains also had acquired a number of ships. However, these fleets resembled maritime organizations rather than actual navies with ships functioning as transports as well as combat vessels; they were also manned by personnel who lacked experienced seamanship except for coastal sailing and who had virtually no combat training.
Image:Kanrinmaru.jpg, The screw-driven steam corvette , Japan's first screw-driven steam warship, 1857
Image:Chiyodagata.jpg, The
gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-ste ...
''Chiyoda'', was Japan's first domestically built steam warship. It was completed in May 1866.
Image:Stonewall-Kotetsu.jpg, The French-built
ironclad warship
An ironclad is a steam-propelled warship protected by iron or steel armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. Th ...
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
in 1868 led to the overthrow of the shogunate. From 1868, the newly formed
Meiji government
The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan.
Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...
continued with reforms to centralize and modernize Japan.
Boshin War
Although the Meiji reformers had overthrown the Tokugawa shogunate, tensions between the former ruler and the restoration
leader
Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...
s led to the Boshin War (January 1868 to June 1869). The early part of the conflict largely involved land battles, with naval forces playing a minimal role transporting troops from western to eastern Japan. Only the Battle of Awa (28 January 1868) was significant; this also proved one of the few Tokugawa successes in the war. Tokugawa Yoshinobu eventually surrendered after the
fall of Edo
The , also known as and , took place in May and July 1868, when the Japanese capital of Edo (modern Tokyo), controlled by the Tokugawa shogunate, fell to forces favorable to the restoration of Emperor Meiji during the Boshin War.
Saigō Takamori ...
in July 1868, and as a result most of Japan accepted the emperor's rule, however resistance continued in the North.
On 26 March 1868 the first naval review in Japan took place in
Osaka Bay
Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...
, with six ships from the private domain navies of Saga, Chōshū,
Satsuma Satsuma may refer to:
* Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit
* ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails
Places Japan
* Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town
* Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture
* Satsuma Domain, a sou ...
,
Kurume
is a city in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, the city has an estimated population of 303,579 and a population density of 1,320 persons per km². The total area is 229.96 km².
On February 5, 2005, the town of Kitano (from ...
,
Kumamoto
is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2.
had a population of 1,461,000, ...
and Hiroshima participating. The total tonnage of these ships was 2,252 tons, which was far smaller than the tonnage of the single foreign vessel (from the French Navy) that also participated. The following year, in July 1869, the Imperial Japanese Navy was formally established, two months after the last combat of the Boshin War.
Enomoto Takeaki, the admiral of the ''shōgun''s navy, refused to surrender all his ships, remitting just four vessels, and escaped to northern Honshū with the remnants of the ''shōgun''s navy: eight steam warships and 2,000 men. Following the defeat of pro-shogunate resistance on Honshū, Admiral Enomoto Takeaki fled to Hokkaidō, where he established the breakaway
Republic of Ezo
The was a short-lived separatist state established in 1869 on the island of Ezo, now Hokkaido, by a part of the former military of the Tokugawa shogunate at the end of the ''Bakumatsu'' period in Japan. It was the first government to attempt t ...
(27 January 1869). The new Meiji government dispatched a military force to defeat the rebels, culminating with the
Naval Battle of Hakodate
The was fought from 4 to 10 May 1869, between the remnants of the Tokugawa shogunate navy, consolidated into the armed forces of the rebel Ezo Republic, and the newly formed Imperial Japanese Navy. It was one of the last stages of Battle of ...
in May 1869. The Imperial side took delivery (February 1869) of the French-built ironclad ''Kotetsu'' (originally ordered by the Tokugawa shogunate) and used it decisively towards the end of the conflict.
Consolidation
In February 1868 the Imperial government had placed all captured shogunate naval vessels under the Navy Army affairs section. In the following months, military forces of the government came under the control of several organizations which were established and then disbanded until the establishment of the
Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to:
* Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912)
* Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946)
* Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919)
* Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999)
* Ministry of War (Estoni ...
and of the
Ministry of the Navy of Japan
The was a cabinet-level ministry in the Empire of Japan charged with the administrative affairs of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). It existed from 1872 to 1945.
History
The Navy Ministry was created in April 1872, along with the Army Minis ...
in 1872. For the first two years (1868–1870) of the Meiji state no national, centrally controlled navy existed, – the Meiji government only administered those Tokugawa vessels captured in the early phase of the Boshin War of 1868–1869. All other naval vessels remained under the control of the various domains which had been acquired during the
Bakumatsu
was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji governm ...
period. The naval forces mirrored the political environment of Japan at the time: the domains retained their political as well as military independence from the Imperial government.
Katsu Kaishū
Count , best known by his nickname , was a Japanese statesman and naval engineer during the late Tokugawa shogunate and early Meiji period. Kaishū was a nickname which he took from a piece of calligraphy (Kaishū Shooku ) by Sakuma Shōzan. He ...
a former Tokugawa navy leader, was brought into the government as Vice Minister of the Navy in 1872, and became the first Minister of the Navy from 1873 until 1878 because of his naval experience and his ability to control Tokugawa personnel who retained positions in the government naval forces. Upon assuming office Katsu Kaishu recommended the rapid centralization of all naval forces – government and domain – under one agency. The nascent Meiji government in its first years did not have the necessary political and military force to implement such a policy and so, like much of the government, the naval forces retained a decentralized structure in most of 1869 through 1870.
The incident involving Enomoto Takeaki's refusal to surrender and his escape to Hokkaidō with a large part of the former Tokugawa Navy's best warships embarrassed the Meiji government politically. The imperial side had to rely on considerable naval assistance from the most powerful domains as the government did not have enough naval power to put down the rebellion on its own. Although the rebel forces in Hokkaidō surrendered, the government's response to the rebellion demonstrated the need for a strong centralized naval force. Even before the rebellion the restoration leaders had realized the need for greater political, economic and military centralization and by August 1869 most of the domains had returned their lands and population registers to the government. In 1871 the domains were abolished altogether and as with the political context the centralization of the navy began with the domains donating their forces to the central government. As a result, in 1871 Japan could finally boast a centrally controlled navy, this was also the institutional beginning of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
In February 1872, the Ministry of War was replaced by a separate Army Ministry and Navy Ministry. In October 1873, Katsu Kaishū became Navy Minister.
Secondary Service (1872–1882)
After the consolidation of the government the new Meiji state set about to build up national strength. The Meiji government honored the treaties with the Western powers signed during the Bakumatsu period with the ultimate goal of revising them, leading to a subsided threat from the sea. This however led to conflict with those disgruntled samurai who wanted to expel the westerners and with groups which opposed the Meiji reforms. Internal dissent – including peasant uprisings – become a greater concern for the government, which curtailed plans for naval expansion as a result. In the immediate period from 1868 many members of the Meiji coalition advocated giving preference to maritime forces over the army and saw naval strength as paramount. In 1870 the new government drafted an ambitious plan to develop a navy with 200 ships organized into ten fleets. The plan was abandoned within a year due to lack of resources. Financial considerations were a major factor restricting the growth of the navy during the 1870s. Japan at the time was not a wealthy state. Soon, however, domestic rebellions, the
Saga Rebellion
The was an 1874 uprising in Kyūshū against the new Meiji government of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Saga no ran" in . It was led by Etō Shinpei and Shima Yoshitake in their native domain of Hizen.
Background
Following the 18 ...
(1874) and especially the
Satsuma Rebellion
The Satsuma Rebellion, also known as the was a revolt of disaffected samurai against the new imperial government, nine years into the Meiji Era. Its name comes from the Satsuma Domain, which had been influential in the Restoration and b ...
(1877), forced the government to focus on land warfare, and the army gained prominence.
Naval policy, as expressed by the slogan ''Shusei Kokubō'' (literally: "Static Defense"), focused on coastal defenses, on a standing army (established with the assistance of the second French Military Mission to Japan), and a coastal navy that could act in a supportive role to drive an invading enemy from the coast. The resulting military organization followed the ''Rikushu Kaijū'' (Army first, Navy second) principle. This meant a defense designed to repel an enemy from Japanese territory, and the chief responsibility for that mission rested upon Japan's army; consequently, the army gained the bulk of the military expenditures. During the 1870s and 1880s, the Imperial Japanese Navy remained an essentially coastal-defense force, although the Meiji government continued to modernize it. '' Jo Sho Maru'' (soon renamed ''Ryūjō Maru'') commissioned by Thomas Glover was launched at
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
on 27 March 1869.
British support and influence
In 1870 an Imperial decree determined that
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
's
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
should serve as the model for development, instead of the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
navy. In 1873 a thirty-four-man British naval mission, headed by Lt. Comdr. Archibald Douglas, arrived in Japan. Douglas directed instruction at the Naval Academy at Tsukiji for several years, the mission remained in Japan until 1879, substantially advancing the development of the navy and firmly establishing British traditions within the Japanese navy from matters of seamanship to the style of its uniforms and the attitudes of its officers.
From September 1870, the English Lieutenant Horse, a former gunnery instructor for the Saga fief during the
Bakumatsu
was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji governm ...
period, was put in charge of gunnery practice on board the ''Ryūjō''. In 1871, the ministry resolved to send 16 trainees abroad for training in naval sciences (14 to Great Britain, two to the United States), among which was Heihachirō Tōgō. Later, Commander L.P. Willan was hired in 1879 to train naval cadets.
Further modernization (1870s)
Ships such as the , and were built in British shipyards, and they were the first warships built abroad specifically for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Private construction companies such as Ishikawajima and Kawasaki also emerged around this time.
First interventions abroad (Taiwan 1874, Korea 1875–76)
During 1873, a plan to invade the
Korean Peninsula
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
, the ''
Seikanron
The ''Seikanron'' ( ja, 征韓論; ko, 정한론; ) was a major political debate in Japan during 1873 regarding a punitive expedition against Korea. The ''Seikanron'' split the Meiji government and the restoration coalition that had been establ ...
'' proposal made by
Saigō Takamori
was a Japanese samurai and nobleman. He was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history and one of the three great nobles who led the Meiji Restoration. Living during the late Edo and early Meiji periods, he later led the Satsum ...
, was narrowly abandoned by decision of the central government in Tokyo. In 1874, the Taiwan expedition was the first foray abroad of the new Imperial Japanese Navy and
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
after the
Mudan Incident of 1871
The Mudan incident of 1871 (、 Japanese: 宮古島島民遭難事件、 Japanese: 琉球漂流民殺害事件) was the massacre of 54 Ryukyuan sailors in Qing-era Taiwan who wandered into the central part of Taiwan after their ship shipwrec ...
, however the navy served largely as a transport force.
Various interventions in the Korean Peninsula continued in 1875–1876, starting with the
Ganghwa Island incident
The Ganghwa Island incident or the Japanese Battle of Ganghwa ( ko, 운요호 사건 揚號事件} ''Unyo-ho sageon'' meaning "'' Un'yō'' incident"; ja, 江華島 ''Kōka-tō jiken''), was an armed clash between the Joseon dynasty of Kore ...
provoked by the Japanese gunboat , leading to the dispatch of a large force of the Imperial Japanese Navy. As a result, the
Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 (also known as the Japan-Korea Treaty of Amity in Japan and the Treaty of Ganghwa Island in Korea) was made between representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Kingdom of Joseon in 1876.Chung, Young ...
was signed, marking the official opening of Korea to foreign trade, and Japan's first example of Western-style interventionism and adoption of "unequal treaties" tactics.
In 1878, the Japanese cruiser ''Seiki'' sailed to Europe with an entirely Japanese crew.
Naval expansion (1882–1893)
First naval expansion bill
After the
Imo Incident
The Imo Incident, also sometimes known as the Imo Mutiny, Soldier's riot or Jingo-gunran in Japanese, was a violent uprising and riot in Seoul beginning on July 23, 1882, by soldiers of the Joseon Army who were later joined by disaffected member ...
in July 1882,
Iwakura Tomomi
was a Japanese statesman during the Bakumatsu and Meiji period. He was one of the leading figures of the Meiji Restoration, which saw Japan's transition from feudalism to modernity.
Born to a noble family, he was adopted by the influential Iwa ...
submitted a document to the ''
daijō-kan
The , also known as the Great Council of State, was (i) (''Daijō-kan'') the highest organ of Japan's premodern Imperial government under the Ritsuryō legal system during and after the Nara period or (ii) (''Dajō-kan'') the highest organ of J ...
'' titled "Opinions Regarding Naval Expansion" asserting that a strong navy was essential to maintaining the security of Japan. In furthering his argument, Iwakura suggested that domestic rebellions were no longer Japan's primary military concern and that naval affairs should take precedence over army concerns; a strong navy was more important than a sizable army to preserve the Japanese state. Furthermore, he justified that a large, modern navy, would have the added potential benefit of instilling Japan with greater international prestige and recognition, as navies were internationally recognized hallmarks of power and status. Iwakura also suggested that the Meiji government could support naval growth by increasing taxes on tobacco, sake, and soy.
After lengthy discussions, Iwakura eventually convinced the ruling coalition to support Japan's first multi-year naval expansion plan in history. In May 1883, the government approved a plan that, when completed, would add 32 warships over eight years at a cost of just over ¥26 million. This development was very significant for the navy, as the amount allocated virtually equaled the navy's entire budget between 1873 and 1882. The 1882 naval expansion plan succeeded in a large part because of
Satsuma Satsuma may refer to:
* Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit
* ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails
Places Japan
* Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town
* Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture
* Satsuma Domain, a sou ...
power, influence, and patronage. Between 19 August and 23 November 1882, Satsuma forces with Iwakura's leadership, worked tirelessly to secure support for the Navy's expansion plan. After uniting the other Satsuma members of the Dajokan, Iwakura approached the emperor the
Meiji emperor
, also called or , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. Reigning from 13 February 1867 to his death, he was the first monarch of the Empire of Japan and presided over the Meiji era. He was the figure ...
arguing persuasively just as he did with the Dajokan, that naval expansion was critical to Japan's security and that the standing army of forty thousand men was more than sufficient for domestic purposes. While the government should direct the lion's share of future military appropriations toward naval matters, a powerful navy would legitimize an increase in tax revenue. On November 24, the emperor assembled select ministers of the ''daijō-kan'' together with military officers, and announced the need for increased tax revenues to provide adequate funding for military expansion, this was followed by an imperial re-script. The following month, in December, an annual ¥7.5-million tax increase on sake, soy, and tobacco was fully approved, in the hopes that it would provide ¥3.5 million annually for warship construction and ¥2.5 million for warship maintenance. In February 1883, the government directed further revenues from other ministries to support an increase in the navy's warship construction and purchasing budget. By March 1883, the navy secured the ¥6.5 million required annually to support an eight-year expansion plan, this was the largest that the Imperial Japanese Navy had secured in its young existence.
However, naval expansion remained a highly contentious issue for both the government and the navy throughout much of the 1880s. Overseas advances in naval technology increased the costs of purchasing large components of a modern fleet, so that by 1885 cost overruns had jeopardized the entire 1883 plan. Furthermore, increased costs coupled with decreased domestic tax revenues, heightened concern and political tension in Japan regarding funding naval expansion.
In 1883, two large warships were ordered from British shipyards.
The and were 3,650 ton ships. They were capable of speeds up to and were armed with deck armor and two Krupp guns. The naval architect Sasō Sachū designed these on the line of the Elswick class of protected cruisers but with superior specifications. An arms race was taking place with China however, who equipped herself with two 7,335 ton German-built battleships ( ''Ting Yüan'' and ''Chen-Yüan''). Unable to confront the Chinese fleet with only two modern cruisers, Japan resorted to French assistance to build a large, modern fleet which could prevail in the upcoming conflict.
Influence of the French "Jeune École" (1880s)
During the 1880s, France took the lead in influence, due to its "
Jeune École
The ''Jeune École'' ("Young School") was a strategic naval concept developed during the 19th century. It advocated the use of small, heavily armed vessels to combat larger battleships, and the use of commerce raiders to cripple the trade of the ...
" ("young school") doctrine, favoring small, fast warships, especially cruisers and
torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...
s, against bigger units. The choice of France may also have been influenced by the Minister of the Navy, who happened to be Enomoto Takeaki at that time (Navy Minister 1880–1885), a former ally of the French during the Boshin War. Also, Japan was uneasy with being dependent on Great Britain, at a time when Great Britain was very close to China.
The ''Meiji'' government issued its First Naval Expansion bill in 1882, requiring the construction of 48 warships, of which 22 were to be torpedo boats. The naval successes of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
against China in the Sino-French War of 1883–85 seemed to validate the potential of torpedo boats, an approach which was also attractive to the limited resources of Japan. In 1885, the new Navy slogan became ''Kaikoku Nippon'' (Jp:海国日本, "Maritime Japan").
In 1885, the leading French Navy engineer Émile Bertin was hired for four years to reinforce the Japanese Navy and to direct the construction of the arsenals of
Kure
is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
and
Sasebo
is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is also the second largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. On 1 June 2019, the city had an estimated population of 247,739 and a population density of 581 persons p ...
. He developed the '' Sankeikan'' class of cruisers; three units featuring a single powerful main gun, the
Canet gun
The Canet guns were a series of weapon systems developed by the French engineer Gustave Canet (1846–1908), who worked as an engineer from 1872 to 1881 for the London Ordnance Works, then for Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée, and from ...
. Altogether, Bertin supervised the building of more than 20 units. They helped establish the first true modern naval force of Japan. It allowed Japan to achieve mastery in the building of large units, since some of the ships were imported, and some others were built domestically at the arsenal of
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
:
* 3 cruisers: the 4,700 ton and , built in France, and the , built at Yokosuka.
* 3 coastal warships of 4,278 tons.
* 2 small cruisers: the , a small cruiser of 2,439 tons built in Britain, and the , 1,800 tons, built at Yokosuka.
* 1 frigate, the 1,600 ton , built at Yokosuka.
* 1
aviso
An ''aviso'' was originally a kind of dispatch boat or "advice boat", carrying orders before the development of effective remote communication.
The term, derived from the Portuguese and Spanish word for "advice", "notice" or "warning", an ...
: the 726 ton , built in France.
* 16 torpedo boats of 54 tons each, built in France by the Companie du Creusot in 1888, and assembled in Japan.
This period also allowed Japan "to embrace the revolutionary new technologies embodied in
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...
es, torpedo-boats and mines, of which the French at the time were probably the world's best exponents". Japan acquired its first torpedoes in 1884, and established a "Torpedo Training Center" at Yokosuka in 1886.
These ships, ordered during the fiscal years 1885 and 1886, were the last major orders placed with France. The unexplained sinking of ''en route'' from France to Japan in December 1886, created embarrassment however.
British shipbuilding
Japan turned again to Britain, with the order of a revolutionary torpedo boat, , which was considered the first effective design of a destroyer, in 1887 and with the purchase of , built at the
Armstrong Armstrong may refer to:
Places
* Armstrong Creek (disambiguation), various places
Antarctica
* Armstrong Reef, Biscoe Islands
Argentina
* Armstrong, Santa Fe
Australia
* Armstrong, Victoria
Canada
* Armstrong, British Columbia
* Armstrong ...
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...
, the fastest cruiser in the world at the time of her launch in 1892. In 1889, she ordered the Clyde-built , which defined the type for
armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...
s.''Chiyoda (II): First Armoured Cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy'', Kathrin Milanovich, Warship 2006, Conway Maritime Press, 2006,
Between 1882 and 1918, ending with the visit of the French Military Mission to Japan, the Imperial Japanese Navy stopped relying on foreign instructors altogether. In 1886, she manufactured her own prismatic powder, and in 1892 one of her officers invented a powerful explosive, the
Shimose powder was a type of explosive shell-filling developed by the Japanese naval engineer (1860–1911).
Shimose, born in Hiroshima Prefecture, graduated from Tokyo Imperial University and became one of Japan's earliest holders of a doctorate in engin ...
.
Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895)
Japan continued the modernization of its navy, especially as China was also building a powerful modern fleet with foreign, especially German, assistance, and as a result tensions were building between the two countries over
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
.
The Japanese naval leadership on the eve of hostilities, was generally cautious and even apprehensive as the navy had not yet received the warships ordered in February 1893, particularly the battleships and and the cruiser . Hence, initiating hostilities at the time was not ideal, and the navy was far less confident than the Japanese army about the outcome of a war with China.
Japan's main strategy was to gain command of the sea as this was critical to the operations on land. An early victory over the Beiyang fleet would allow Japan to transport troops and material to the Korean Peninsula, however any prolongation of the war would increase the risk of intervention by the European powers with interests in East Asia. The army's Fifth Division would land at Chemulpo on the western coast of Korea, both to engage and push Chinese forces northwest up the peninsula and to draw the Beiyang Fleet into the Yellow Sea, where it would be engaged in decisive battle. Depending upon the outcome of this engagement, Japan would make one of three choices; If the Combined Fleet were to win decisively, the larger part of the Japanese army would undertake immediate landings on the coast between
Shanhaiguan
Shanhai Pass or Shanhaiguan () is one of the major passes in the Great Wall of China, being the easternmost stronghold along the Ming Great Wall, and commands the narrowest choke point in the Liaoxi Corridor. It is located in Shanhaiguan Di ...
and
Tianjin
Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...
in order to defeat the Chinese army and bring the war to a swift conclusion. If the engagement were to be a draw and neither side gained control of the sea, the army would concentrate on the occupation of Korea. Lastly, if the Combined Fleet was defeated and consequently lost command of the sea, the bulk of the army would remain in Japan and prepare to repel a Chinese invasion, while the Fifth Division in Korea would be ordered to hang on and fight a rearguard action.
A Japanese squadron intercepted and defeated a Chinese force near Korean island of Pungdo; damaging a cruiser, sinking a loaded transport, capturing one gunboat and destroying another. The battle occurred before the war was officially declared on 1 August 1894. On August 10, the Japanese ventured into the Yellow Sea to seek out the Beiyang Fleet and bombarded both
Weihaiwei
Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea.
Weihai's popu ...
and Port Arthur. Finding only small vessels in either harbor, the Combined Fleet returned to Korea to support further landings off the Chinese coast. The Beiyang Fleet under the command of Admiral Ding was initially ordered to stay close to the Chinese coast while reinforcements were sent to Korea by land. But as Japanese troops had very quickly advanced northward from Seoul to Pyongyang the Chinese decided to rush troops to Korea by sea under a naval escort, in mid-September.
Concurrently, because there had been no decisive encounter at sea, the Japanese decided to send more troops to Korea. Early in September, the navy was directed to support further landings and to support the army on Korea's western coast. As Japanese ground forces then moved north to attack Pyongyang, Admiral Ito correctly guessed that the Chinese would attempt to reinforce their army in Korea by sea. On 14 September, the Combined Fleet went north to search the Korean and Chinese coasts and to bring the Beiyang Fleet to battle. On 17 September 1894, the Japanese encountered them off the mouth of the
Yalu River
The Yalu River, known by Koreans as the Amrok River or Amnok River, is a river on the border between North Korea and China. Together with the Tumen River to its east, and a small portion of Paektu Mountain, the Yalu forms the border between ...
. The Combined Fleet then devastated the
Beiyang Fleet
The Beiyang Fleet (Pei-yang Fleet; , alternatively Northern Seas Fleet) was one of the four modernized Chinese navies in the late Qing dynasty. Among the four, the Beiyang Fleet was particularly sponsored by Li Hongzhang, one of the most trust ...
during the
battle
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
, in which the Chinese fleet lost eight out of 12 warships. The Chinese subsequently retreated behind the Weihaiwei fortifications. However, they were then surprised by Japanese troops, who outflanked the harbour's defenses in coordination with the navy. The remnants of the Beiyang Fleet were destroyed at
Weihaiwei
Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea.
Weihai's popu ...
. Although Japan turned out victorious, the two large German-made Chinese ironclad battleships ( ''Dingyuan'' and ''Zhenyuan'') remained almost impervious to Japanese guns, highlighting the need for bigger capital ships in the Imperial Japanese Navy. The next step of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion would thus involve a combination of heavily armed large warships, with smaller and innovative offensive units permitting aggressive tactics.
As a result of the conflict, under the
Treaty of Shimonoseki
The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China and in the period before and during World War II in Japan, was a treaty signed at the , Shimonoseki, Japan on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, ending the Firs ...
(April 17, 1895),
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
and the Pescadores Islands were transferred to Japan. The Imperial Japanese Navy took possession of the island and quelled opposition movements between March to October 1895. Japan also obtained the
Liaodong Peninsula
The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River ...
, although she was forced by Russia, Germany and France to return it to China (
Triple Intervention
The Tripartite Intervention or was a diplomatic intervention by Russia, Germany, and France on 23 April 1895 over the harsh terms of the Treaty of Shimonoseki imposed by Japan on the Qing dynasty of China that ended the First Sino-Japanese War. ...
), only to see Russia take possession of it soon after.
Suppression of the Boxer rebellion (1900)
The Imperial Japanese Navy further intervened in China in 1900 by participating, together with Western Powers, in the suppression of the Chinese Boxer Rebellion. The Navy supplied the largest number of warships (18 out of a total of 50) and delivered the largest contingent of troops among the intervening nations (20,840 Imperial Japanese Army and Navy soldiers, out of a total of 54,000).
The conflict allowed Japan to enter combat together with Western nations and to acquire first-hand understanding of their fighting methods.
Naval Buildup and tensions with Russia
Following the war against China, the
Triple Intervention
The Tripartite Intervention or was a diplomatic intervention by Russia, Germany, and France on 23 April 1895 over the harsh terms of the Treaty of Shimonoseki imposed by Japan on the Qing dynasty of China that ended the First Sino-Japanese War. ...
under Russian leadership, pressured Japan to renounce its claim to the Liaodong Peninsula. The Japanese were well aware of the naval power the three countries possessed in East Asian waters, particularly Russia. Faced with little choice the Japanese retroceded the territory back to China for an additional 30 million taels (roughly ¥45 million). With the humiliation of the forced return of the
Liaodong Peninsula
The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River ...
, Japan began to build up its military strength in preparation for future confrontations. The political capital and public support for the navy gained as a result of the recent conflict with China, also encouraged popular and legislative support for naval expansion.
In 1895, Yamamoto Gombei was assigned to compose a study of Japan's future naval needs. He believed that Japan should have sufficient naval strength to not only to deal with a single hypothetical enemy separately, but to also confront any fleet from two combined powers that might be dispatched against Japan from overseas waters. He assumed that with their conflicting global interests, it was highly unlikely that the British and Russians would ever join together in a war against Japan, considering it more likely that a major power like Russia in alliance with a lesser naval power, would dispatch a portion of their fleet against Japan. Yamamoto therefore calculated that four battleships would be the main battle force that a major power could divert from their other naval commitments to use against Japan and he also added two more battleships that might be contributed to such a naval expedition by a lesser hostile power. In order to achieve victory Japan should have a force of six of the largest battleships supplemented by four armored cruisers of at least 7,000 tons. The centerpiece of this expansion was to be the acquisition of four new battleships in addition to the two which were already being completed in Britain being part of an earlier construction program. Yamamoto was also advocating the construction of a balanced fleet. Battleships would be supplemented by lesser warships of various types, including cruisers that could seek out and pursue the enemy and a sufficient number of destroyers and torpedo boats capable of striking the enemy in home ports. As a result, the program also included the construction of twenty-three destroyers, sixty-three torpedo boats, and an expansion of Japanese shipyards and repair and training facilities. In 1897, because of fears that the size of the Russian fleet assigned to East Asian waters could be larger than previously believed, the plan was revised. Although budgetary limitations simply could not permit the construction of another battleship squadron, the new
Harvey
Harvey, Harveys or Harvey's may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Harvey'' (play), a 1944 play by Mary Chase about a man befriended by an invisible anthropomorphic rabbit
* Harvey Awards ("Harveys"), one of the most important awards ...
and KC armor plates could resist all but the largest AP shells. Japan could now acquire armored cruisers that could take the place in the battle line. Hence, with new armor and lighter but more powerful quick-firing guns, this new cruiser type was superior to many older battleships still afloat. Subsequently, the revisions to the ten-year plan led to the four protected cruisers were replaced by additional two armored cruisers. As a consequence the ''"Six-Six Fleet"'' was born, with six battleships and six armored cruisers.
The program for a 260,000-ton navy to be completed over a ten-year period in two stages of construction, with the total cost being ¥280 million, was approved by the cabinet in late 1895 and funded by the Diet in early 1896. Of the total warship acquisitions accounted for just over ¥200 million. The first stage would begin in 1896 and be completed by 1902; the second would run from 1897 to 1905. The program was financed significantly from the Chinese indemnity secured after the First Sino-Japanese War. This was used to fund the bulk of the naval expansion, roughly ¥139 million, with public loans and existing government revenue providing the rest of the financing required over the ten years of the program. Japan's industrial resources at the time were inadequate for the construction of a fleet of armored warships domestically, as the country was still in the process of developing and acquiring the industrial infrastructure for the construction of major naval vessels. Consequently, the overwhelming majority was built in British shipyards. With the completion of the fleet, Japan would become the fourth strongest naval power in the world in a single decade. In 1902, Japan formed an alliance with Britain, the terms of which stated that if Japan went to war in the Far East and that a third power entered the fight against Japan, then Britain would come to the aid of the Japanese. This was a check to prevent any third power from intervening militarily in any future war with Russia.
Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905)
The new fleet consisted of:
* 6 battleships (all British-built)
* 8
armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...
s (4 British-, 2 Italian-, 1 German-built ''Yakumo'', and 1 French-built ''Azuma'')
* 9 cruisers (5 Japanese, 2 British and 2 U.S.-built)
* 24 destroyers (16 British- and 8 Japanese-built)
* 63
torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...
s (26 German-, 10 British-, 17 French-, and 10 Japanese-built)
One of these battleships, , which was among the most powerful warships afloat when completed, was ordered from the
Vickers
Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public i ...
shipyard in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
at the end of 1898, for delivery to Japan in 1902. Commercial shipbuilding in Japan was exhibited by construction of the twin screw steamer ''Aki-Maru'', built for Nippon Yusen Kaisha by the Mitsubishi Dockyard & Engine Works,
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
. The Imperial Japanese cruiser was built at the
Union Iron Works
Union Iron Works, located in San Francisco, California, on the southeast waterfront, was a central business within the large industrial zone of Potrero Point, for four decades at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries ...
in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
These dispositions culminated with the
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
. At the Battle of Tsushima, Admiral Togo (flag in ''Mikasa'') led the Japanese Grand Fleet into the decisive engagement of the war. The Russian fleet was almost completely annihilated: out of 38 Russian ships, 21 were sunk, seven captured, six disarmed, 4,545 Russian servicemen died and 6,106 were taken prisoner. On the other hand, the Japanese only lost 116 men and three torpedo boats. These victories broke Russian strength in
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...
, and triggered waves of mutinies in the Russian Navy at
Sevastopol
Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
,
Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...
and
Kronstadt
Kronstadt (russian: Кроншта́дт, Kronshtadt ), also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt or Kronštádt (from german: link=no, Krone for " crown" and ''Stadt'' for "city") is a Russian port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city ...
Russian Revolution of 1905
The Russian Revolution of 1905,. also known as the First Russian Revolution,. occurred on 22 January 1905, and was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. The mass unrest was directed again ...
. The victory at Tsushima elevated the stature of the navy.
The Imperial Japanese Navy acquired its first submarines in 1905 from
Electric Boat Company
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...
, barely four years after the
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...
had commissioned its own first submarine, . The ships were
Holland
Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...
designs and were developed under the supervision of Electric Boat's representative, Arthur L. Busch. These five submarines (known as Holland Type VII's) were shipped in kit form to Japan (October 1904) and then assembled at the Yokosuka, Kanagawa
Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka, Kanagawa prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama.
History
In 1866, the Tokugawa shogunate government established the ...
, to become hulls ''No.1'' through ''5'', and became operational at the end of 1905.
Towards an autonomous national navy (1905–1914)
Japan continued in its efforts to build up a strong national naval industry. Following a strategy of "copy, improve, innovate", foreign ships of various designs were usually analysed in depth, their specifications often improved on, and then were purchased in pairs so as to organize comparative testing and improvements. Over the years, the importation of whole classes of ships was progressively substituted by local assembly, and then complete local production, starting with the smallest ships, such as torpedo boats and cruisers in the 1880s, to finish with whole battleships in the early 20th century. The last major purchase was in 1913 when the battlecruiser was purchased from the
Vickers
Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public i ...
shipyard. By 1918, there was no aspect of shipbuilding technology where Japanese capabilities fell significantly below world standards.
The period immediately after Tsushima also saw the IJN, under the influence of the navalist theoretician Satō Tetsutarō, adopt an explicit policy of building for a potential future conflict against the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
. Satō called for a battlefleet at least 70% as strong as that of the US. In 1907, the official policy of the Navy became an '
eight-eight fleet
The was a Japanese naval strategy formulated for the development of the Imperial Japanese Navy in the first quarter of the 20th century, which stipulated that the navy should include eight first-class battleships and eight armoured cruisers or ba ...
' of eight modern battleships and eight battlecruisers. However, financial constraints prevented this ideal ever becoming a reality.
By 1920, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the world's third largest navy and a leader in naval development:
* Following its 1897 invention by Marconi, the Japanese Navy was the first navy to employ
wireless telegraphy
Wireless telegraphy or radiotelegraphy is transmission of text messages by radio waves, analogous to electrical telegraphy using cables. Before about 1910, the term ''wireless telegraphy'' was also used for other experimental technologies for ...
in combat, at the 1905 Battle of Tsushima.
* In 1905, it began building the battleship , at the time the largest warship in the world by displacement, and the first ship to be designed, ordered and laid down as an "all-big-gun" battleship, about one year prior to the launching of . However, due to a lack of material, she was completed with a mixed battery of rifles, launched on 15 November 1906, and completed on 25 March 1910.Jentschura p. 23
* Between 1903 and 1910, Japan began to build battleships domestically. The 1906 battleship ''Satsuma'' was built in Japan with about 80% material imported from Great Britain, with the following battleship class in 1909, the , being built with only 20% imported parts.
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
Siege of Tsingtao
The siege of Tsingtao (or Tsingtau) was the attack on the German port of Tsingtao (now Qingdao) in China during World War I by Japan and the United Kingdom. The siege was waged against Imperial Germany between 27 August and 7 November 1914. ...
, the Imperial Japanese Navy helped seize the German colony of
Tsingtao
Qingdao (, also spelled Tsingtao; , Mandarin: ) is a major city in eastern Shandong Province. The city's name in Chinese characters literally means " azure island". Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, it is a major nodal city of the One Belt ...
. During the siege, beginning on 5 September 1914, conducted the world's first successful sea-launched air strikes. On 6 September 1914, in the very first air-sea battle in history, a Farman aircraft launched by ''Wakamiya'' attacked the Austro-Hungarian cruiser and the German gunboat ''Jaguar'' off Tsingtao. from
Jiaozhou Bay
The Jiaozhou Bay (; german: Kiautschou Bucht, ) is a bay located in the prefecture-level city of Qingdao (Tsingtau), China.
The bay has historically been romanized as Kiaochow, Kiauchau or Kiao-Chau in English and Kiautschou in German.
Geogra ...
. Four
Maurice Farman
Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer.
Biography
Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers Richard and ...
seaplanes bombarded German land targets like communication and command centers, and damaged a German minelayer in the Tsingtao peninsula from September to 6 November 1914 when the Germans surrendered.
A battle group was also sent to the central Pacific in August and September to pursue the
German East Asiatic squadron
The German East Asia Squadron (german: Kreuzergeschwader / Ostasiengeschwader) was an Imperial German Navy cruiser squadron which operated mainly in the Pacific Ocean between the mid-1890s until 1914, when it was destroyed at the Battle of the F ...
, which then moved into the Southern Atlantic, where it encountered British naval forces and was destroyed at the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
. Japan also seized German possessions in northern Micronesia, which remained Japanese colonies until the end of World War II, under the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
' South Seas Mandate. Hard pressed in Europe, where she had only a narrow margin of superiority against Germany, Britain had requested, but was denied, the loan of Japan's four newly built ''Kongō''-class battlecruisers (, , , and ), some of the first ships in the world to be equipped with guns, and the most formidable battlecruisers in the world at the time.
Following a further request by the British and the initiation of
unrestricted submarine warfare
Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink merchant ships such as freighters and tankers without warning, as opposed to attacks per prize rules (also known as "cruiser rules") that call for warships to s ...
by Germany, in March 1917, the Japanese sent a special force to the Mediterranean. This force, consisted of one protected cruiser, as
flotilla leader
A flotilla leader was a warship of late 19th century and early 20th century navies suitable for commanding a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships, typically a small cruiser or a large destroyer (known as a destroyer leader). The flotil ...
and eight of the Navy's newest Kaba-class destroyers (, , , , , , , and ), under Admiral Satō Kōzō, was based in
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
and efficiently protected allied shipping between
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
,
Taranto
Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...
, and ports in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
until the end of the War. In June, ''Akashi'' was replaced by , and four more destroyers were added (''Kashi'', ''Hinoki'', ''Momo'', and ''Yanagi''). They were later joined by the cruiser . By the end of the war, the Japanese had escorted 788 allied transports. One destroyer, ''Sakaki'', was torpedoed on 11 June 1917 by a German submarine with the loss of 59 officers and men. A memorial at the Kalkara Naval Cemetery in Malta was dedicated to the 72 Japanese sailors who died in action during the Mediterranean convoy patrols.
In 1917, Japan exported 12
Arabe-class destroyer
The ''Arabe''-class destroyers was a group of twelve destroyers built for the French Navy during the First World War. All the ships were built in Japan as an export version of the , and were named after ethnic groups within the French Empire at t ...
s to France. In 1918, ships such as were assigned to
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
escort in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
between
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
and the Suez Canal as part of Japan's contribution to the war effort under the Anglo-Japanese alliance. After the conflict, the Japanese Navy received seven German submarines as spoils of war, which were brought to Japan and analysed, contributing greatly to the development of the Japanese submarine industry.
Interwar years (1918–1937)
By 1921, Japan's naval expenditure reached nearly 32% of the national government budget. In 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy possessed 10 battleships, 10 aircraft carriers, 38 cruisers (heavy and light), 112 destroyers, 65 submarines, and various auxiliary ships.
Washington treaty system
In the years following after the end of First World War the naval construction programs of the three greatest naval powers Britain, Japan and the United States had threatened to set off a new potentially dangerous and expensive naval arms race. The subsequent Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 became one of history's most effective arms reduction programs, setting up a system of ratios between the five signatory powers. The United States and Britain were each allocated 525,000 tons of capital ships, Japan 315,000, and France and Italy to 175,000, ratios of 5:3:1.75. Also agreed to was a ten-year moratorium on battleship construction, though replacement of battleships reaching 20 years of service was permitted. Maximum limits of 35,000 tons and 16-inch guns were also set. Carriers were restricted with the same 5:5:3 ratio, with Japan allotted 81,000 tons.
Many naval leaders in Japan's delegation were outraged by these limitations, as Japan would always be behind its chief rivals. However, in the end it was concluded that even these unfavorable limitations would be better than an unrestricted arms race with the industrially dominant United States. The Washington System may have made Japan a junior partner with the US and Britain, but it also curtailed the rise of China and the Soviet Union, who both sought to challenge Japan in Asia.
The Washington Treaty did not restrict the building of ships other than battleships and carriers, resulting in a building race for heavy cruisers. These were limited to 10,000 tons and 8-inch guns. The Japanese were also able to get some concessions, most notably the battleship , which had been partly funded by donations from schoolchildren and would have been scrapped under the terms of the treaty.
The Treaty also dictated that the United States, Britain, and Japan could not expand their Western Pacific fortifications. Japan specifically could not militarize the Kurile Islands, the Bonin Islands, Amami-Oshima, the Loochoo Islands, Formosa and the Pescadores.
Development of naval aviation
Japan at times continued to solicit foreign expertise in areas in which the IJN was inexperienced, such as naval aviation. The Japanese navy had closely monitored the progress of aviation of the three Allied naval powers during World War I and concluded that Britain had made the greatest advances in naval aviation,. The
Sempill Mission
The Sempill Mission was a British naval aviation technical mission led by Captain William Forbes-Sempill. and sent to Japan in September 1921, with the objective of helping the Imperial Japanese Navy develop its aeronaval forces. The mission con ...
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
experienced in the design and testing of Royal Navy aircraft during the First World War. The mission consisted of 27 members, who were largely personnel with experience in naval aviation and included pilots and engineers from several British aircraft manufacturing firms. The British technical mission left for Japan in September with the objective of helping the Imperial Japanese Navy develop and improve the proficiency of its naval air arm. The mission arrived at Kasumigaura Naval Air Station the following month, in November 1921, and stayed in Japan for 18 months.
The mission brought to Kasumigaura well over a hundred British aircraft comprising twenty different models, five of which were then currently in service with the Royal Navy's
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...
. The Japanese were trained on several, such as the
Gloster Sparrowhawk
The Gloster Sparrowhawk was a single-seat fighter aircraft designed and produced during the early 1920s by the British aircraft manufacturer Gloster.
It was developed by aircraft designer Henry Folland, who had recently joined Gloster after t ...
, then a frontline fighter. The Japanese would go on to order 50 of these aircraft from Gloster, and build 40. These planes eventually provided the inspiration for the design of a number of Japanese naval aircraft. Technicians become familiar with the newest aerial weapons and equipment-torpedoes, bombs, machine guns, cameras, and communications gear. Japanese naval aviators were trained in various techniques such as torpedo bombing, flight control and carrier landing and take-offs.
The mission also brought the plans of the most recent British aircraft carriers, such as HMS ''Argus'' and HMS ''Hermes'', which influenced the final stages of the development of the carrier . By the time its last members had returned to Britain, the Japanese had acquired a reasonable grasp of the latest aviation technology and taken the first steps toward having an effective naval air force. Japanese naval aviation also, both in technology and in doctrine, continued to be dependent on the British model for most of the 1920s.
Naval developments during the interwar years
Between the wars, Japan took the lead in many areas of warship development:
* In 1921, it launched , the first purpose-designed aircraft carrier in the world to be completed, and subsequently developed a fleet of aircraft carriers second to none.
* In keeping with its doctrine, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the first to mount guns (in ), guns (in ), and began the only battleships ever to mount guns (in the ).
* In 1928, she launched the innovative , introducing enclosed dual turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire. The new destroyer design was soon emulated by other navies. The ''Fubuki''s also featured the first
torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes.
There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...
s enclosed in splinterproof turrets.
* Japan developed the oxygen fuelled
Type 93 torpedo
The was a -diameter torpedo of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN), launched from surface ships. It is commonly referred to as the Long Lance by most modern English-language naval historians, a nickname given to it after the war by Samuel Eliot Mori ...
, generally recognized as the best torpedo of World War II.
Doctrinal debates
The Imperial Japanese Navy was faced before and during World War II with considerable challenges, probably more so than any other navy in the world. Japan, like Britain, was almost entirely dependent on foreign resources to supply its economy. To achieve Japan's expansionist policies, IJN had to secure and protect distant sources of raw material (especially Southeast Asian oil and raw materials), controlled by foreign countries (Britain, France, and
the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
). To achieve this goal, she had to build large warships capable of long range assault. In the years before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, the IJN began to structure itself specifically to fight the United States. A long stretch of
militaristic
Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...
expansion and the start of the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
in 1937 had exacerbated tensions with the United States, which was seen as a rival of Japan.
This was in conflict with Japan's doctrine of "decisive battle" (, '' Kantai kessen'', which did not require long range), in which IJN would allow the U.S. to sail across the Pacific, using submarines to damage it, then engage the U.S. Navy in a "decisive battle area" near Japan after inflicting such
attrition
Attrition may refer to
*Attrition warfare, the military strategy of wearing down the enemy by continual losses in personnel and material
**War of Attrition, fought between Egypt and Israel from 1968 to 1970
**War of attrition (game), a model of agg ...
. This is also in keeping with the theory of Alfred T. Mahan, to which every major navy subscribed before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, in which wars would be decided by engagements between opposing surface fleets, as they had been for over 300 years.
Following the dictates of Satō (who doubtless was influenced by Mahan), it was the basis for Japan's demand for a 70% ratio (10:10:7) at the
Washington Naval Conference
The Washington Naval Conference was a disarmament conference called by the United States and held in Washington, DC from November 12, 1921 to February 6, 1922. It was conducted outside the auspices of the League of Nations. It was attended by nine ...
, which would give Japan superiority in the "decisive battle area", and the U.S.' insistence on a 60% ratio, which meant parity. Japan, unlike other navies, clung to it even after it had been demonstrated to be obsolete.
It was also in conflict with her past experience. Japan's numerical and industrial inferiority led her to seek technical superiority (fewer, but faster, more powerful ships), qualitative superiority (better training), and aggressive tactics (daring and speedy attacks overwhelming the enemy, a recipe for success in her previous conflicts), but failed to take account of any of these traits. Her opponents in any future Pacific War would not face the political and geographical constraints of her previous wars, nor did she allow for losses in ships and crews.
During the pre-war years, two schools of thought battled over whether the navy should be organized around powerful battleships, ultimately able to defeat American ones in Japanese waters, or aircraft carriers. Neither really prevailed, and both types were developed. The result was that neither ended up with overwhelming strength over its American adversary.
A consistent weakness of gunned Japanese warship development was the tendency to incorporate too much armament, and too much engine power, relative to ship size (a side-effect of the Washington Treaty limitations on overall tonnage), leading to shortcomings in stability, protection and structural strength.
Circle Plans
In response to the London Treaty of 1930, the Japanese started a series of naval construction programs or ''hoju keikaku'' (''naval replenishment, or construction, plans''), known unofficially as the ''maru keikaku'' (''circle plans''). Between 1930 and the outbreak of the Second World War there were four of these ''"Circle plans"'' which were drawn up in 1931, 1934, 1937, and 1939. The ''Circle One'' was plan approved in 1931, provided for the construction of 39 ships to be laid down between 1931 and 1934, centering on four of the new s, and expansion of the Naval Air Service to 14 Air Groups. However, plans for a second ''Circle plan'' were delayed by the Tomozuru capsizing and heavy typhoon damage to the Fourth fleet, when it was revealed that the basic designs of many Japanese warships were flawed due to poor construction techniques and instability caused by attempting to mount too much weaponry on too small a displacement hull. As a result, most of the naval budget in 1932–1933 was absorbed in modifications to rectify the issues with existing equipment.
In 1934, the '' Circle Two'' plan was approved, covering the construction of 48 new warships including the s and two carriers: and . The plan also continued the buildup in naval aircraft and authorized the creation of eight new Naval Air Groups. With Japan's renunciation of naval treaties in December 1934, '' Circle Three'' plan was approved in 1937, its third major naval building program since 1930. A six-year effort, it called for construction of new warships that were free from the old treaty restrictions, while concentrating on qualitative superiority to compensate for Japan's quantitative deficiencies compared with the United States. While the core of ''Circle three'' was to be the construction of the two battleships and , it also called for building the two , along with sixty-four other warships in other categories. ''Circle Three'' also called for the rearming of the demilitarized battleship and the refitting of her sister ships, the , , and . Also funded was upgrading of the four s and the two ''Tone'' class cruisers, which were under construction, by replacing their 6-inch main batteries with 8-inch guns. In aviation, ''Circle Three'' aimed at maintaining parity with American naval air power by adding 827 planes for allocation to fourteen planned land-based air groups, and increasing carrier aircraft by nearly 1,000. To accommodate the new land aircraft the plan called for several new airfields to be built or expanded; it also provided for a significant increase in the size of the navy's production facilities for aircraft and aerial weapons.
In 1938, with the construction of ''Circle Three'' under way, the Japanese had begun to consider preparations for the next major expansion, which was scheduled for 1940. However, with the American
second Vinson act
The Naval Act of 1938, known as the Second Vinson Act, was United States legislation enacted on May 17, 1938, that "mandated a 20% increase in strength of the United States Navy".Circle Four'' six-year expansion program, which was approved in September 1939. ''Circle Four's'' goal was doubling Japan's naval air strength in just five years, delivering air superiority in East Asia and the western Pacific. It called for building of two , a fleet carrier, six of a new class of planned escort carriers, six cruisers, twenty-two destroyers, and twenty-five submarines. The real emphasis, however, was on naval air power, in which the Japanese hoped to take the lead.
To achieve Asian air superiority ''Circle Four'' planned for the acquisition of 175 ship based aircraft and nearly 1,500 land based aircraft to be allocated to seventy-five new air groups. Upon completion of this expansion Japan would have 874 ship-based aircraft and 3,341 aircraft in 128 land based air groups, 65 of these being combat air groups and 63 training.
Conflict in China
The China War was of great importance and value to the development of Japanese naval aviation, demonstrating how aircraft could contribute to the projection of naval power ashore.
The IJN had two primary responsibilities during it: to support amphibious operations on the Chinese coast and the strategic aerial bombardment of Chinese cities – the first time any naval air arm had been given such tasks.
From the onset of hostilities in 1937 until forces were diverted to combat for the Pacific war in 1941, naval aircraft played a key role in military operations on the Chinese mainland. These began with attacks on military installations largely in the Yangtze River basin along the Chinese coast by Japanese carrier aircraft. Naval involvement during the conflict peaked in 1938–39 with the heavy bombardment of Chinese cities deep in the interior by land-based medium bombers and concluded during 1941 with an attempt by both, carrier-borne and land-based, tactical aircraft to cut communication and transportation routes in southern China. Although, the 1937–41 air offensives failed in their political and psychological aims, they did reduce the flow of strategic materiel to China and for a time improved the Japanese military situation in the central and southern parts of the country.
World War II
To effectively combat the numerically superior American navy, the Japanese had devoted a large amount of resources to create a force of superior quality. Betting on the success of aggressive tactics which stemmed from Mahanian doctrine and the concept of decisive battle, Japan did not invest significantly in capabilities needed to protect its long shipping lines against enemy submarines, particularly under-investing in the vital area of
antisubmarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are ty ...
(both escort ships and escort carriers), and in the specialized training and organization to support it. Imperial Japan's reluctance to use its submarine fleet for commerce raiding and failure to secure its communications also hastened its defeat.The Japanese Navy also underinvested in intelligence and had hardly any agents active in the United States when the war started; several Japanese Naval officers credited lack of information about the US Navy as another major factor in their defeat.
The IJN launched a surprise
attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...
, killing 2,403 Americans and crippling the U.S. Pacific Fleet. During the first six months of the Pacific War, the IJN enjoyed spectacular success inflicting heavy defeats on Allied forces. Allied navies were devastated during the Japanese conquest of Southeast Asia. Japanese naval aircraft were also responsible for the sinkings of HMS ''Prince of Wales'' and HMS ''Repulse'' which was the first time that capital ships were sunk by aerial attack while underway. In April 1942, the
Indian Ocean raid
The Indian Ocean raid, also known as Operation C or Battle of Ceylon in Japanese, was a naval sortie carried out by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 31 March to 10 April 1942. Japanese aircraft carriers under Admiral Chūichi Nagumo ...
drove the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
from South East Asia.
After these successes, the IJN now concentrated on the elimination and neutralization of strategic points from where the Allies could launch counteroffensives against Japanese conquests. However, at Coral Sea the Japanese were forced to abandon their attempts to isolate Australia while the defeat in the Midway Campaign saw the Japanese forced on the defensive. The campaign in the Solomon Islands, in which the Japanese lost the war of attrition, was the most decisive; the Japanese failed to commit enough forces in sufficient time. During 1943 the Allies were able to reorganize their forces and American industrial strength began to turn the tide of the war. American forces ultimately managed to gain the upper hand through a vastly greater industrial output and a modernization of its air and naval forces.
In 1943, the Japanese also turned their attention to the defensive perimeters of their previous conquests. Forces on Japanese held islands in Micronesia were to absorb and wear down an expected American counteroffensive. However, American industrial power become apparent and the military forces that faced the Japanese in 1943 were overwhelming in firepower and equipment. From the end of 1943 to 1944 Japan's defensive perimeter failed to hold.
The defeat at the Philippine Sea was a disaster for Japanese naval air power with American pilots terming the slanted air/sea battle the ''Great Marianas Turkey Shoot'', mostly going in the favor of the U.S., while the battle of Leyte Gulf led to the destruction of a large part of the surface fleet. During the last phase of the war, the Imperial Japanese Navy resorted to a series of desperate measures, including a variety of Special Attack Units which were popularly called ''
kamikaze
, officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending t ...
''. By May 1945, most of the Imperial Japanese Navy had been sunk and the remnants had taken refuge in Japan's harbors. By July 1945, the '' Nagato'' was the only remaining ship of the Imperial Japanese Navy's
capital ship
The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they are generally the larger ships when compared to other warships in their respective fleet. A capital ship is generally a leading or a primary ship in a naval fleet.
Strategic im ...
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
.
Legacy
Self-Defense Forces
Following Japan's surrender and subsequent occupation by the Allies at the conclusion of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, the Imperial Japanese Navy, along with the rest of the Japanese military, was dissolved in 1945. In the new
constitution of Japan
The Constitution of Japan ( Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitutio ...
which was drawn up in 1947, Article 9 specifies that "The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes." The prevalent view in Japan is that this article allows for military forces to be kept for the purposes of self-defense. Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution
In 1952, the Coastal Safety Force was formed within the Maritime Safety Agency, incorporating the minesweeping fleet and other military vessels, mainly destroyers, given by the United States. In 1954, the Coastal Safety Force was separated, and the JMSDF was formally created as the naval branch of the Japanese Self-Defense Force (JSDF), following the passage of the 1954 Self-Defense Forces Law. Japan's current navy falls under the umbrella of the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) as the
Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
(JMSDF).
See also
*
Admiral of the Fleet (Japan)
Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
Fleet Faction
The was an unofficial and informal political faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy in the 1920s and 1930s of officers opposed to the conditions imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty.
Background
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the ...
and
Treaty Faction
The was an unofficial and informal political faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy in the 1920s-1930s of officers supporting the Washington Naval Treaty.
Background
The ''Washington Naval Treaty'', also known as the ''Five-Power Treaty'', ...
– Navy political groups about naval treaties
*
Imperial Japanese Naval Academy The was a school established to train line officers for the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was originally located in Nagasaki, moved to Yokohama in 1866, and was relocated to Tsukiji, Tokyo in 1869. It moved to Etajima, Hiroshima in 1888. Students st ...
Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau
The of the Ministry of the Navy of Japan was responsible for the development and training of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. In 1941 it was headed by Vice-Admiral Eikichi Katagiri and was organized as follows:
* General Affairs Department
...
*
Imperial Japanese Navy bases and facilities {{unreferenced, date=January 2010
This is a list of Imperial Japanese Navy bases and facilities
Bases
* Atsugi Naval Air Base - now Naval Air Facility Atsugi operated by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and the US Navy
* Kure Naval Bas ...
*
Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Sailors
The was the official code of ethics for military personnel, and is often cited along with the ''Imperial Rescript on Education'' as the basis for Japan's pre-World War II national ideology. All military personnel were required to memorize the 2 ...
*
Japanese nationalism
is a form of nationalism that asserts the belief that the Japanese are a monolithic nation with a single immutable culture, and promotes the cultural unity of the Japanese. Over the last two centuries, it has encompassed a broad range of ideas ...
*
Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces
The Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF; ja, 海軍特別陸戦隊, Kaigun Tokubetsu Rikusentai) were naval infantry units of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and were a part of the IJN Land Forces. They saw extensive service in the Second Sino ...
*
Kaientai
The was a trading and shipping company and private navy, considered to be the first corporation in modern Japan.
Kaientai, originally named Kameyama Shachū (亀山社中, "Kameyama Troupe"), was founded by Sakamoto Ryōma in Nagasaki in 1 ...
Marshal (Japan)
, formal rank designations: was the highest title in the pre-war Imperial Japanese military.
The title originated from the Chinese title ''yuanshuai'' (元帥).
The term ''gensui'', which was used for both the Imperial Japanese Army and the I ...
Recruitment in the Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy was created in 1868, initially the officers and sailors who manned the new navy reflected the composition of the Meiji government's bureaucracy. Samurai who originated from the victorious coalition of south-western domains ...
Tomogashima
is a cluster of four islands in the Inland Sea, off Wakayama, Wakayama, Japan. The four islands are , , , and . The islands form part of the Setonaikai National Park.
History
The islands were used by Buddhist monks for Shugendō. The folklore ...
Notes
References
*
*
*
* Howe, Christopher (1996) ''The origins of Japanese Trade Supremacy, Development and technology in Asia from 1540 to the Pacific War'', University of Chicago Press
* Ireland, Bernard (1996) ''Jane's Battleships of the 20th Century''
*
*
* Lyon, D.J. (1976) ''World War II warships'', Excalibur Books
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
*
* Boxer, C.R. (1993) ''The Christian Century in Japan 1549–1650'',
*
* Delorme, Pierre, ''Les Grandes Batailles de l'Histoire, Port-Arthur 1904'', Socomer Editions (French)
* Gardiner, Robert (editor) (2001) ''Steam, Steel and Shellfire, The Steam Warship 1815–1905'',
*
*
*
* Nagazumi, Yōko (永積洋子) ''Red Seal Ships (朱印船)'', (Japanese)
* Polak, Christian. (2001). ''Soie et lumières: L'âge d'or des échanges franco-japonais (des origines aux années 1950).'' Tokyo: ''Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie Française du Japon,''
Hachette Hachette may refer to:
* Hachette (surname)
* Hachette (publisher), a French publisher, the imprint of Lagardère Publishing
** Hachette Book Group, the American subsidiary
** Hachette Distribution Services, the distribution arm
See also
* Hachett ...
Global Oriental
Global Oriental is an imprint of the Dutch publishing house Brill.http://www.brill.nl/about/imprints It used to be trade publishing company based in Kent, United Kingdom. It is the publisher of scholarly books on Japan and East Asia in fields s ...
Japanese Navy
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
Japanese Navy
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...