Japanese warship Kasuga (1862)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Builder: | Great Britain |
| Ordered: | |
| Laid down: | |
| Launched: | |
| Commissioned: | |
| Arrived in Japan: | January 1868 |
| Decommissioned: | 1894 |
| Fate: | scrapped |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1269 tons |
| Length: | 73m |
| Beam: | 9m |
| Draught: | |
| Propulsion: | Steam engine, 1200hp |
| Fuel: | Coal |
| Speed: | 17 knots |
| Complement: | 134 |
| Armament: | 6 guns |
The Japanese warship Kasuga (JPN: 春日) was built in 1862 (or possibly 1863) in Great Britain under the name Kiangsu (after the area of Jiangsu in China). The Kiangsu was purchased by the Satsuma fief on November 3, 1867, for the amount of 160,000 ryō, whence she was renamed Kasuga.
Kasuga was a wooden boat with paddle wheels. She weighed 1269t, her engine had a power of 300 ihp, she did 17 knots and she had 6 guns.
The ship entered Hyōgo harbour on January 1868, where it was blockaded by three ships of the navy of the Bakufu: Kaiyō, Banryō and the Shōkaku. Togo Heihachiro, future Admiral of the Fleet, joined the ship on January 3 as a third-class officer and a gunner.
The night of January 3, Kasuga escaped from Hyōgo harbour with two other ships. She was spotted by the Kaiyō, which chased her into the strait of Awa. The two ships exchanged fire at a distance of 1,200-2,500, without any actual hits. The exchange was named the Naval Battle of Awa and was the first naval battle in Japan between two modern fleets. Kasuga returned to Kagoshima after that exchange.
In March 1869, Kasuga participated in the expedition against the last Bakufu forces in Hokkaido, where they had formed the Republic of Ezo with the support of a few French military advisors such as Jules Brunet.
Stationed in the northern bay of Miyako the expedition suffered a surprise attack by the Bakufu ship Kaiten. Kaiten attacked the state-of-the art ironclad ship Kotetsu, but she was repulsed by Gatling guns onboard the Kotetsu and cannon response by Kasuga. The encounter has been named the Naval Battle of Miyako.
After these events Kasuga participated in the Naval Battle of Hakodate in May 1869, until the surrender of the last forces of the Bakufu.
In April 1870, the ship was transferred from the Satsuma fief to the newly formed Meiji Imperial government.
She was demobilized in 1894 and then assigned to the mine-laying group in Tsushima.
She was scrapped in 1902.
