The occurred on 28 January 1868 during the Boshin War in Japan, in the area of

Awa Awa (or variants) may refer to: People * Awa (given name), notable people named Awa or Hawa * Awá (Brazil), an indigenous people of Brazil * Awa-Kwaiker, an indigenous people of Colombia and Ecuador Languages * Awa language (China) or Wa (Va) ...

Bay near

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

. Involving ships of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

and

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 ...

vessels loyal to the imperial court in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

, the battle was the second naval battle in Japanese history between modern naval forces (after the 1863 Battle of Shimonoseki Straits). Enomoto Takeaki led the shogunal navy to victory at Awa, in one of the few Tokugawa successes of the Boshin War, one day after the start of the land Battle of Toba–Fushimi (which the shogunate lost to the Imperial forces).

Summary

The Satsuma Domain was preparing to return its troops to

Kagoshima , abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...

aboard two transports, the and the , protected by the Satsuma warship ''Kasuga'' stationed in Hyōgo harbour. The shogunal navy under Enomoto Takeaki was nearby with the steam frigate ''Kaiyō Maru'' as its main unit, and had been supporting the Battle of Toba–Fushimi from the sea. Enomoto's fleet moved to blockade the withdrawal of the Satsuma ships. On 28 January, in the early morning, the Satsuma ships left Hyōgo harbor. ''Heiun'' left through the Strait of

Akashi Akashi may refer to: People *Akashi (surname) Places *Akashi, Hyōgo *Akashi Station, a Japanese railroad station on the Sanyō Main Line *Akashi Strait *Akashi Kaikyō Bridge, crossing the former *Akashi Castle *Akashi Domain * Akashi, the name ...

, and ''Kasuga'' went south with ''Shōō'' towards the

Kitan Strait The or separates Awaji Island from Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan and connects the Osaka Bay in the north to the Kii Channel in the south. The total width is 11 km, but the islands of Tomogashima reduce the distance to be spanned ...

. ''Kaiyō Maru'' pursued and prepared for combat. At a distance of 1,200–2,500 meters, ''Kaiyō Maru'' fired about 25 times on the two Satsuma ships, and ''Kasuga'' responded with 18 shots, without significant damage to either side. However, as more Shogunate navy ships had arrived (the ''Banryū'' and ''Shokaku''), ''Kasuga'' broke off the engagement, and, being faster than ''Kaiyō Maru'', escaped to

. Unable to flee, ''Shōō'' was run aground at and was destroyed by her crew. Looking at the burning ''Shōō'', Enomoto expressed admiration at the fight put on by his enemies: . The future

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...

Fleet Admiral

Tōgō Heihachirō Marshal-Admiral Marquis , served as a '' gensui'' or admiral of the fleet in the Imperial Japanese Navy and became one of Japan's greatest naval heroes. He claimed descent from Samurai Shijo Kingo, and he was an integral part of preserving ...

was a gunner aboard ''Kasuga'' during the engagement.

References

* * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Awa 1868 1868 in Japan

January 1868 events