Imperial Forces
For the operation, an Imperial Japanese Navy fleet had been rapidly constituted around recent acquired ironclad warship Kōtetsu, which had been purchased from the United States. Other Imperial ships were Kasuga, Hiryū, Teibo, Yoharu, Moshun, which had been supplied by the domains of Saga, Chōshū and Satsuma to the newly formed Meiji government in 1868.
The nascent Imperial government started with a much weaker navy than that of the Ezo Republic, both in terms of vessel strength, unity (most of its ships were borrowed from Western domains), and training. However the loss of two major units on the Ezo side previous to the main action (Kaiyō Maru and Kanrin Maru), and most of all, the incorporation of the revolutionary Kōtetsu since April 1868 on the Imperial side (a ship originally ordered by the Tokugawa shogunate, but withheld by the United States during the main conflict (under a policy of neutrality taken by foreign nations), and finally delivered to the newly formed government), turned the tables. In addition, the Imperial government received the support of two transportation ships chartered by the United States for the transportation of its troops.
Read more about this topic: Naval Battle Of Hakodate
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