Modernization: Bakumatsu Period (1853-1868)
The study of Western shipbuilding techniques resumed in the 1840s. This process intensified along with the increased activity of Western shipping along the coasts of Japan, due to the China trade and the development of whaling.
From 1852, the government of the Shogun (the Late Tokugawa shogunate or "Bakumatsu") was warned by Holland of the plans of Commodore Perry. Three months after Perry's first visit in 1853, the Bakufu cancelled the law prohibiting the construction of large ships (大船建造禁止令), and started organizing the construction of a fleet of Western-style sail warships, such as the Hou-Ou Maru, the Shouhei Maru or the Asahi Maru, usually asking each fief to build their own modern ships. These ships were built using Dutch sailing manuals, and the know-how of a few returnees from the West, such as Nakahama Manjirō. Also with the help of Nakahama Manjirō, the Satsuma fief built Japan's first steam ship, the Unkoumaru (雲行丸) in 1855. The Bakufu also established defensive coastal fortifications, such as at Odaiba.
Read more about this topic: Naval History Of Japan
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