The Six-Six Fleet was a shipbuilding program initiated by Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the wake of the First Sino-Japanese War and the Triple Intervention . The program was the brainchild of Yamamoto Gombei , who would later become the Minister of the Navy and the eighth Prime Minister of Japan. The completion of the plan led to the emergence of Japan as a first-class naval power. Whereas during the war with China, the Japanese had gone into the conflict with a makeshift force of warships, they would now have a true battle fleet, the core of which consisted of six battleships and six armored cruisers, giving the plan its name.
33-560: After the First Sino-Japanese war there was a tide of popular enthusiasm for naval glory that was created by Japan's recent triumphs at sea. Domestically, the war and the favorable settlement were also tremendous political successes for both the government and the armed services. However, with the Triple Intervention on 23 April, the governments of France, Germany and Russia pressured Japan to renounce its claim to
66-477: A 260,000-ton navy was to be completed over a ten-year period with the total cost being ¥280 million, of this total warship acquisitions accounted for just over ¥200 million, in two stages of construction. 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
99-770: A cottage in Yanagihara (present-day Numazu ), Shizuoka Prefecture . Saigō Jūdō was the first person in Japan to own a race horse. Gensui the Marquis Saigō died in 1902 and was buried in the Tama Cemetery in Fuchū in Tokyo . Harvey armor Harvey armor was a type of steel naval armor developed in the early 1890s in which the front surfaces of the plates were case hardened . The method for doing this
132-441: A lesser extent France in his calculations. Yamamoto assumed that with their conflicting global interests, it was highly unlikely that Britain and Russia would ever join in a war against Japan. He considered that it was more likely that Russia or possibly Britain in alliance with a lesser naval power like France or Germany, would dispatch a portion of their fleet against Japan. Yamamoto therefore calculated that four battleships would be
165-418: A tax increase on sake and tobacco to pay for additional operating expenses that would accompany fleet expansion. Japan's industrial resources at the time were inadequate for the construction of a main battle force 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. As a result, 90 percent of
198-578: The death penalty for Tsuda Sanzō , the accused in the Ōtsu incident of 1891, and threatened Kojima Korekata should the sentence be more lenient. In 1892, he was appointed to the Privy Council as one of the genrō . In the same year, he founded a political party known as Kokumin Kyōkai ( 国民協会 , The People's Co-operative Party) . In 1894, Saigō was given the rank of admiral , in recognition of his role as Navy minister, and his peerage title
231-674: The 234,000 tons of naval construction contracted for under the ten-year beginning 1896-97 was to be foreign built, and when complete would constitute 70 percent of the Japanese fleet. Of this, 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. Saig%C5%8D Tsugumichi [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Admiral (1894–1898) Saigō Jūdō ( 西郷 従道 , also read Saigō Tsugumichi ) (1 June 1843 – 18 July 1902)
264-518: The Harvey Syndicate. Before the appearance of compound armor in the 1880s, armor plating was made from uniform homogeneous iron or steel plates backed by several inches of teak to absorb the shock of projectile impact. Compound armor appeared in the mid-1880s and was made from two different types of steel , a very hard but brittle high- carbon steel front plate backed by a more elastic low-carbon wrought iron plate. The front plate
297-666: The Liaotung Peninsula. The Japanese were well aware of the naval power the three countries possessed in East Asian waters, particularly Russia. Without the diplomatic, political or military support of either Britain or the United States and consequently facing little choice the Japanese retroceded the territory back to China for an additional 30 million taels (roughly ¥45 million). Although the victory against China had elevated Japan's status, it also further entangled
330-496: The Russian navy should decide to concentrate in East Asian waters. Yet budgetary limitations simply did not permit the construction of another battleship squadron. However, as the new Harvey 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
363-438: The carbon content at the face to around 1 percent; the carbon content decreasing gradually from this level with distance into the plate, reaching the original proportion (approximately 0.1–0.2 percent) at a depth of around an inch. After cementing, the plate was chilled first in an oil bath, then in a water bath, before being annealed to toughen the back of the plate. The water bath was later replaced with jets of water to prevent
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#1732790130268396-522: The characters of his name. At the recommendation of Arimura Shunsai , he became a tea-serving Buddhist monk for the daimyō of Satsuma, Shimazu Nariakira . After he returned to secular life, he became one of a group of devoted followers of Arimura. As a Satsuma samurai , he participated in the Anglo-Satsuma War . He later joined the movement to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate . He
429-563: The country in the imperial rivalries in East Asia and the Pacific. The Triple Intervention had also underscored the extent of Japan's maritime weakness in relation to the West. However this maritime weakness, combined with the political and popular capital gained as a result of the war with China, also subsequently encouraged popular and legislative support for naval expansion in the aftermath of
462-530: The death of his brother in the Satsuma Rebellion , Saigō Jūdō became the primary political leader from Satsuma. In accord with the kazoku peerage system enacted in 1884, he received the title of count ( hakushaku ). Saigō held a string of important positions in the Itō Hirobumi cabinet, including Navy Minister (1885, 1892–1902). As Minister of Internal Affairs , Saigō pushed strongly for
495-494: The formation of a layer of steam which would insulate the steel from the cooling effect of the water. The process was further improved by low temperature forging of the plate before the final heat treatment. While the American navy used nickel steel for Harvey armor (roughly 0.2 percent carbon, 0.6 percent manganese , 3.5 percent nickel), the British used normal steels since their tests had shown that ordinary steel subjected to
528-414: The inclusion of cruisers that could seek out and pursue the enemy along with a sufficient number of destroyers and torpedo boats capable of striking the enemy in his home ports. 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. Given the changes in naval technology at the time as well as
561-511: The largest warships then being built, which were Britain's 15,000-ton Majestic class , had a mean draft of equal depth and therefore could not transit the canal. Such a fleet of warships would have to pass around the Cape of Good Hope, not only would this route take time but every European navy with the exception of the Royal Navy , would have to encounter considerable problems in coaling along
594-493: The main battle force that either Britain or Russia 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. Yamamoto came up with six as the number of battleships that Japan would need have to have in order to achieve victory. The depth of the Suez Canal was at that time only 27 ft (8 m) and
627-507: The navy into a world-class military fleet. While Russia was perceived to Japan's most likely enemy in any future conflict, Yamamoto chose to consider other scenarios rather than simply preparations for a war with Russia. Yamamoto believed that Japan should have sufficient naval strength to not only to deal with a single hypothetical enemy separately, but to also confront any naval force from two combined powers that might be dispatched against Japan from overseas waters; this included Britain and to
660-632: The new Imperial Japanese Army . He commanded Japanese expeditionary forces in the Taiwan Expedition of 1874 . In 1873, his brother Saigō Takamori resigned from the government, over the rejection of his proposal to invade Korea during the Seikanron debate. Many other officials from the Satsuma region followed suit. However, Saigō Jūdō continued to remain loyal to the Meiji government. Upon
693-412: The rapidly shifting balance of naval strength among the maritime powers, no sooner had the 1896 naval expansion plan been authorized than it had to be amended. The program had originally called for the construction of four armored cruisers. Further consideration of Russian building plans led the Japanese to conclude that the six battleships authorized under the 1896 plan might not be sufficient after all, if
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#1732790130268726-542: The two plates could separate when struck by a shell, and the rear plate was often not elastic enough to stop the splinters. With the discovery of nickel -steel alloys in 1889, compound armor was rendered obsolete. Harvey armor used a single plate of steel, but re-introduced the benefits of compound armor. The front surface was converted to high carbon steel by "cementing". In this process, the steel plate would be covered with charcoal and heated to approximately 1200 degrees Celsius for two to three weeks. The process increased
759-553: The two which were already being built in Britain being part of an earlier construction program: the Fuji and Yashima . Yamamoto was not simply recommending the building of a battleship force, he was also advocating the construction of a balanced fleet. Just as in the army the infantry was supported by the artillery, cavalry, and engineers, so battleships should be supplemented by lesser warships of various types. Specifically, this meant
792-628: The war. In May 1895, the Minister of the Navy Saigō Tsugumichi asked Yamamoto Gombei to compose a study of Japan's future naval needs. Yamamoto, who had been newly appointed to his position as Chief of the Naval Affairs Bureau, sensed that a great opportunity existed to secure significant fleet expansion. Approaching his task with unrelenting enthusiasm, Yamamoto devised a revolutionary plan that would fundamentally transform
825-435: The way. Furthermore, establishing repair and docking facilities along the route and in East Asian waters for the largest warships would be an enormous expense for any nation. Thus, for its minimum naval security 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
858-587: Was a Japanese politician and admiral in the Meiji period . Saigō was born in Shimokajiyachō, Kagoshima , the son of the samurai Saigō Kichibe of the Satsuma Domain . His siblings included his famous older brother, samurai and nobleman Saigō Takamori . Saigō changed his name many times throughout his life. Besides the two listed above, he sometimes went by the nickname "Shingō". His real name
891-516: Was a commander of the Satsuma army fighting in the Battle of Toba–Fushimi as well as other battles on the imperial side of the Boshin War . In 1869, two years after the establishment of the Meiji government , Saigō went to Europe with General Yamagata Aritomo to study European military organizations, tactics and technologies. After his return to Japan, he was appointed a lieutenant-general in
924-553: Was either "Ryūkō", or "Ryūdō" (隆興). It is possible that he went by the name "Ryūsuke". Following the Meiji Restoration , Saigō went to a government office to register his name. He intended to register orally under his given name (Ryūkō or Ryūdō). However, the civil servant misheard his name and he therefore became Jūdō ( 従道 ) under the law. He did not particularly mind, so he never bothered to change it back. The name "Tsugumichi" arose as an alternate pronunciation for
957-677: Was elevated to that of marquis . In 1898, the Imperial Japanese Navy bestowed upon him the honorary title of Marshal-Admiral . The rank is equivalent to Admiral of the Fleet or Grand Admiral . Saigō’s former residence (once in Meguro , Tokyo) is registered as an Important Cultural Property by the Japanese government and is now at the Meiji-mura historical park outside of Inuyama , Aichi Prefecture . Saigō also owned
990-435: Was intended to break up an incoming shell, while the rear plate would catch any splinters and hold the armor together if the brittle front plate shattered. Compound armor was made by pouring molten steel between a red-hot wrought iron backing plate and a hardened steel front plate to weld them together. This process produced a sharp transition between the properties of the two plates in a very small distance. As consequence,
1023-612: Was known as the Harvey process , and was invented by the American engineer Hayward Augustus Harvey . This type of armor was used in the construction of capital ships until superseded by Krupp armor in the late 1890s. The Harvey United Steel Company was a steel cartel whose chairman was Albert Vickers [ la ] . The year 1894 would see the ten main producers of armor plate, including Vickers , Armstrong , Krupp , Schneider , Carnegie and Bethlehem Steel , form
Six-Six Fleet - Misplaced Pages Continue
1056-465: Was superior to many older battleships still afloat. Subsequently, in the 1897 revisions to the ten-year plan led to the four protected cruisers being substituted for two additional armored cruisers. And as a consequence "Six-Six Fleet" was born: six battleships and six armored cruisers. The Six-six fleet was approved by the cabinet in late 1895 and funded by the Diet in early 1896. The proposed program for
1089-426: 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. Critically, this meant that there would no increase in the land tax needed to support naval increases, at least in 1895–96, which was crucial in securing widespread parliamentary support. The government did, however, propose
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