Fuji

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Fuji and her near-sisterYashima were the first two battleships built for Japan. Authorized under the 1884 Programme, the only other Japanese battleship being the Chen-Yuan, captured from China in the Sino-Japanese War. Incapable of building modern steel warships themselves, the Japanese placed orders from British yards.

Fuji was delivered to the Japanese in 1897, refitted in 1901, and helped form the core of the Japanese battle fleet during the Russo-Japanese War. She was hit twice during the bombardment of Port Arthor February 9, 1904, and she again bombarded that port on March 22. On August 10, 1904, she fought at the Battle of the Yellow Sea, and suffered 11 hits at the Battle of Tsushima on May 27, 1905. In this battle she also scored the fatal hit on the Russian battleship Borodino, causing that ship to explode with the loss of all but one of her crew of 830.

After the war ended, Fuji was refitted, having her fighting tops removed and new boilers installed. She was again given a refit in 1910, and her British made guns were removed in favor of Japanese manufactured pieces. Following this refit she was rated as a 'first class coast defense ship' and training ship for gunners and seamen. Far too old and slow for service in WWI, she spent the entire war at Kure in her training role.

In 1922, she was disarmed and stricken, but retained as accommodation ship. Her propellers, main turrets, and all guns were removed, and large wooden deckhouses were added to the superstructure, and flat drill platforms covered her main deck. She operated as a floating barracks and training center at Yokosuka, a capacity in which she served for over two decades. In 1944, the old ship was used as a development center and observation post to test the effectiveness of various camouflage schemes on 1-meter long models of Japanese aircraft carriers, in the hopes that way could be found to make them look like merchant ships to American pilots. In 1945, she was given over to the navigation school, to act as floating barracks, school, and tender to their small craft. She suffered from US airstrikes, but stayed afloat, and was broken up in Yokosuka in 1948.

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