Launch of the 'Fuji' at Blackwall, London, 31 March 1896.

Oil painting by Gerald M Burn (1859-1945). British shipyards and naval personnel were instrumental in the development of the Imperial Japanese Navy as a modern fighting force in the late 19th century. The battleship 'Fuji' was built for the Japanese Navy by the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding Co. Its design was that of contemporary British first clas battleships but with important modifications, in particular the hooded barbettes and the cut-away deadwood arrangement of the stern which enabled her to turn more rapidly. The Thames Ironworks closed some 20 years later.