Kaiyo-maru
The Kaiyô-maru was a warship commissioned by the Tokugawa shogunate from the Netherlands and obtained by the shogunate in 1867. The following year, it became the flagship of the fleet of pro-shogunate loyalists led by Enomoto Takeaki and was used in the battle of Hakodate against anti-shogunate Imperial forces, but was lost in that battle.
Roughly 73 feet long, the Kaiyô-maru was a wooden sailing ship fitted with a steam engine.
Enomoto and his men took the Kaiyô-maru out of Edo Bay on 1868/8/19 along with other ships as they fled to Ezo (Hokkaido) from Edo. Fighting began in concert with their arrival in Ezo in the 10th month. On 11/15, the Kaiyô-maru struck a sandbar amidst a storm in the waters off Esashi, and sank.
Maritime archaeological efforts overseen by the local Esashi Town Board of Education have recovered some 30,000 items from the wreck since 1970.
References
- Gallery labels, Hokkaido Museum.[1]
