of Kōtetsu as the flagship and a collection of various steam-powered warships that had been contributed by the various feudal domains loyal to the new government. On 25 March 1869, during the Battle of Miyako Bay, Kōtetsu successfully repulsed a surprise night attempt at naval boarding by the rebel (spearheaded by survivors from the Shinsengumi), making use of a mounted Gatling gun. Kōtetsu subsequently supported the invasion of Hokkaidō and various naval engagements in the Naval Battle of Hakodate Bay. Subsequent career Following the end of the Boshin War in August 1870, Kōtetsu was classified as a third-class warship on 15 November 1871 and was renamed Azuma on 7 December. By January 1873, her fighting ability was assessed as low. Azuma was assigned to guard Nagasaki during the Saga rebellion in February 1874 and during the Taiwan Expedition of May 1874. On 19 August she ran aground at Kagoshima during a typhoon, but was refloated and repaired at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal. During the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877, she was assigned to guard duties in the Seto Inland Sea. She was stricken from the navy list on 28 January 1888, and was sold for scrap on 12 December 1889. Her armor plating was reused to make the armature shafts in the electric generators in the Asakusa Thermal Power Station, built in Tokyo in 1895. See also French weapons in the American Civil War Notes Citations Bibliography Further reading End of the Bakufu and Restoration in Hakodate 函館の幕末・維新 (Japanese). . External links CSS Stonewall (1865) Photos and engravings at sea, anchor, one possibly as Azuma CSS Stonewall (1865) At Washington, D.C., 1865-1867 Photos at Washington Navy Yard C.S.S. Stonewall History and photos, including one colorized as Azuma FS Sphynx / CSS Stonewall Ocean-Going Ironclad Ram (1864) History and photos Ironclad warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy Stonewall Ships built in France 1864 ships Naval ships of Japan Ships built by Arman Brothers Maritime incidents in August 1874