An Imperial Navy before it became national

The anti-shogunate coalition used imperial symbols to make resistance politically difficult for Tokugawa supporters. Its wartime fleet remained a collection of Satsuma, Choshu, and Tosa vessels until later institutional consolidation. Former Tokugawa officer Katsu Kaishu helped turn those forces into a national navy. An earlier shogunate decision to create forces explicitly in the emperor's name might have denied the coalition its decisive political symbolism. The new naval institution inherited regional political loyalties as well as ships and personnel.