 The revolutionary design of the “Elswick” protected cruiser, initially developed as a private-venture by Armstrong Whitworth in the mid-1880s, and implemented in the cruiser "Esmeralda" for the Chilean Navy (subsequently purchased by Japan as ) was of great interest to Japan because of her high speed, powerful armament, armor protection and relatively low cost, especially since the Imperial Japanese Navy lacked the resources at the time to purchase modern pre-dreadnought battleships.This was a period of increasing tension with the Empire of China prior to the First Sino-Japanese War, and Japan lacked the ships necessary to counter the Chinese Beiyang Fleet.Pioneering Japanese naval architect Sasō Sachū requested that Armstrong Whitworth make modifications to the "Esmeralda" design to customize it for Japanese requirements, and two vessels, "Naniwa" and "Takachiho" were ordered under the 1883 fiscal year budget, by Naval Minister Kawamura Sumiyoshi.