Tensions between Japan and China heightened after the former launched its punitive expedition against Taiwan in May 1874 in retaliation of the murder of a number of shipwrecked sailors by the Paiwan aborigines.

The Japanese terminated the negotiations with the Brazilians in October after the ship was badly damaged upon launching and the expeditionary force was about to withdraw from Taiwan.

The crisis illustrated the need to reinforce the IJN and a budget request was submitted that same month by Acting Navy Minister Kawamura Sumiyoshi for ¥3.9–4.2 million to purchase three warships from abroad.

[2] Nothing was done until March 1875 when Kawamura proposed to buy one ironclad for half of the money authorized and use the rest for shipbuilding and gun production at the Yokosuka Shipyard.

No response was made by the Prime Minister's office before the proposal was revised to use all of the allocated money to buy three ships, one iron-hulled armored warship and two armored corvettes of composite construction to be designed by the prominent British naval architect Sir Edward Reed, formerly the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy.

Ueno signed the contracts for all three ships on 24 September despite this issue because Reed was scheduled to depart for a trip to Russia and the matter had to be concluded before his departure.

Ueno had informed the Navy Ministry about the costs before signing, but Kawamura's response to postpone the order for the armored frigate did not arrive until 8 October.

[4] The design of Fusō was based on a scaled-down version of HMS Iron Duke, an Audacious-class central-battery ironclad, familiar to the Japanese as the flagship of the Royal Navy China Station from 1871 to 1875.

[8] Fusō had a pair of two-cylinder, double-expansion trunk steam engines made by John Penn and Sons, each driving a two-bladed 15-foot-6-inch (4.7 m) propeller.

[10] The ship carried a maximum of 350 long tons (360 t) of coal,[8] enough to steam 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

To offset the reduced number of boilers, the new ones were fitted with forced draught which increased their working pressure to 6.13 bar (613 kPa; 89 psi).

Upon the recommendation of the prominent French naval architect Louis-Émile Bertin, a "spoon" was added to the ends of the tubes to make the torpedoes strike the water horizontally which better distributed the shock of impact.

Japanese sources universally give the date for Kongō's keel-laying as 24 September 1875—the same as that for the awarding of the contract—but historian Hans Langerer describes this as improbable, arguing that no shipyard would order enough material to begin construction without cash in hand.

Fusō was launched on 14 April 1877 when Ueno Ikuko, wife of the Japanese consul, cut the retaining rope with a hammer and chisel.

On 10 July a formal ceremony was held in Yokohama for the receipt of the ship that was attended by the Meiji Emperor and many senior government officials.

She hosted Empress Shōken for the launching ceremony of the corvette Musashi on 30 March 1886 and was transferred to the Small Standing Fleet in 1887.

Fusō participated in the fleet maneuvers on 25 March 1880 and then hosted Emperor Meiji for his visits to Kure, Sasebo, and Etajima.

[11] During the Battle of the Yalu River on 17 September 1894, Fusō was assigned to the rear of the Japanese main body and was heavily engaged by the Chinese ships.

[27] On 29 October 1897, Fusō's anchor chain broke during a strong gale off Nagahama, Ehime and she collided with the ram of the protected cruiser Matsushima at 16:30.

[26] Re-classed as a second-class battleship on 21 March 1898 and refloated on 7 July,[26] Fusō was repaired at Kure Naval Arsenal and ran her trials on 8 April 1900.