Kamakura, Kanagawa

Kamakura (Japanese镰仓 市-shi, literally sickle bearing ) is a town in the Japanese prefecture of Kanagawa.

Geography

Kamakura is about 50 km southwest of Tokyo lies along the Sagami Bay city, which is surrounded to the north, east and west of five mountains. She was from 1185 to 1333 the seat of government of Japan. Main attractions for many domestic and foreign tourists are the numerous well-preserved temples and shrines from that era. Also Kamakura beach is a popular destination.

History

During the Heian period (794-1185) Kamakura was the most important city in the Kanto region.

After the defeat of the Taira clan by Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-1199) this was in 1192 to enforce the Tennō to be appointed to the hereditary shogun. But already his grandson Sanetomo fell in 1219 to a murder victim. The real power in Kamakura then practiced the Hausverweser, descended from the Taira Hōjō, and ruled until 1333 from here all over Japan ( Kamakura shogunate ). The city developed here to the political and cultural center of the country. After the fall of the Hōjō in 1333 Kamakura increasingly lost in the subsequent Kemmu restoration and the onset of the Muromachi period in importance and the seat of government was moved back to Kyoto.

Attractions

In Kamakura there are numerous Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.

Best known is the Kōtoku - in with the 1252 built monumental bronze statue of Amida Buddha, commonly called " Daibutsu ". 1498 a tsunami destroyed the approximately 860 m from the beach, temple and surrounding the Great Buddha Hall, since the figure is free.

The term Kamakura Gozan of Kencho -ji, the Engaku -ji (whose Shariden Hall is considered one of the Japanese national treasures ), the Jufuku -ji, the Jochi -ji and the Jomyo -ji are considered the five highest-ranking Temple of Zen Buddhism in Kamakura.

Additional points of interest include the Tokei -ji ( a nunnery, found in the decision willing women shelter ), the Tsurugaoka Hachiman shrine and the temple Hase-dera.

  • Zeniarai - benten (銭 洗 弁 天)
  • Meigetsu - in (明月 院)

Culture and Festivals

Kamakura is known for a special technique of wood carving, the so-called " Kamakura - bori ". This wooden objects are lined with plants reliefs and covered with many layers of paint. This originated in China technology has been refined by Buddhist artists and first used for religious objects, from the second half of the 19th century for everyday objects.

Celebrations

Traffic

  • National Road 134

Sons and daughters of the town

  • Akiyuki Nosaka (writer, singer, lyricist )

Adjacent Cities and Towns

  • Fujisawa
  • Yokohama
  • Zushi

Twinning

  • France Nice, France, since 1966
  • Japan Hagi, Japan, since 1979
  • Japan Ueda, Japan, since 1979
  • Japan Ashikaga, Japan, since 1982
  • People's Republic of China Dunhuang, People's Republic of China, since 1998
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