Kumamoto Castle
P3
Castle of Kumamoto
The Kumamoto ( Jap熊 本 城Kumamoto - jo ) Castle is located in the city of Kumamoto in Japan and was at the beginning of the Edo period under Katō Kiyomasa (加藤 清正) 1601-1607 built. It is one next to the Matsumoto Castle and Himeji Castle to the Nihon sanmeijō (日本 三 名城, dt " three important castles of Japan " ) and bears the nickname (银杏 城ginnan - jo, dt " Ginkgo Castle " ) because of the legend has personally planted a ginkgo tree in the construction of the castle after Katō Kiyomasa. The big ginkgo trees of the castle bears despite the injury suffered during the Satsuma Rebellion burns fruit again and is over 400 years old.
- 3.1 prehistory
- 4.1 Old photographs
- 4.2 The castle today
Construction
The tenshu ( Donjon ) is a created from reinforced concrete reconstruction from 1960, but many outbuildings have been preserved in their original state. In 2010, was restored as the last building of the former castle of the Honmaru - goten Palace in a traditional setting. The castle had 49 towers and 18 large and 29 small gates in their wedding. The total area was 980,000 square feet with a circumference of 5.3 km. The tenshu is 30.3 m high. A special feature is the steep stone walls (武者 返しmushagaeshi, dt " Warrior defense " ) or rats defenses are called, as it was even a rat impossible to climb the walls. The castle belongs to the type of Hirayama - jiro (平 山城, dt " hilltop castle in the plane ").
Uto- yagura
The Uto- yagura (宇 土 橹) is located north - east of tenshu and is a 5-storey building in wooden structure with three roof gables, built on a 20 m high stone wall. The amount abouts the base is 19 m. Until the early years of the Meiji period, there was a total of five yagura in a five-storey construction. The Uto- yagura has been preserved in its original state as the only multi-story building and was appointed to an important national cultural asset.
Cultural monument
The Castle is a major castle ruins and thirteen still preserved in its original state parts of the building were appointed to important national treasures 1993:
History
Prehistory
On the east side of the hill Chasuyama (茶 臼 山), on which the castle stands today, there was already an attachment named Chiba - jo (千叶 城) that the Kikuchi clan used as the headquarters Ideta Hidenobu. The oldest records of these attachment date from the period 1467-1469.
In 1496 Kanokogi Chikakazu left along the southwestern foot of the hill, the Kumamoto Castle ( ancient Japanese spelling隈 本 城) build. The exact location and size is not known, it is in the area known as the old castle today, suspected. After fighting among the various clans in Kyushu in 1550, the castle came under the rule of Ōtomo clan.
After the pacification of Kyushu by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1587, Sassa Narimasa was the fief of Higo granted, but the result of the Higo - uprising (肥 后 国人 一 揆) was killed. Six months later, the fief was divided and re-assigned. The northern half Katō Kiyomasa was awarded that determined the Kumamoto Castle as his residence. The southern half went to Konishi Yukinaga.
Already in 1632 received the Hosokawa clan, the feud with the castle and ruled there eleven generations until the Meiji period.
During the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877 came on 21 February skirmishes on the outer fortifications before the next day began the great attack on the castle. Neither on February 22, even in the days that followed the attackers managed to take the castle. The fighting was intense, especially in the West, which also gives the shrine Fujisaki Hachiman- gū (藤 崎 八 幡 宫) was burnt down. The fierce resistance was the imperial troops time heranzufähren gain so went on March 19 at Yatsushiro under Kuroda Kiyotaka an imperial relief army on land that the Satsuma forces are now attacking from the south. On 14 April, the siege of the castle ended after 52 days with the arrival of imperial troops in the uneingenommenen castle. Saigo Takamori to have said after the defeat, " he did not lose against the imperial army, but against Katō Kiyomasa. "
Gallery
Old photographs
The Castle 1874
The castle around 1902.
Model of the castle and town Kumamoto during the Edo period.
The castle today
Tenshu
Shōkun no ma in Honmaru - goten Palace
Naga - in