The was the
Han school
The was an educational institution in the Edo period of Japan, originally established to educate children of ''daimyō'' (feudal lords) and their retainers in the domains outside of the capital. These institutions were also known as ''hangaku' ...
of
Matsushiro Domain
300px, Matsushiro Castle
Part of the Matsushiro domain's Edo estate, relocated to Kamakura and used as a hall at Ryuko-ji Temple
was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan. It is located in Shinano Province, Hon ...
under the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...
. It located in the
Matsushiro neighborhood of the city of
Nagano Nagano may refer to:
Places
* Nagano Prefecture, a prefecture in Japan
** Nagano (city), the capital city of the same prefecture
*** Nagano 1998, the 1998 Winter Olympics
*** Nagano Olympic Stadium, a baseball stadium in Nagano
*** Nagano Universi ...
in the
Chūbu region
The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshu, Honshū, Japan, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Fukui Prefecture, Fukui, Gifu Prefecture ...
of
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Of the over 250 han schools which existed in Japan at the end of the Edo period, it is the only one to survive in almost an intact form. The school was designated a
National Historic Site of Japan in 1953. 205373
Overview
Construction began on the Matsushiro Literary and Military School in 1852 and it was opened in 1855 under the 8th ''daimyō'' of Matsushiro,
Sanada Yukitsura, although a number of schools had been established both within Matsushiro and within the domain's
Edo
Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo.
Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...
residence since the time of the 6th ''daimyō''
Sanada Yukihiro in 1758. Work on the school began in 1851, but completion was delayed due to a fire which destroyed much of the Matsushiro ''
jōkamachi
The term refers to a type of urban structures in Japan in which the city surrounds a feudal lord's castle. These cities did not necessarily form around castles after the Edo period; some are known as Jin'yamachi, cities that have evolved around J ...
''. The school was structured per the recommendations of
Sakuma Shōzan
sometimes called Sakuma Zōzan, was a Japanese politician and scholar of the Edo period.
Biography
Born Sakuma Kunitada, he was the son of a samurai and scholar and his wife , and a native of (or Shinano Province) in present day's Nagano Pref ...
, and taught a combination of traditional
Chinese literature,
Ogasawara-ryū
The is a traditional Japanese system of martial arts and etiquette, formalised and handed down by the Ogasawara clan.
History
The school was originally developed by Ogasawara Nagakiyo during the Kamakura period (1185–1333). It specialised in h ...
etiquette,
Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...
and
martial arts
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...
alongside ''
rangaku
''Rangaku'' (Kyūjitai: /Shinjitai: , literally "Dutch learning", and by extension "Western learning") is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of Wester ...
'' topics, including western medicine,
military science
Military science is the study of military processes, institutions, and behavior, along with the study of warfare, and the theory and application of organized coercive force. It is mainly focused on theory, method, and practice of producing mil ...
and artillery. Unlike almost all other han schools, the school did not teach
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...
, and there was no shrine to
Confucius
Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...
within the grounds.
During the
Bakumatsu period
was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji govern ...
, the emphasis on western military science became predominant, and a number of French military instructors were employed. The domain also hired
Takeda Ayasaburō
, was a Japanese Rangaku scholar, and the architect of the fortress of Goryōkaku in Hokkaidō.
Takeda was born in the Ōzu Domain (modern-day Ōzu, Ehime) in 1827. He studied medicine, Western sciences (rangaku), navigation, military architect ...
, a former instructor at the shogunate's ''Kaiseijō'' (開成所) and architect of the
Goryōkaku
(literally, "five-point fort") is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main fortress of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.
History
''Goryōkaku'' was designed in ...
star fort
A bastion fort or ''trace italienne'' (a phrase derived from non-standard French, literally meaning ''Italian outline'') is a fortification in a style that evolved during the early modern period of gunpowder when the cannon came to domin ...
in
Hokkaidō
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The la ...
as an instructor.
Following the
Meiji restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
, the complex continued to be used as a military academy until the
abolition of the han system
The in the Empire of Japan and its replacement by a system of prefectures in 1871 was the culmination of the Meiji Restoration begun in 1868, the starting year of the Meiji period. Under the reform, all daimyos (, ''daimyō'', feudal lords) ...
in 1871, and was thereafter used as a school building of the Matsushiro Elementary School under the new
government education system until the 1960s.
The total area of the school was 1500 square meters on a 3089 square meter site. It was renovated from 1973-1978, when it was opened to the public as a museum.
See also
*
List of Historic Sites of Japan (Nagano)
This list is of the Historic Sites of Japan located within the Prefecture of Nagano.
National Historic Sites
As of 1 August 2020, thirty-eight Sites have been designated as being of national significance (including one * Special Historic Site) ...
References
External links
Sanada Treasures MuseumMatsushiro sightseeing information]
Nagano prefecture tourism information
{{Authority control
Shinano Province
History of Nagano Prefecture
Nagano (city)
Historic Sites of Japan
Education museums
School buildings completed in 1855
Museums in Nagano Prefecture
1855 establishments in Japan
Bakumatsu
Sanada clan