is a flatland

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The castle consists of two concentric rings ( Kuruwa) of fortifications, the Ninomaru Palace, the ruins of the Honmaru Palace, various support buildings and several gardens. The surface area of the castle is , of which is occupied by buildings. It is one of the seventeen Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto which have been designated by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

as a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

History

In 1601,

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

, the founder of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

, ordered all the

feudal lords Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring societ ...

in western

to contribute to the construction of Nijō Castle, which was completed during the reign of his grandson

Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate, Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who acted as his political adviser and was at the ...

in 1626. While the castle was being built, a portion of land from the partially abandoned Shinsenen Garden (originally part of the imperial palace and located south) was absorbed, and its abundant water was used in the castle gardens and ponds. Parts of Fushimi Castle, such as the main tower and the '' karamon'', were moved here in 1625–26.Schmorleitz, pg. 82 Nijo Castle was built as the

residence of the Tokugawa ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

s''. The Tokugawa shogunate used Edo as the capital city, but Kyoto continued to be the home of the Imperial Court.

Kyoto Imperial Palace The is the former palace of the Emperor of Japan, located in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. Since the Meiji Restoration in 1869, the Emperors have resided at the Tokyo Imperial Palace, while the preservation of the Kyoto Imperial Palace was ordered ...

is located north-east of Nijō Castle. The central keep, or ''

tenshu is an architectural typology found in Japanese castle, Japanese castle complexes. They are easily identifiable as the highest tower within the castle. Common translations of ''tenshu'' include keep, main keep, or ''donjon''. ''Tenshu'' are cha ...

'', was struck by lightning and burned to the ground in 1750. In 1788, the Inner Ward was destroyed by a citywide fire. The site remained empty until it was replaced by a prince's residence transferred from the Kyoto Imperial Palace in 1893. In 1867, the Ninomaru Palace, in the Outer Ward, was the stage for the declaration by

Tokugawa Yoshinobu Kazoku, Prince was the 15th and last ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful. He resigned his position as shogun in late 1867, while ai ...

, returning the authority to the Imperial Court (大政奉還). In 1868 the Imperial Cabinet was installed in the castle. The palace became imperial property and was declared a detached palace. During this time, the Tokugawa

hollyhock ''Alcea'' is a genus of over 80 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae, commonly known as the hollyhocks. They are native to Asia and Europe. The single species of hollyhock from the Americas, the Iliamna rivularis, streamban ...

crest was removed wherever possible and replaced with the imperial

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums ( ), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants in the Asteraceae family. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia, and the center of diversity is in China. Co ...

. In 1939, the palace was donated to the city of Kyoto and opened to the public the following year. In the 21st century,

typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...

s have periodically caused sections of plaster to peel off the walls after exposure to rain and wind. It is generally believed that the '' karamon'' gate of Toyokuni shrine was originally built for Hideyoshi's Fushimi castle in 1598. When the castle was dismantled in 1623, the gate was first moved to

Nijō castle is a flatland Japanese castle, castle in Kyoto, Japan. The castle consists of two concentric rings (Kuruwa) of fortifications, the Ninomaru Palace, the ruins of the Honmaru Palace, various support buildings and several gardens. The surface area ...

, and then to the Konchi-in in Nanzen-ji. It was finally relocated to Toyokuni shrine in 1876 after 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 Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

Fortifications

Nijō Castle has two concentric rings of fortifications, each consisting of a wall and a wide moat. The outer wall has four gates, while the inner wall has two, one of them in ruins. Two corner turrets survive on the outer wall as well. In the southwest corner of the inner wall, there are foundations of a five-story keep, destroyed by a fire in 1750. The inner walls surround the Inner Ward, which contain ''Honmaru'' ("Inner Ward") Palace with its garden. ''Ninomaru'' ("Second Ward") Palace, the kitchens, guard house, three storehouses, and a number of gates and several gardens are located in the Outer Ward, between the two main rings of fortifications.

Ninomaru Palace

The consists of six connected separate main buildings and is built almost entirely of Hinoki cypress. The decoration includes lavish quantities of

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and elaborate wood carvings, intended to impress visitors with the power and wealth of the ''shōguns''. The sliding doors and walls of each room are decorated with wall paintings by artists of the

Kanō school The is one of the most famous schools of Japanese painting. The Kanō school of painting was the dominant style of painting from the late 15th century until the Meiji era, Meiji period which began in 1868, by which time the school had divided i ...

. The six main buildings have National Treasure Status, and other buildings in the palace complex have Important Cultural Property status. The castle is an excellent example of social control manifested in architectural space. Low-ranking visitors were received in the outer regions of the Ninomaru, whereas high-ranking visitors were shown the more subtle inner chambers. Rather than attempt to conceal the entrances to the rooms for bodyguards (as was done in many castles), the Tokugawas chose to display them prominently. Thus, the construction lent itself to expressing intimidation and power to Edo-period visitors. The building houses several different reception chambers, offices and the living quarters of the ''shōgun'', where only female attendants were allowed. One of the most striking features of the Ninomaru Palace are the "

nightingale floor ' are floors that make a squeaking sound when walked upon. These floors were used in the hallways of some temples and palaces, the most famous example being Nijō Castle, in Kyoto, Japan. Dry boards naturally creak under pressure, but these f ...

s" (''uguisubari'') in the corridors that make a chirping sound when walked upon. These are often incorrectly described as a feature to alert the presence of intruders, but it is actually just caused by clamps moving against nails in the wooden beams that support the floor. However, the design of the palace buildings do contain defensive features; for example, some of the rooms in the castle also contained special doors where the shogun's bodyguard could sneak out to protect him. The room sequence starting at the entrance is: * Yanagi-no-ma (Willow Room), * Wakamatsu-no-ma (Young Pine Room) * Tozamurai-no-ma (Retainers' Room) * Shikidai-no-ma (Reception Room) * Rōchu-no-ma (Ministers' Offices) * Chokushi-no-ma (Imperial Messenger's Room) The Ōhiroma (Great Hall) is the central core of the Ninomaru Palace and consists of four chambers: * Ichi-no-ma (First Grand Chamber) * Ni-no-ma (Second Grand Chamber) * San-no-ma (Third Grand Chamber) * Yon-no-ma (Fourth Grand Chamber) as well as the Musha-kakushi-no-ma (Bodyguards' Chamber) and the Sotetsu-no-ma (Japanese fern-palm chamber). The rear sections are the Kuroshoin (Inner Audience Chamber) and Shiroshoin (''shōgun''s living quarters). The main access to the Ninomaru is through the ''karamon'', a court and the ''mi-kurumayose'' or "honourable carriages approach".

Honmaru Palace

has a surface area of . The complex has four parts: living quarters, reception and entertainment rooms, entrance halls and kitchen area. The different areas are connected by corridors and courtyards. The architectural style is late

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

. The palace displays paintings by several famous masters, such as . Honmaru Palace was originally similar to Ninomaru Palace. The original structures were replaced by the present structures between 1893 and 1894, by moving one part of the former Katsura Palace within the Kyoto Imperial Enclosure (Kyoto Gyoen, the enclosure surrounding the

) to the inner ward of Nijō Castle, as part of the systematic clearing of the disused residences and palaces in the Imperial Enclosure after the Imperial Court moved to Tokyo in 1869. In its original location, the palace had 55 buildings, but only a small part was relocated. In 1928 the enthronement banquet of

Emperor Hirohito , Posthumous name, posthumously honored as , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigni ...

was held here.Schmorleitz, pg. 82.

Gardens

The castle area has several gardens and groves of

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet '' Prunus avium'' and the sour '' Prunus cerasus''. The na ...

and Japanese plum trees. The Ninomaru garden was designed by the landscape architect and tea master Kobori Enshū. It is located between the two main rings of fortifications, next to the palace of the same name. The garden has a large pond with three islands and features numerous carefully placed stones and topiary pine trees. Walkway in Seiryu-en garden

The Seiryū-en garden is the most recent part of Nijō Castle. It was constructed in 1965 in the northern part of the complex, as a facility for the reception of official guests of Kyoto and as a venue for cultural events. Seiryū-en has two tea houses and more than 1,000 carefully arranged stones.

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

Satellite view at Google Maps

Kyoto Nijo Castle official website
Japanese)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nijo Castle Ashikaga clan Buildings and structures in Kyoto Castles in Kyoto Prefecture Gardens in Kyoto Prefecture Historic Sites of Japan Important Cultural Properties of Japan National Treasures of Japan Special Places of Scenic Beauty Tokugawa clan Tourist attractions in Kyoto World Heritage Sites in Japan Buildings and structures completed in 1626