is one of the five towns incorporated into Date City, Fukushima Prefecture,

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 ...

, along with the former towns of Date, Hobara, Tsukidate, and

Yanagawa is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of April 30, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 71,848, with 24,507 households and a population density of 934.55 persons per km². The total area is 76.88 km². On March 21, ...

. It was formerly an independent

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

located in Date District. As of 2003, the town had an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 9,491 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...

of 108.68 persons per km². The total area is 87.33 km².

History

The town of Ryōzen was formed with the January 31, 1955 merger of the town of and the villages of , and . Ryozen Fukushima chapter

In anticipation of the town's 10th anniversary after the 1955 merger, the town symbol was established in 1964. It includes a representation of the hiragana character "ri" (り), as in "''ryouzen''," with the image of a mountain in the center. In 1975, the town's official tree, flower, and bird were established as the Japanese red pine, the gentiana scabra, and the varied tit, respectively. On January 1, 2006, Ryōzen was merged with the former towns of Date, Hobara, Tsukidate, and Yanagawa to create Date City.

Local attractions

Historic Sites

Mount Ryozen and Kitabatake Akiie

Mount Ryōzen View from the mountain trail is a mountain on the border of Sōma City and the former town of Ryōzen, in Date City, Fukushima. It is in height. Along the hiking trail are the sites of what were Ryōzen Temple and Ryōzen Castle. The mountain ...

is a mountain on the border of Soma City that stands at 825 meters. During the

Heian Period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

, the original Ryōzen Temple (or Ryōzen-ji; not to be confused with Ryōzen Shrine, which was founded in 1881) was constructed on Mount Ryōzen, where it flourished as a center of Buddhist learning in the North for hundreds of years. During the War of the Northern and Southern Courts, otherwise known as the Nanboku-cho War, then governor of the province of Mutsu,

Kitabatake Akiie was a Japanese court noble, and an important supporter of the Southern Court during the Nanboku-chō Wars. He also held the posts of Commander-in-Chief of the Defense of the North, and Governor of Mutsu Province. His father was Imperial advi ...

had Ryozen Castle constructed within the temple grounds and stayed there for a number of months between military campaigns. Having left Ryōzen to pursue

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Murom ...

, Akiie died in battle at the young age of twenty-one. A statue of Akiie stands at the foot of Mount Ryōzen, at one entrance to Ryōzen Shrine, where he is enshrined with his father,

Kitabatake Chikafusa was a Japanese court noble and writer of the 14th century who supported the Southern Court in the Nanboku-cho period, serving as advisor to five Emperors. Some of his greatest and most famous work was performed during the reign of Emperor G ...

Mount Chausu and Princess Gozen

Mount Chausu is a mountain standing at 252.5 meters in the former town of Kakeda, that is thought to have been the site of Kakeda Castle. Kakeda Castle was destroyed by Kakeda Yoshimune during the Tenbun Revolt, a civil war within the

Date Clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Date", ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 5 retrieved 2013-5-5. History The Date family was founded ...

that began in the eleventh year of the Tenbun Era (1542), when the 14th lord of the clan,

Date Tanemune was a Japanese samurai warrior and Date clan leader during the Sengoku period. Biography He was born as the eldest son of Date Hisamune. His childhood name was Jiro (次郎). At the death of his father, he became ''daimyō'' of Mutsu Provinc ...

had a falling out with his son,

Date Harumune was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period.Kanayama Castle in Miyagi Prefecture's Marumori Town. Princess Gozen is then said to have thrown herself into a well out of grief. A Kan'non Temple on Mount Chausu is dedicated to her memory.

Others

* Suzutake Shrine * Hie Shrine * Ryōzen Kōsaikan (a hotel and bathhouse) * Ryōzen Children's Village (park) * Ryōzen Satoyama School

Ryōzen Taiko Drum Festival

The Ryōzen Taiko Drum Festival (霊山太鼓まつり) or Date na Taiko Drum Festival (だてな太鼓まつり） is an annual two-day festival held in August. While the festival originated in the town of Ryōzen, in recent years it has been held at Hobara Total Park (保原総合公園) in Hobara Town, the central area of Date City. There is usually a comedic performance, among other stage acts, food and activity booths, as well as a battle between teams of taiko drum performers. RyozenTaikoFest

References

External links

Date City 2007 website
(Japanese)
Date City current website
(Japanese) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryozen, Fukushima Dissolved municipalities of Fukushima Prefecture Date, Fukushima