is a Shinto shrine located in Higashiyama-ku,

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

, Japan. It was built in 1599 to commemorate

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

. It is the location of the first ''

tamaya A is an altar used in Shinto-style ancestor worship, dedicated in the memory of deceased forebears. It generally has a mirror symbolizing the spirits of the deceased or a tablet bearing their names and is used not only to enshrine blood relativ ...

'' (a

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

altar for

ancestor worship The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...

) ever constructed, which was later destroyed by the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty that was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of this clan r ...

History

This shrine is the official tomb and shrine of

, who died September 18, 1598 in Kyoto. Nobles, priests, warriors, and townspeople gathered at the shrine to celebrate the anniversary of Hideyoshi's apotheosis with banquets, musical recitals, and boisterous festivity. The shrine was closed by

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...

in June 1615 "to discourage these unseemly displays of loyalty to a man he had eclipsed." The Meiji Emperor directed that the shrine be restored in

Keiō was a after '' Genji'' and before '' Meiji''. The period spanned the years from May 1865 to October 1868. The reigning emperors were and . Change of era * May 1, 1865 (''Genji 2/Keiō 1, 7th day of the 4th month'') : The new era name of ''K ...

4, the 6th day of the 6th month (April 28, 1868). At that time, the shrine area was expanded slightly by encompassing a small parcel of land which had been part of the adjacent Hōkō-ji. In 1897, the tercentenary of Hideyoshi was celebrated at this site.

Architecture

It is generally believed that the ''

karamon The is a type of gate seen in Japanese architecture. It is characterized by the usage of '' karahafu'', an undulating bargeboard peculiar to Japan. ''Karamon'' are often used at the entrances of Japanese castles, Buddhist temples and Shinto s ...

'' gate 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 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 of the castle is ...

, and then to the Konchi-in in

Nanzen-ji , or Zuiryusan Nanzen-ji, formerly , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. Emperor Kameyama established it in 1291 on the site of his previous detached palace. It is also the headquarters of the Nanzen-ji branch of Rinzai Zen. The precincts ...

. 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 practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

.Kirby, John B. (1962). ''From Castle to Teahouse: Japanese Architecture of the Momoyama Period.'' pp. 76-77.

Designated Cultural Properties

National Treasures of Japan

*The ''

Important Cultural Properties

*Painted folding screen depicting ''Festivals of Toyokuni'' (豊国の祭り), by Kanō Naizen 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 period which began in 1868, by which time the school had divided into many di ...

*Vest garment decorated with gold Chrysanthemum motif *Three decorated Chinese-style chests *Iron lantern cage *

Naginata The ''naginata'' (, ) is a pole weapon and one of several varieties of traditionally made Japanese blades (''nihontō''). ''Naginata'' were originally used by the samurai class of feudal Japan, as well as by ashigaru (foot soldiers) and sōhei ...

blade ''Honebami'' ("Bone-eater"), unsigned, attributed to Awataguchi Yoshimitsu

Gallery

Image:Toyokuni jinja02s1024.jpg, The front shrine and main hall Image:ToyokuniJinja-BarkRoof-M1733.jpg, Roof Image:Ema-Toyokuni-Shrine-Kyoto.jpg, '' Ema'' Image:ToyokuniJinja-Building-M1740.jpg,

Notes

Beppyo shrines

References

* Ponsonby-Fane, Richard A. B. (1956). ''Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794-1869.'' Kyoto: The Ponsonby Memorial Society. * Berry, Mary Elizabeth. (1982). ''Hideyoshi.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...

. (cloth, 1982), (paper, 1989) ''(scholarly biography)'' * Kirby, John B. (1962)
''From Castle to Teahouse: Japanese Architecture of the Momoyama Period.''
Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing.
OCLC 512972
{{Authority control Religious buildings and structures completed in 1599 Shinto shrines in Kyoto 1599 establishments in Japan National Treasures of Japan