その後～Later History – ページ 68 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

76.Tokushima Castle Part3

The Castle that cultivated a new culture

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, all the buildings of Tokushima Castle excluding the Washi-no-mon Gate were eventually demolished. The gate building unfortunately burned down due to the Great Tokushima Air Raid in 1945, but was eventually restored in 1989. The Terashima-gawa River beside the castle was mostly reclaimed and converted into the railway. On the other hand, the ruins of the castle has been opened to the public since 1910. They were also designated as a National Historic Site back in 2006.

The railway of Tokushima Station (licensed by Kounosu via Wikimedia Commons)

Tokushima Castle Museum like a main hall

My Impression

Even if you are planning to only see the stone walls, it is worth it. I have also learned that the castle had been changing although only the Hachisuka Clan built and maintained the castle for a long time. In addition, it was said that the famous Awa Dancing Festival in Tokushima City originated from Tokushima Castle. The founder of the castle, Iemasa Hachisuka motivated people to dance as they like to celebrate the completion of the castle. Today, The dance team continues to use the mountain to practice to this day.

The Gejo Bridge the ruins of Kuro-mon Gate

The statue of Iemasa Hachisuka at the site

Awa Dancing Festival (taken by tamuzbac from photoAC)

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car:
It is about 20 minutes away from Tokushima IC on the Tokushima Expressway.
The park offers a parking lot.
By train, it is about 15 minutes away from JR Tokushima Station on foot.
If you go there from Tokyo or Osaka, I recommend using a plane or an express bus.

Links and References

・The Tokushima Castle Museum, Tokushima City

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Tokushima Castle Part1”
Back to “Tokushima Castle Part2”

76.徳島城　その３

この城は新しい文化をも育みました。

その後

明治維新後、鷲の門以外の徳島城の全ての建物は撤去されていきました。その鷲の門も残念ながら1945年の徳島大空襲によって焼け落ちてしまいます。しかし、1989には復元されました。城の傍らにあった寺島川はほとんど埋め立てられ、鉄道の線路が敷かれました。一方、城跡は1910年から公園として一般に公開されています。2006年には国の史跡にも指定されました。

徳島駅の鉄道敷地 *(licensed by Kounosu via Wikimedia Commons)*

私の感想

もしこの城跡で、石垣しか見ないということであっても、十分訪れるに値します。また、この城は蜂須賀氏だけが築き、長く維持してきたにも関わらず、随分と変わってきたことがわかりました。更には、徳島市の有名な阿波踊りは、徳島城に由来していると言われています。城の創始者、蜂須賀家政が、城の完成を祝うために民衆に踊りを催させたとのことです。今日、阿波踊りのチームは本番の日を目指して、城山の上で練習を続けているそうです。

ここに行くには

車で行く場合：
徳島自動車道の徳島ICから約２０分かかります。
公園に駐車場があります。
電車の場合は、ＪＲ徳島駅から歩いて約１５分かかります。
東京か大阪から来られる場合は、飛行機か高速バスを使った方がよいでしょう。

リンク、参考情報

・徳島城博物館、徳島市公式ウェブサイト
・「歴史群像１３２号、戦国の城　阿波徳島城」学研
・「よみがえる日本の城１３」学研

これで終わります。ありがとうございました。
「徳島城その１」に戻ります。
「徳島城その２」に戻ります。

175.Shozui Castle Part3

Huge ruins appeared from a factory ground.

Later History

After Shozui Castle was abandoned, the Kensho-ji Temple was built on the castle part, while the hall part was turned into the city area. As time passed, people thought Shozui Castle had only the castle part. However, the excavation in 1994 found that the castle part is too new for the castle’s long history. The officials did further research around the area and then found the relics of the hall for the lord under the ground of a factory nearby in 1997. Several excavations found that the hall part was much larger than expected and the ruins are very important to understand the history of the local region as well as the whole country. The ruins were lastly designated as a National Historic Site including both the castle and hall parts in 2001. The hall part is now public-owned and still being excavated.

A factory was once built on the hall part (from the signboard at the site)

The excavation started at the factory ground *(from the signboard at the site)*

My Impression

I can honestly say that I was disappointed when I visited the ruins of Shozui Castle. This was because the ruins at first looked just like an empty space and small castle ruins. However, as I learned about the history of the castle, I understood that the ruins are being developed after the outstanding discovery. I believe that the ruins will become a good historical park with other new findings after a while. If you plan to visit the ruins, I recommend learning about its history in advance. In addition, it’s best to visit the ruins on the days except for the New Year’s holiday season when the office is open, then you can see some of the relics unearthed from the ruins. I couldn’t see them because I visited on a public holiday when the office was closed at that time.

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car:
It is about 15 minutes away from Itano IC on Takamatsu Expressway or Aizumi IC on Tokushima Expressway.
The ruins offer parking lots in the hall part and beside the castle part.
By train, it takes about 15 minutes walking from JR Shozui Station.
If you go there from Tokyo or Osaka, I recommend using a plane or an express bus.

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Shozui Castle Part1”
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