私の感想～My Impression – ページ 8 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

19.Kawagoe Castle Part3

We will finally visit the remaining Main Hall in the main enclosure. It is one of the four remaining halls for exiting castles in Japan, which is very rare and valuable. In the case of Kawagoe Castle, two parts of its hall remain, its entrance and the office for the senior vassals.

Features

The Main Hall in the main enclosure (the main entrance)

From Main Entrance to Hiroma Room

Visitors usually enter the main one which has a luxurious decoration. It also has Hiroma (meaning large room),several waiting rooms for messengers, and officers’ rooms.

The layout of the current Main Hall, the entrance part is below and the senior vassals’ office is above, from the signboard at the site

The Hiroma is the first room after entering, which is the largest with an alcove and paintings on ceder-board doors as the hall’s face. An interest thing about the room is that you can see lots of traces of volleyballs on its ceiling. This is because the room was once used as the gym of a school.

The traces of volleyballs on the ceiling

Office for Senior Vassals

The senior vassals’ office was originally built at a different position, moved to another site and finally returned to the current position. In the back room, three vassals’ figures show they are discussing the matter of Shinagawa Batteries which the Kawagoe Domain was in charge of to guard Edo Bay.

The layout of the original Main Hall, the senior vassals’ office (marked by the red lines above) was little far from the entrance part (marked by the red lines below), from the signboard at the site

The figures are discussing in the back room

The drawing they are looking at seems to be about Shinagawa Batteries

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Kawagoe Castle was abandoned and all the castle buildings excluding the Main Hall were demolished. Most of the castle area was turned into the city area by destroying the earthen walls and filling the water moats. The remaining Main Hall was first turned into the prefectural office. After that, it changed to a public hall, a factory building, a martial arts hall, and finally a school building or gym. Its remaining part might have been reduced during the diversions. However, Saitama Prefecture designated the hall as a prefectural cultural property in 1967. Kawagoe City planed the development of the park around the castle and is carrying out it one by one.

The area around the Main Hall has recently been developed in a good condition

Miyoshino Shrine, which is located next to the main enclosure, has remained since the Edo Period

My Impression

I think there was no other way than using the castle area to develop the modern city area. That’s why Kawagoe City still prospers with commerce, agriculture, industries, and tourism. On the other hand, I am also pleased to see the volleyball traces on the remaining Main Hall. I imagine if there was a similar case to use an old hall as a gym, it could be replaced with a new building. I also guess locals in Kawagoe wanted to somehow maintain the hall no matter how it was used.

the street with Kura storehouses of Kawagoe

The ceiling of the Hiroma room of the Main Hall

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about a 15-minute drive away from Kawagoe IC on the Kanetsu Expressway.
There are several parking lots around the main enclosure.
By public transportation, take the Co-Edo Loop Bus from JR Kawagoe Station or Tobu Hon-Kawagoe Station and get off at the Honmaru-Goten bus stop.

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

19.川越城　その３

ついに、現存する本丸御殿に到着しました。この御殿は、日本の城に残っているたった４つの御殿の一つであり、大変貴重であり価値あるものです。川越城の場合には、御殿のうち２ヶ所が残っています。入り口部分と家老詰所です

特徴、見どころ

本丸御殿に到着

ついに、現存する本丸御殿に到着しました。この御殿は、日本の城に残っているたった４つの御殿の一つであり、大変貴重であり価値あるものです。川越城の場合には、御殿のうち２ヶ所が残っています。入り口部分と家老詰所です。入り口部分には正面玄関と通用口（中の口）があります。

正面玄関から広間へ

ビジターは通常、豪華な飾りがある正面玄関から入っていきます。中には広間、使者の間、使番・坊主・警備の武士などの詰所があります。

中でも広間は正面玄関から入った後の最初の部屋で、御殿の顔として、最も大きく、床の間や杉絵がしつらえられています。この広間については面白いことがあります。部屋の中を見上げていただくと、天井にいくつものバレーボールがぶつかった跡があります。これは、ここが学校の体育館として使われたことがあるからです。

家老詰所

家老詰所はもとは別の地点（もっと奥の方）にありましたが、一時他の場所に移築され、最終的に現在の場所に戻ってきました。奥の部屋では、３体の人形が品川台場のことについて議論しています。川越藩は江戸湾防備のためにそのうちの一番台場を担当していました。

その後

明治維新後、川越城は廃城となり、本丸御殿を除く全ての城の建物は撤去されました。ほとんどの城があった土地も、土塁を崩し水堀を埋めて、市街地となっていきました。唯一残った本丸御殿は最初は県庁舎（入間県）となりました。それ以降、公会所、工場建物、道場、そして学校校舎や体育館として使われました。その変遷の中で恐らく、残っている部分も減ってきたのではないかと推察します。しかし、1967年になってようやく、埼玉県が県指定有形文化財に指定しました。川越市は城の周辺地区の整備を計画し、現在一つ一つ実行しているところです。

私の感想

城があった場所が、近代的な市街地になったこと自体は仕方なかったと思います。それによって川越市は今でも、商業、農業、工業、観光業などで栄えているのです。一方、現存する本丸御殿でバレーボールの跡を見たときは、少しうれしい気がきました。もし他のところで似たようなケースがあって、古い御殿を体育館に使おうとしたら、新しい建物と取り換えられてしまうこともあり得たでしょう。川越の人たちは、御殿がどう使われようとも、何とか維持したいと思っていたのではないでしょうか。

ここに行くには

車で行く場合：関越自動車道の川越ICから約１５分かかります。本丸周辺にいくつか駐車場があります。
公共交通機関を使う場合は、ＪＲ川越駅か東武本川越駅から小江戸巡回バスに乗って、本丸御殿バス停で降りてください。

リンク、参考情報

・川越城本丸御殿、川越市
・「川越城が知りたい！」川越市立博物館
・「シリーズ藩物語　川越藩／重田正夫著」現代書館
・「川越市歴史的風致維持向上計画」川越市
・「よみがえる日本の城１５」学研

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

今回の内容を趣向を変えて、Youtube にも投稿しました。よろしかったらご覧ください。

181.Kokura Castle Part3

In the morning of the 9th August of 1945, a US B-29 bomber, called Bockscar, was carrying the second atomic bomb to Japan. In fact, its first target was the arms factory of Kokura (in the third enclosure of Kokura Castle).

Features

Other Enclosures of Castle

The park still has other enclosures. Kita-no-maru (meaning the northern enclosure) was used as the lord’s family residence or retreat and is used as Kokura-Gion-Yasaka Shrine. It is connected to the main enclosure via Tamon-guchi-mon Gate where you can see the oldest stone walls in the castle around. The walls had been built by Katsunari Mori before Tadaoki Hosokawa came. There are also well-maintained stone walls and water moats around the Kita-no-maru Enclosure, so this is a good walking spot.

The aerial photo around the castle

The Kita-no-maru enclosure (the current Kokura-Gion-Yasaka Shrine)

The Tamonguchi-mon Gate, quoted from Kokura Castle Website

The stone walls and water moats surrounding the Kita-no-maru Enclosure

Matsu-no-maru (meaning the pine enclosure) is in the south of the main enclosure. It was used as Tadaoki’s father’s residence or warehouses when the castle was active; it is currently an event square. It was once used as the headquarters of the 12th Brigade like the main enclosure.

Third Enclosure including Monument for Atomic Bomb Victims

If you go further to the south, there is a modern park area which was the third enclosure used as the senior vassals’ residences. During World War II, there was a large arms factory, but now there is a monument for atomic bomb victims. The reason for it will be written in the next section.

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, the main portion of Kokura Castle was turned into military facilities and the other area became the city area of Kokura. It changed from a Samurai city to a military city. In the morning of the 9th August of 1945, a US B-29 bomber, called Bockscar, was carrying the second atomic bomb to Japan. In fact, its first target was the arms factory of Kokura. However, it could not focus on the target because of thick cloud and finally dropped the bomb into Nagasaki. As a result, people in Kokura were lucky, but they should not be pleased about it. That’s why the former factory site has the monument. After the the war, the occupation army used the castle site until 1957. The current Main Tower was rebuilt in 1959.

Bockscar, exhibited by National Museum of the United States Air Force *(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

The monument for the atomic bomb victims in the third enclosure

My Impression

I think that if the current Main Tower of Kokura Castle had kept the original design of the Western style, it would be more popular than now. This is because the design is very unique which would attract more current visitors. However, the people who wanted to rebuild the tower chose another direction. That was probably because they wanted a tower which was competitive with other castles. I don’t think the tower ever needs to be replaced with a new one with an original design because it would cost a lot and the current tower is also a historical item.

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about a 5-minute drive away from Katsuyama Exit on the Kitakyushu Expressway.
There is a parking lot in the park.
By public transportation, it takes about 15 minutes on foot from JR Kokura Station.
From Tokyo or Osaka to the station: take the Sanyo Shinkansen super express.

Links and References

・Kokura Castle Official Website

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