言語～Language – ページ 29 – 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。

19.Kawagoe Castle Part2

Features

Today, the ruins of Kawagoe Castle are not noticeable among the city area. Only part of the Main Hall remains in the Main Enclosure and some related historical items are preserved or restored around. For example, if you walk or drive from the east of the castle, which was a waterlogged area, to the castle ruins, you may just notice the road is slightly going up. That was a border for dividing the inside and outside of the castle, but all of them have become a city area. Therefore, let us first seek for some of the traces of the castle in the city area before visiting the Main Hall in the center.

Around the eastern edge of the castle in the past

Older Traces of Castle

We will start from the second enclosure, which is the north of the main enclosure and where Kawagoe City Museum is located. This was the eastern edge of the castle in its early stage. You can now walk down to the Shingashi River on the east, which was developed during the Edo Period. Some of the residential areas around originate from new enclosures at that time and some of the roads were moats.

Leaflet|国土地理院

The aerial photo around the castle

If you walk along the river, it will follow the edge of the Musashino Plateau. You will eventually find Taya Weir which was originally the estuary of the Taya River. That means the upstream beyond is older than the downstream.

If you go further, you will see Dokan Bridge which named after the castle’s builder, Dokan Ota’s residence was nearby. You will next see Tomyoji Bridge where the Uesugi Clan’s troops assaulted during the Siege of Kawagoe Castle in 1546. The Tomyoji Temple is near the bridge, where severe battles occurred in the battle.

The stathe of Dokan Ota in front of Kawagoe City Hall

The monument of the Night Battle of Kawagoe in the Tomyoji Temple

From Western Main Gate Ruins to Main Enclosure

Let us nest go to the south around the City Hall of Kawagoe where the western main gate of the castle was built. The route through the gate was protected by a Umadashi system which was a round-shaped small enclosure in front of it. However, it was removed and has become an intersection crowded with many tourists. The current road goes straight to the center of the castle on the east, unlike the former curved road.

The map around the castle

The intersection in front of Kawagoe City Hall

The western main gate (marked by the red circle) in the miniature model exhibited by Kawagoe City Museum

The road curved on the right and hit the moat of Naka-no-mon Gate. Visitors had to turn left to enter the gate. The moat has partially been restored to be open to the public.

The miniature model seen from the north, the western main gate is marked by the red circle. the moat of the Naka-no-mon gate is marked by the blue circle, and another curved point is marked by the green circle

The moat of the Naka-no-mon Gate is on the right

If you go further after passing the moat, you will find a planted round space on the right. This is the trace of another moat overhanging from the left, which meant visitors were not able to go straight again. The former road finally reached the main enclosure after passing the second enclosure.

From Southern Main Gate Ruins to Main Enclosure

Let us check out another original route to the center from the southern main gate. The gate was similar to the western one and also completely removed, so there are no traces at all at the site beside Kawagoe Daiichi Elementary School.

The map around the castle

The miniature model seen from the south, the southern main gate is marked by the red circle and the Fujimi Turret is marked by the blue circle

Around the ruins of the southern main gate

If you walk on the road along the school to the north and turn right at the first intersection, you will go on the original path to the center. The path is paved and surrounded by modern residential areas now, but was surrounded by earthen walls or water moats in the past. You will next see a hill on the left, which is the ruins of Fujimi Yagura (meaning Seeing Mt. Fuji Turret). The turret had three stories, which was the substitute for a Main Tower. It was used as a lookout and defense for the castle.

You can climb to the top of the hill over the dried moat ruins in front. The turret was accessible from the center in the past, since it is currently used as a High School establishment, access is already restricted. You need to go back to the path, turn left to reach the main enclosure.

The top of the hill where the turret was built

The area behind the turret is used as the school

You need to go back to the path to reach the main enclosure

To be continued in “Kawagoe Castle Part3”
Back to “Kawagoe Castle Part1”