Today, the ruins of Shinori Tate have been developed by Hakodate City. They are a relaxing place on the hill above the Shinori Fishing Port in the south. They still have the square space in its center, but with no buildings, which is surrounded by the earthen walls and dry moats outside. They are also covered with lawn, which look beautiful.
The ruins of Shinori Tate are above the town
There is the memorial monument of the battle between the “Japanese” and the Ainu people and a rest station in front of the ruins entrance. The entrance at the western side of the ruins, have double of the dry moats. If you want to enter the ruins, you can go across the bridge over the first moat and the earthen bridge over the second moat. They were restored by the city in the present time to show the late stage of the hall.
The aerial photo around the castle
The memorial monument in front of the ruins entranceThe rest stationThe ruin entrance where you can see the double moats over thereThe bridge over the first moatthe earthen bridge over the second moat
Center of Ruins
The center of the ruins is a square surrounded by the earthen walls, which just looks like one of the Japanese style castles’ enclosures which developed after Shinori Tate was built. According to the excavation team, there were three generation houses. The second or third ones were probably rebuilt after the hall was first captured by the Ainu people. How the first-generation houses were built is marked on the ground. The place of the former well is surrounded by four-sided plates. Many Chinese ceramic ware and Japanese potteries were found during the excavation. There are also two monuments of the hall, which were built by local people who first tried to preserve the ruins in the Taisho Era, about 100 years ago.
The center is surrounded by the earthen wallsThe fat exhibition of the housesThe ruins of the wellThe two monuments of the hall
Enjoying Great View
I recommend you stand or sit on the southern side of the earthen walls. You can enjoy a great view of the Tsugaru Channel on the front and a distant view of Hakodate Mountain on the right. If the weather is fine, you can also see the mainland over the channel. It must be a good experience for you to relax and refresh. If you have time, you should consider walking the path outside the earthen walls on the bottom of the dry moats. For example, the eastern side of the moats uses a stream, so you can see the hall was built using natural terrain as well.
The view of the Tsugaru Channel and the Shinori Fishing PortThe distant view of Hakodate MountainThe bottom of the southern dry moatThe eastern dry moat using the streamThe northeastern corner of the earthen walls
The center of the trading between Japanese and Ainu people
Location and History
One of Dounan Twelve Halls
Shinori-Tate was a hall which Japanese warriors built in the Middle Ages in what is now Hakodate City of Hokkaido Island. At that time, the island was called Ezo, where the native Ainu people lived. They spoke a different language and had a different way of life from people living in the mainland of Japan (called “Japanese people” later in this article). They earned a living by hunting, fishing, and trading, not by farming like “Japanese people” usually did. The first “Japanese people”, who moved from the mainland to Ezo, were said to be exiles, surviving warriors and merchants. Some historians speculate these moving people became a group, called Watari-To or the Migrating Party, who traded with the people of the mainland. The Ando Clan, which governed the northern edge of the mainland, monitored and controlled the party as the Shogunal Deputy for Ezo since the 13th Century.
The painting of Ainu men, attributed to Isabella Lucy Bird, in the 19th Century (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
In the late 14th Century, the Migrating Party and other “Japanese people” were very active in Oshima Peninsula at the southern edge of Hokkaido. The leaders of them started to build several halls for living and trading alongside the peninsula. Shinori-Tate was one of the Dounan (southern part of Hokkaido) Twelve Halls, the easternmost and probably earliest one of the halls. Historians think the Kobayashi Clan which worked under the Ando Clan built the hall.
The location of the castle
Hall prospers with Shinori Town
Shinori town beside the hall also prospered in commerce and industry between the “Japanese” and Ainu people. Records say there was a blacksmith town with hundreds of houses because Ainu people could not produce iron items. In 1968, about 370 thousand buried old coins in three big jars were found at the seaside of Shinori, 100m away from the hall ruins. The jars are partially broken, so if they were intact, the number of coins would reach 500 thousand. Upon checking the kinds of the coins, it was found out that they were buried in the same period as the hall. That would prove that a rich merchant or lord was there. Some historians even speculate the Kobayashi Clan might have buried the coins for the Ground-breaking ceremony of Shinori Tate.
The buried old coins which were designated as an Important Cultural Property, quoted from the website of Hakodate City
The hall was built on an over 20m high hill beside the seaside in the south. The ground for the hall was a square space which was 70m from the east to the west and 50m from the south to the north. It was surrounded by earthen walls and dry moats outside. The western side of it has its entrance and double dry moats. It is thought that the hall was usually used for a living or trading but also used for a base like a castle when an emergency situation or battle happened.
The relief map around the castle
The ruins of Shinori TateThe location map of Shinori-Tate Ruins at the site
Hall is captured twice by Ainu Rebellions
The situation dramatically changed after the Ando Clan was defeated and evicted from the mainland by the Nanbu Clan in 1432. The Ando Clan had to move their home base to Hokkaido. Since then, tension increased between the “Japanese” and Ainu people because the clan tried to rule the island directly. In 1456, an incident happened at a blacksmith in Shinori. An Ainu boy complained about the short sword that he ordered to a craftsman who made it. However, the craftsman killed the boy. This made the Ainu people very angry and resulted in an uprising led by their leader, Koshamain.
The Ainu style short swords called Makiri (licensed by Haa900 via Wikimedia Commons)
Shinori Tate, which was owned by Yoshikage Kobayashi, was attacked and captured by the uprising people. Yoshikage was also killed. Then, ten out of the Dounan Twelve Halls fell. In the following year, a “Japanese” general, Nobuhiro Takeda defeated Koshamain and crushed the rebellion. After that, Shinori Tate was restored by Yoshisada Kobayashi, the son of Yoshikage. However, the Ainu people raised a rebellion and captured Shinori Tate again in 1512. During this encounter, Yoshisada was killed. As a result, the “Japanese” people decided to get together in the western part of Oshima Peninsula, which led to the launching of the Matsumae Domain and Matsumae Castle in the Edo Period. Shinori Tate, which was located in the eastern part of the peninsula, was eventually abandoned.
The portrait of Nobuhiro Takeda (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)Matsumae Castle
A European style fort which was the final place of the Battle of Hakodate
Location and History
European style fort, located in Hakodate
Goryokaku was one of the earliest European style forts in Japan and the site of a major event during the Meiji Restoration. It is also one of the most famous symbols of Hakodate City in Hokkaido. In 1854, Japan opened the country to several Western Countries such as the US through the Shimoda and Hakodate Ports. The Tokugawa Shogunate, which was the Japanese Government at that time, decided to take direct control of Hakodate port and built the Hakodate Magistrate’s Office to control the relationship with the aforementioned countries. The office was first located near the port at the foot of Hakodate Mountain. However, some argued that its location was not good for security because the office might be attacked from both the sea and mountain sides. Because of that, the shogunate built the Benten Cape Battery beside the port and moved the office to an inland area, about 3km away from the port, where it was thought it would provide protection from shots from canons of the Western ships.
The location of the castle
The person in charge of both constructions was Ayasaburo Takeda, a scholar of Western science. He learned a lot from military books and designed the office to be a European style fort, with five bastions like a star. He also planned to add five ravelins between the bastions, but only one was built in the front, probably because of a lack of budget. The new fort was completed in 1864 and called Goryokaku, which means the Pentagonal Style Fort. Its style came from Europe while the techniques used in the construction were traditionally Japanese. The basic five pointed star shape was made of soil, partly using stone walls. Some of the stone walls had a feature called “Hanedashi” in which all the stones in the second row from the top are so layered to prevent enemies from invading. Water moats were dug outside the structures. The office buildings were built inside in the Japanese style.
Ayasaburo Takeda (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The drawing of Goryokaku, one of its final design plans, owned by Hakodate City Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The remaining “Hanedashi” stone wallsThe old photo of the Hakodate Magistrate’s Office building, in the winter of 1868 (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
Escaping force occupies Goryokaku
In 1868 when the Meiji Restoration occurred, Goryokaku, including the magistrate’s office, was first handed over to the new government peacefully. However, the former Shogunate fleet, led by the deputy Admiral, Takeaki Enomoto, escaped from Edo Bay to Hokkaido looking to found their own government. They brought nearly 4,000 soldiers, excellent commanders like Toshizo Hijikata, and the strongest battleship, the Kaiyo. The new government officers left Goryokaku and withdrew to the mainland of Japan, so the escaping force occupied Goryokaku easily and set it as their home base. They also captured other castles in southern Hokkaido, such as Matsumae Castle. They finally declared independence from the new government, which was never accepted. A bad sign for the escaping force was that the Kaiyo had become stranded on a reef at Esashi and sank in the previous battle.
The photo of Takeaki Enomoto, in 1868 (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The photo of Toshizo Hijikata, taken by Kenzo Tamoto, in 1868 (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)Matsumae CastleThe photo of the Kaiyo, in August of 1866 (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The restored Kaiyo beside Esashi Port as a museum
Goryokaku is open by Attack of New Government Army
The new government prepared over 10,000 soldiers and its own fleet, including the Kotetsu, thought to be the strongest after the Kaiyo, led by Kiyotaka Kuroda. The escaping force fortified Goryokaku and built another European style fort called Shiryokaku or the Square Style Fort. The new government forces invaded southern Hokkaido in 1869. They had more soldiers and were more equipped than the escaping force, which resulted in Matsumae Castle and Shiryokaku being captured immediately. The Benten Cape Battery and the remaining escape force fleet fought hard against the new government fleet in Hakodate Port. They even got one of the new government ships, the Choyo sunk. However, they had to surrender because their supplies ran out. Hijikata was also killed by a shot when he was trying to help them. Goryokaku was isolated.
The photo of Kiyotaka Kuroda (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The illustration of the Kotetsu, published in 1933 (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The ruins of ShiryokakuThe photo of the Benten Cape Battery (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The cannon shots from Goryokaku didn’t reach the fleet. On the other hand, the shots from the Kotetsu easily hit Goryokaku because the quality of cannons had rapidly improved. It is said that the copper roof tiles on the drum tower of the magistrate’s office were targeted. Enomoto finally accepted the suggestion of surrender from Kuroda. These battles are called the Battle of Hakodate and considered to be the event that the completed the establishment of the new government.
