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 275,000 square meters, of which 8000 square meters is occupied by buildings.

It is one of the seventeen assets of Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto which have been designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

History

In 1601, Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, ordered all the feudal lords in Western Japan to contribute to the construction of Nijō Castle, which was completed during the reign of Tokugawa Iemitsu in 1626. Parts of Fushimi Castle, such as the main tower and the karamon, were moved here in 1625-26. It was built as the Kyoto residence of the Tokugawa Shoguns. The Tokugawa Shogunate used Edo as the capital city, but Kyoto continued to be the home of the Imperial Court. Kyoto Imperial Palace is located north-east of Nijo Castle.

The central keep, or Tenshu, was struck by lightning and burned to the ground in 1750.

In 1788, the Inner was destroyed by a city-wide fire. The site remained empty until it was replaced by a prince's residence transferred from the Kyoto Imperial Palace in 1893.

In 1867, the Ninomaru Palace was the stage for the declaration by Tokugawa Yoshinobu, returning the authority to the Imperial Court. Next year the Imperial Cabinet was installed in the castle. The palace became imperial property and was declared a detached palace. During this time, the Tokugawa hollyhock crest was removed wherever possible and replaced with the imperial chrysanthemum.

In 1939, the palace was donated to the city of Kyoto and opened to the public the following year.

In the 21st century, typhoons have periodically caused sections of plaster to peel off the walls after exposure to rain and wind.

Fortifications

Nijō Castle has two concentric rings of fortifications, each consisting of a wall and a wide moat. The outer wall has three gates while the inner wall has two. In the southwest corner of the inner wall, there are foundations of a five-story keep, destroyed by a fire in 1750. The inner walls contain Honmaru Palace with its garden. Ninomaru Palace, the kitchens, guard house and several gardens are located between the two main rings of fortifications.

Ninomaru Palace

The 3300 square meter Шаблон:Nihongo consists of five connected separate buildings and is built almost entirely of Hinoki cypress. The decoration includes lavish quantities of gold leaf and elaborate wood carvings, intended to impress visitors with the power and wealth of the shoguns. The sliding doors and walls of each room are decorated with wall paintings by artists of the Kanō school.

The castle is an excellent example of social control manifested in architectural space. Low-ranking visitors were received in the outer regions of the Ninomaru, whereas high-ranking visitors were shown the more subtle inner chambers. Rather than attempt to conceal the entrances to the rooms for bodyguards (as was done in many castles), the Tokugawas chose to display them prominently. Thus, the construction lent itself to expressing intimidation and power to Edo-period visitors.

The building houses several different reception chambers, offices and the living quarters of the shogun, where only female attendants were allowed. One of the most striking features of the Ninomaru Palace are the "nightingale floors" (uguisubari) in the corridors. To protect the occupants from sneak attacks and assassins, the builders constructed the floors of the corridors in such a way as to squeak like birds when anyone walks on them.

Some of the rooms in the castle also contained special doors where the shogun's bodyguard could sneak out to protect him.

The room sequence starting at the entrance is:

  • Yanagi-no-ma (Willow Room),
  • Wakamatsu-no-ma (Young Pine Room)
  • Tozamurai-no-ma (Retainers' Room)
  • Shikidai-no-ma (Reception Room)
  • Rōchu-no-ma (Ministers' Offices)
  • Chokushi-no-ma (Imperial Messenger's Room)

The Ōhiroma (Great Hall) is the central core of the Ninomaru Palace and consists of four chambers:

  • Ichi-no-ma (First Grand Chamber)
  • Ni-no-ma (Second Grand Chamber)
  • San-no-ma (Third Grand Chamber)
  • Yon-no-ma (Fourth Grand Chamber)

as well as the Musha-kakushi-no-ma (Bodyguards' Chamber) and the Sotetsu-no-ma (Japanese fern-palm chamber).

The rear sections are the Kuroshoin (Inner Audience Chamber) and Shiroshoin (Shogun's living quarters)

The main access to the Ninomaru is through the karamon, a court and the mi-kurumayose or "honourable carriages approach".

Honmaru Palace

Шаблон:Nihongo has a surface area of 1600 square meters. The complex has four parts: living quarters, reception and entertainment rooms, entrance halls and kitchen area. The different areas are connected by corridors and courtyards. The architectural style is late Edo period. The palace displays paintings by several famous masters, such as Kanō Eigaku.

Honmaru Palace was originally similar to Ninomaru Palace. The current structure was known as Katsura Palace before being relocated to the present site in 1893 when it was renamed. Originally the palace had 55 buildings, but only a small part was relocated. In 1928 the enthronement banquet of the Showa Emperor (Emperor Hirohito) was held here.

Gardens

The castle area has several gardens and groves of cherry and Japanese plum trees. The Ninomaru garden was designed by the landscape architect and tea master Kobori Enshu. It is located between the two main rings of fortifications, next to the palace of the same name. The garden has a large pond with three islands and features numerous carefully placed stones and topiary pine trees.

The Seiryū-en garden is the most recent part of Nijō Castle. It was constructed in 1965 in the northern part of the complex, as a facility for the reception of official guests of the city of Kyoto and as a venue for cultural events. Seiryū-en has two tea houses and more than 1000 carefully arranged stones.

See also

  • List of Special Places of Scenic Beauty, Special Historic Sites and Special Natural Monuments
  • Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities)
  • List of National Treasures of Japan (residences)

References

Шаблон:Reflist

Literature

External links

Шаблон:Commons category

Listed in the following categories:
Post a comment
Tips & Hints
Arrange By:
Fernando Lemos
5 October 2017
Gardens around the castle are very nice, good place to walk and relax. If you have the Kyoto subway day pass, you can get a small discount on the entry fee.
Marc UKG
17 September 2016
Loved the creaking floorboards inside the castle. Try to not make a sound while walking inside the rooms. The garden is beautiful too with a teahouse that has tasty scratched ice with mango.
Artyom Fedosov
28 July 2016
Interesting to see the shogun's lifestyle, how official ceremonies and meetings took place here and so on. Amazing japanese gardens outside.
Shana Leigh
6 March 2018
I came for the art aquarium, but I will definitely be back to see the castle during the day! If you can, check out the art aquarium!!
Lisa Starbucks
3 April 2017
The inside of the castle looked really in bad shape when you compare it with the state of the temples and shrines! Highlights are really the gate and the cherry blossom path.
The Ritz-Carlton
9 August 2016
Nijo castle was built in 1603 as the official Kyoto residence of the first Tokugawa shogun, Ieyasu. The ostentatious style of its construction was intended as a demonstration of Ieyasu's prestige.
Load more comments
foursquare.com
8.6/10
Georgiy Mostolovitsa, Sergey Demidov and 44,539 more people have been here
Map
0.3km from Takeya-cho Dori, Nijōjōchō, Nakagyō-ku, Kyōto-shi, Kyōto-fu 604-8301, Japan Get directions
Mon-Sun 8:45 AM–5:00 PM

Nijo-jo Castle on Foursquare

Nijō Castle on Facebook

Hotels nearby

See all hotels See all
THE JUNEI HOTEL Kyoto Imperial Palace West

starting $625

Hidden Inn Gosho

starting $0

Kyo-machiya Hotel Shiki Juraku

starting $412

Hotel Rubino Kyoto Horikawa

starting $76

Rubino Kyoto Horikawa

starting $76

Guesthouse Goettingen

starting $54

Recommended sights nearby

See all See all
Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Kyoto International Manga Museum

The Kyoto International Manga Museum

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Rokkaku-dō

The Шаблон:Nihongo, official name Шаблон:Nihongo, is a Buddhist te

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Kyoto Imperial Palace

The Шаблон:Nihongo is the former ruling palace of the Emperor of Japan

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Sentō Imperial Palace

The Шаблон:Nihongo Шаблон:Convert) is a large garden in Kyoto, Japa

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Nishiki Market

Nishiki Market (, Nishiki Ichiba) (literally 'brocade market') is a

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Kitano Tenman-gū

Kitano Tenman-gū (北野天満宮) is a Shinto shrine in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto, Japa

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Sanjō Ōhashi

]]Sanjō Ōhashi (三条大橋) is a bridge in Kyoto, Kyoto Prefectur

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Shijo-ohashi Bridge (四条大橋)

Shijo-ohashi Bridge (四条大橋) is a tourist attraction, one of the Bri

Similar tourist attractions

See all See all
Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Tower of London

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Conwy Castle

Conwy Castle (traditional Conway Castle; Welsh Castell Conwy) is a

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Beaumaris Castle

Beaumaris Castle, located in Beaumaris, Anglesey, Wales was built as

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Rufus Castle

Rufus Castle, also known as Bow and Arrow Castle, is a ruined castle

Add to wishlist
I've been here
Visited
Neuschwanstein Castle

Neuschwanstein Castle (German: Schloss Neuschwanstein, pronounced ])

See all similar places