![]() ![]() In the Tohoku region, where the war against Emishi (natives in Ezo) continued, castles that doubled as a military base and an administrative office, such as Taga-jo Castle, Dewanoki (Dewa Castle), and Akita-jo Castle, were built in the seventh to ninth centuries. ![]() The first appearance of the word castle in literature is Mizuki (water fortress) built by Emperor Tenchi in 664, and plenty of castles, including ones not found in literature, were built in the area from the northern part of Kyushu to the coasts of the Seto Inland Sea in this age. In the Yayoi period in Japan, many moat settlements or citadel villages or upland settlements were built in high places, such as mountains, but declined with advances of political unity. Tokyo and Kanazawa are two good examples among many Japanese cities which evolved as castle towns. Merchants and artisans lived in specially designated areas, while temple and entertainment districts were usually located in the outskirts of the city or just outside of it. The higher their rank, the closer they lived to the castle. In the town around the castle, the samurai were living. Naturally, the bigger the castle, the stronger and wealthier the Daimyo. ![]() The second purpose of a castle was to display the Daimyo's wealth and power. The main keep of the castle also held stores of food and weapons in case of prolonged battles. Both the castle itself and the grounds immediately surrounding it are fortified with a myriad of defences. Daimyo (Samurai lords) all over the country built these fortresses where they could retreat during an attack. The first was to guard important or strategic sites, such as ports, river crossings, or crossroads, and almost always incorporated the landscape into their defense. Two Main Purposes of The Japanese CastlesĬastles in Japan were built for two main purposes. According to the research, there are about 25,000 castles all around Japan including ruins and reconstructions. Japanese castle was uniquely developed by Samurai and it has reached the only one design in the world. The structure of Japanese castle is very different not only from Western countries, but also from other Asian countries such as China. The first form of Japanese castle was the wooden stockade in early centuries, then evolved into their best-known form of powerful and beautiful structure in the 16th century. Japanese castle (城 shiro) is a fortress and samurai lord’s resident constructed with wood and stone. ![]()
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