Kanazawa Castle: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:38, 13 January 2021

This is an amazing castle. It has only three original structures; the Ishikawamon Gate, Sanjikken Yagura, and the Tsurumaru Storehouse, but the vast stone walls, excellent reconstructions, extant samurai homes, and one of the most famous gardens in Japan, make it a 5 Star must-see site for anyone.

History

The castle was first founded by Sakuma Morimasa, a retainer of Oda Nobunaga, and nephew of Shibata Katsuie in 1580. He started to build up the castle and castle town but was defeated and executed by Hideyoshi at the Battle of Shizugatake in 1583. After the battle, Maeda Toshiie, an ally of Hideyoshi, who held the neighboring Noto province was also given Kaga province. It was taken over by Maeda Toshiie, who built up the castle in earnest. In 1585, Maeda was also granted the lands of Ecchu, making him one of the richest lords under the Toyotomi regime. The Maeda clan established a prosperous province which allowed them to rule peacefully for 14 generations until the end of the Meiji period.

The castle originally had a large six-level main keep, but it burned down in 1602 and was never rebuilt. Kanazawa Castle had several fires that destroyed parts of the castle over the years.

Field Notes

This is an amazing castle. It has only three original structures; the Ishikawamon Gate, Sanjikken Yagura, and the Tsurumaru Storehouse, but the vast stone walls, excellent reconstructions, extant samurai homes, and one of the most famous gardens in Japan, make it a 5 Star must-see site for anyone.

The Kenrokuen Garden was built at about the same elevation as the Honmaru of the castle in 1676 and gradually expanded over 150 years. It was

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Gallery

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Nagamachi Samurai District

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Castle Profile
English Name	Kanazawa Castle
Japanese Name	金沢城
Alternate Names	Oyama-jo
Founder	Maeda Toshiie
Year Founded	1580
Castle Type	Hilltop
Castle Condition	No main keep but other buildings
Designations	Top 100 Castles, has Important Cultural Properties, National Historic Site
Historical Period	Edo Period
Artifacts	Ishikawa Gate, Tsurumaru Warehouse, Sanjukken Nagaya
Features	gates, turrets, samurai homes, water moats, trenches, stone walls, walls, castle town
Visitor Information
Access	Kanazawa Sta. (Hokuriku Line), 15 minutes by bus
Hours	Park open 7am to 6pm (March 1-October 15), 8am to 5pm otherwise. The Buildings are open 9am to 4:30pm. The castle buildings are 310 yen for admission or you can get a combination ticket with the Kenrokuen Gardens for 500 yen.
Time Required	180 mins
URL	Castle Website
Location	Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture
Coordinates	36.56549, 136.65928
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2006
Admin Year Visited	2006, 2016, 2020
Admin Visits	June 10, 2006; Oct 29, 2016; Oct. 15, 2020
Friends of JCastle
Malcolm Fairman Photography - Kanazawa Castle
Shirobio - Kanazawa Castle
Kojozan - Kanazawa Castle
Shirofan - - Kanazawa Castle
Jokaku Horoki - Kanazawa Castle
Ken's Castle Storage - Kanazawa Castle

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Tsuda Genba Residence

3.85

(41 votes)

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@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 |City=Kanazawa
 |Prefecture=Ishikawa Prefecture
-|Notes=This is an amazing castle. The castle alone is 4 stars, but when considering the samurai homes, castle town, and Kenrokuen Gardens, the complete site is a 5 star destination. The castle is much larger than it looks. I was not able to visit some areas this trip so I definitely want to visit again. Plan even more time than you might think you'll need and don't miss the Kenrokuen Gardens either.
+|Notes=This is an amazing castle. It has only three original structures; the Ishikawamon Gate, Sanjikken Yagura, and the Tsurumaru Storehouse, but the vast stone walls, excellent reconstructions, extant samurai homes, and one of the most famous gardens in Japan, make it a 5 Star must-see site for anyone.
-|History=The castle was first founded by Sakuma Morimasa, a retainer of Oda Nobunaga, in 1580. He started to build one of the moats and to build up the castle town. After the Battle of Shizugatake in 1583, it was taken over by Maeda Toshiie, who built up the castle in earnest.
- <p>The castle originally had a large six-level main keep, but it burned down in 1602 and was never rebuilt. Kanazawa Castle had several fires that destroyed parts of the castle over the years. The Maeda clan ruled over the Kaga region from Kanazawa for 14 generations until the coming of the Meiji Restoration. </p>
+The Kenrokuen Garden was built at about the same elevation as the Honmaru of the castle in 1676 and gradually expanded over 150 years. It was
- <p>The picture above is of the Hashizume Gate and connected yagura. The gate separates the Ninomaru (second bailey) from the Sannomaru (third bailey).</p>
+|History=The castle was first founded by Sakuma Morimasa, a retainer of Oda Nobunaga, and nephew of Shibata Katsuie in 1580. He started to build up the castle and castle town but was defeated and executed by Hideyoshi at the Battle of Shizugatake in 1583. After the battle, Maeda Toshiie, an ally of Hideyoshi, who held the neighboring Noto province was also given Kaga province. It was taken over by Maeda Toshiie, who built up the castle in earnest. In 1585, Maeda was also granted the lands of Ecchu, making him one of the richest lords under the Toyotomi regime. The Maeda clan established a prosperous province which allowed them to rule peacefully for 14 generations until the end of the Meiji period.
+The castle originally had a large six-level main keep, but it burned down in 1602 and was never rebuilt. Kanazawa Castle had several fires that destroyed parts of the castle over the years.
 |Year Visited=2006, 2016, 2020
 |AddedJcastle=2006
-|Japanese Notes=金沢城はとても素晴らしい城です。城跡そのものも四つ星ですが、城下町、武家屋敷、兼六園を全部入れると五つ星です。城も思うより大きいので余裕を持って訪れてください。城と兼六園だけでも一日がかかります。私もまだ見ていない場所があるのでまた行きたいと思います。
+|Japanese Notes=
 |Visits=June 10, 2006; Oct 29, 2016; Oct. 15, 2020
 |GPSLocation=36.56549, 136.65928