Hiraizumi Date

Yanagi-no-gosho ('Palace of Willows'), also known as the manor hall of the Ōshū-Fujiwara Clan, is a large scale fortified residence ruin in Hiraizumi Township in historical Iwai County. Ruins include earthworks such as karabori (dry moats) and dorui (earthen embankments). The site is maintained as a

History

Yanagi-no-gosho ('Palace of Willows') was the fortified palace of the Ōshū-Fujiwara in their capital, Hiraizumi. Yanagi-no-gosho was built by Fujiwara Kiyohira, founder of the Northern Fujiwara dynasty, in 1100. It was renovated in 1170 and destroyed by Minamoto Yoritomo in 1189 during the Ōshū War.

Field Notes

Yanagi-no-gosho ('Palace of Willows'), also known as the manor hall of the Ōshū-Fujiwara Clan, is a large scale fortified residence ruin in Hiraizumi Township in historical Iwai County. Ruins include earthworks such as karabori (dry moats) and dorui (earthen embankments). The site is maintained as a park, and wells and the footprints of buildings dot the fields. There is also a restored landscape garden.

When I visited Hiraizumi for the first time I mostly focused on temples, and so this site, on the opposite side of the railway tracks, I regrettably missed. However, I later visited the Esashi-Fujiwara Village which is an architectural park and open-air studio / open set which has high quality reconstructions of various Heian period structures and buildings, including the Yanagi-no-gosho. At the park it is referred to as the Seichō ('government office').

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Gallery

Information panel at the original site about ruins of a bridge
Information panel at the original site about a moat
dry moat
Excavations at the site
information center at the original site
moats and embankments
the pond
emplacement of several buildings
a well
human waste disposal pit
Information panel about the largest building foundations
Reconstructions at Esashi-Fujiwara no Sato

Castle Profile
English Name	Hiraizumi Date
Japanese Name	平泉館
Alternate Names	Yanagi-no-gosho (柳之御所) / Hiraizumi-seichō (平泉政庁) / Ōshū-Fujiwara-shi-yakata (奥州藤原氏館)
Founder	Fujiwara Kiyohira
Year Founded	1100
Castle Type	Fortified Manor
Castle Condition	No main keep but other buildings
Designations	UNESCO World Heritage Site, National Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Artifacts	Karabori, Dorui, &c.
Features	gates, palace, trenches, walls
Visitor Information
Access	Hiraizumi Station on the Tōhoku Line; 10 minute walk
Hours	Reconstruction is at Esashi-Fujiwara Village
Time Required	90 minutes
URL	Castle Website
Location	Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture
Coordinates	38.99369, 141.11966
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2023
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed
Friends of JCastle
Jōkaku Hōrōki
Kojō Seisuiki

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