Marugame Castle

{{ |English Name=Edo Castle |Japanese Name=江戸城 |Romaji Name=Edo-jo |Alternate Names=Chiyoda-jo, Tokyo-jo, Ota-jo |Founder=Ota Dokan |Year Founded=1400 |Artifacts=gates |City=Tokyo |GPS=35.68761, 139.75538 |Access=Tokyo Station, 5 min walk |Visitor Information=Closed Monday and Friday |Time Required=240 |Website=http://jcastle.info |has stone walls=Yes |has buildings=Yes |has Important Cultural Properties=Yes |has National Treasures=No |is a World Heritage Site=No |is a Top 100 Castle=Yes |Prefecture=Tokyo |Castle Type=Flatland |Castle Condition=ruins only |Historical Period=Edo Period |Historical Designation=National Historical Site |Designations=Has Important Cultural Property, Top 100 Castle |Historical Designations=Has Important Cultural Property, National Historical Site, Top 100 Castle }}

History

The history of Edo Castle dates back to the Heian Period when a fortified palace was built by the Edo clan on this site. In 1457 the Uesugi clan constructed the first Edo Castle. The castle remained under the control of the Uesugi family until the coming of the Tokugawa. Before Tokugawa Ieyasu, Edo (Tokyo) was just another town in the Kanto area. Partly due to Ieyasu's revolutionary city planning, the town of Edo developed at lightning speed and quickly became the social and political center of Japan. In 1590, after Toyotomi Hideyoshi completed the unification of Japan he granted lordship over the greater Tokyo region to his lieutenant Tokugawa Ieyasu. Tokugawa could have ruled from the well established castle town of Odawara (80km west of Tokyo); instead, he took the opportunity to build a new city from the underdeveloped village of Edo. In a little over 100 years, Edo's population would grow to more than a million people, making it the largest city in the world.

When Tokugawa became Shogun in 1603, Edo effectively became the capital of Japan. He mobilized a workforce from all parts of the country to build the huge stone walls, watchtowers, and palaces of the castle. The castle was the heart of Tokugawa's city and the largest castle in the world. The castle design was the work of the great castle architect, and Ieyasu's friend, Todo Takatora.

Notes

Please visit the Edo Castle feature page for more photos, maps and descriptions

I have visited Edo-jo many times and never tire of walking the grounds or searching out remnants of the original castle. The size may surprise you because it would take most of a day to walk the whole grounds and visit all the structures even with a well planned trip.