Uraga

The area is located in the eastern part of Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture, and covers the coastal area of ​​Uraga Bay, a ria-shaped bay facing the Uraga Channel. Formerly known as Uraga Town. The Keihin Kyuko Railway runs through the area. During the Edo period, the area was divided into three parts: Higashi-Uraga, Nishi-Uraga, and Nishi-Uraga Bungo. Uraga was originally a good natural port, and together with Hashirimizu to the north and Kurihama to the south, it was a strategic location for crossing from the Miura Peninsula to the Boso Peninsula. In 1720 (5th year of the Kyoho era), this area was made the base for the defense of Edo Bay, and the magistrate's office and guard post, which had been located in Shimoda, Izu, were moved to Uraga (Nishi-Uraga), and it became the gateway to Edo to regulate the seas over a wide area, including Sagami Bay, the Uraga Channel, and Edo Bay. All ships coming in and out of Edo Bay had to stop here, and inspections of crew members and cargo were made mandatory. The port was always bustling with ships, and the bay shore was lined with shipping and dried sardine wholesalers, resulting in a thriving business. In 1853 (Kaei 6), Commodore Perry of the United States arrived with four warships and urged the shogunate to open its borders to the world. Since then, the Uraga Magistrate was also in charge of coastal security, and played a major role in national defense and shogunate administration. When Yokosuka became the base of the Japanese Navy in the Meiji era, the Uraga Dock Company (now Sumitomo Heavy Industries) was established here in 1900 (Meiji 33). The town developed into a shipbuilding town and a residential area for shipbuilders, and has continued to do so to this day. At the site of the Nishi-Uraga Magistrate's Office, the stone walls of the surrounding moat and the stone bridge that was built over the main gate remain, and the townscape is filled with earthen storehouses, evoking the town's past prosperity. Documents related to the magistrate's office are on display at the Uraga Cultural Center. In addition, the Toraodori (Tiger Dance), a prefectural designated intangible folk cultural property, is dedicated to the festival of Nishikanou Shrine in Nishi-Uraga.

[Yukio Asaka]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

神奈川県横須賀市(よこすかし)の東部、浦賀水道に臨むリアス式湾入の浦賀湾岸一帯の地区。旧浦賀町。京浜急行電鉄が通じる。江戸時代は東浦賀、西浦賀、西浦賀分郷に三分されていた。浦賀は元来天然の良港で、北の走水(はしりみず)や南の久里浜(くりはま)とともに三浦半島から房総半島へ渡る要地をなしていた。1720年（享保5）ここが江戸湾防衛の拠点とされ、それまで伊豆の下田(しもだ)にあった奉行所(ぶぎょうしょ)と番所が浦賀（西浦賀）へ移され、江戸の関門として相模(さがみ)湾、浦賀水道、江戸湾など広く海上の取締りを行うこととなった。そして江戸湾への出入船舶はすべてここへ寄港し、乗組員や積み荷の検査も義務づけられることとなり、港はいつも多くの船でにぎわい、湾岸には廻船(かいせん)問屋や干鰯(ほしか)問屋が軒を連ね、活況を呈した。さらに1853年（嘉永6）アメリカのペリー提督が軍艦4隻を率いて来航し、幕府に開国を迫って以来、浦賀奉行は沿岸警備も担当し、国防・幕政上にも大きな役割を果たすこととなった。明治に入り横須賀が日本海軍の基地となると、ここには1900年（明治33）浦賀船渠(ドック)会社（現、住友重機械工業）が設けられ、造船の町、造船工の居住地として発展し現在に至っている。西浦賀の奉行所跡には、周囲の堀の石垣と正門に架けられていた石橋が残され、町並みには土蔵が多くかつての盛時をしのばせる。奉行所関連の資料などが浦賀文化センターに展示されている。また、西浦賀の西叶(にしかのう)神社の祭礼には虎踊(とらおどり)（県指定無形民俗文化財）が奉納される。

［浅香幸雄］

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