Edo Castle

Japanese: 江戸城 - えどじょう

A castle from the Muromachi to Edo periods. It is located in Chiyoda, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo. Also called Chiyoda Castle, it was the residence of 15 generations of the Tokugawa clan during the Edo period and the seat of the shogunate. It is located at the southern end of the Kanto Plain, in the northern corner of Edo Bay, and almost in the center of the Kanto region, making it a hub for land and water transportation.

[Tetsuo Owada]

history

The castle was first built in 1457 (Choroku 1) by Ota Sukenaga (who became a monk and took the name Ota Dokan), a retainer of the Uesugi clan of the Ogigayatsu shogunate and Kanto shogunate, as a base to oppose the Koga shogunate Ashikaga Shigeuji. Edo Castle during the Dokan era consisted of three castles, the Shijo, Nakajo, and Tojo, and its location is thought to be the main castle of the Edo period, but in recent years, excavations have uncovered a cross section of a dry moat thought to date back to the Dokan era in Kitanomaru Park, and it has become clear that the main castle and the Kitanomaru were connected by land, making it more likely that the area from the Honmaru to Kitanomaru Park was the center of the castle. After Dokan's death, Soga Bungo no Kami temporarily became the castle lord, but then Ogigayatsu Uesugi Tomoyoshi and Tomooki entered the castle. During Tomooki's time, the castle was attacked by Hojo Ujitsuna and the castle was surrendered, after which it became a subsidiary castle of the Hojo clan. It was a subsidiary castle of the Hojo clan for 66 years, from 1524 (Taiei 4) to 1590 (Tensho 18), and during that time, the Ota clan, Tominaga clan, Toyama clan, and others were sent to the castle as lords.

Edo Castle during the Hojo clan's time is thought to have been built by simply using the castle from the Dokan era, but it was extensively renovated by Tokugawa Ieyasu, who entered the castle after the Hojo clan was destroyed. Ieyasu combined the kuruwa (main enclosures) that had been divided into the sub-castle, middle castle, and outer castle from the Dokan era into one and made this the main castle, and built Ninomaru and Sannomaru at the foot of the mountain. Furthermore, in 1592 (Bunroku 1), following Toyotomi Hideyoshi's construction of a retirement castle in Fushimi, Ieyasu also built Nishinomaru as a retirement castle. After the Battle of Sekigahara, when Ieyasu became Seii Taishogun in 1603 (Keicho 8), Edo Castle was no longer just a daimyo's residence, but was also positioned as a political and economic center, and there was a demand for the castle to be improved. From then on, feudal lords from all over the country were mobilized to carry out construction work on the castle, and this did not end with Ieyasu's time. It was taken over by the second shogun Hidetada and the third shogun Iemitsu, and in the end, large-scale construction work was carried out seven times between 1606 (Keicho 11) and 1636 (Kan'ei 13). Finally, during the time of the sixth shogun Ienobu, Shibaguchimon was completed in 1710 (Hoei 7), and the largest castle in Japan was completed, stretching about 5 kilometers east to west and 3.9 kilometers north to south. After the 15th shogun Yoshinobu returned power to the Emperor in 1867 (Keio 3) and the shogunate was destroyed, Emperor Meiji moved the capital from Kyoto the following year in 1868 (Meiji 1), and the castle was temporarily renamed Tokyo Castle, which remains the Imperial Palace to this day.

[Tetsuo Owada]

structure

Edo period castles can be broadly divided into an inner and outer enclosure, with the interior being further divided into the main castle and the western castle. The main castle consisted of Honmaru, Ninomaru, and Sannomaru, with an area of approximately 310,000 square meters. Literally the center of Edo Castle, Honmaru Palace was built in Honmaru, which consisted of three parts: Omote, Nakaoku, and Ooku. The Omote Palace was the political center of the shogunate, and contained the rooms where the senior councilors carried out government affairs, the great hall where audiences with daimyo and foreign envoys were held, and rooms such as the Shiroshoin and Kuroshoin. Nakaoku was the "official residence" where the shogun lived daily and conducted government affairs, while Ooku was where the shogun's wife (midaidokoro) and the women of the imperial court lived, and was, so to speak, his "private residence." A five-story, six-story castle tower was built to the north of the Honmaru, completed in 1607 (Keicho 12), but it was destroyed in the Great Meireki Fire of 1657 (Meireki 3) and was never rebuilt, but was replaced by the Fujimi Yagura (three-story) tower inside the castle. Ninomaru is elongated from north to south to the south and east of Honmaru, and Sannomaru is located further east of that, and is the part where the remains of the castle from the Edo period are best preserved. These include the Otemon Gate (with the Watari Tower restored), Hirakawamon Gate, and Kikyomon Gate.

The Nishinomaru of Nishi Castle (Nishinomaru, Yamazato Kuruwa) was used as the retirement home of the previous Shogun and the residence of the next Shogun, and the Fushimi Turret is located here. After the Meiji Restoration, Emperor Meiji moved into Nishinomaru, and after the Nishinomaru Palace (Imperial Palace) burned down in 1873 (Meiji 6), the New Meiji Palace was built on the same site in 1888. In addition to the inner baileys mentioned above, there were the middle baileys consisting of Nishinomaru Shimokuruwa (now the Imperial Palace Plaza), Daimyo-koji (now Marunouchi), Kitanomaru (now Kitanomaru Park), and Fukiage Kuruwa as outer baileys, which were surrounded by another outer moat. This was the overall structure that encompassed the city of Edo, and its gates were Shibaguchi Gate, Saiwaibashi Gate, Toranomon, Akasaka Gate, Kuichigai Gate, Yotsuya Gate, Ichigaya Gate, Ushigome Gate, Koishikawa Gate, Sujikaibashi Gate, and Asakusabashi Gate. From Asakusabashi Gate, the moat extended in a spiral shape all the way to the main castle, and the castle and the entire town were fortified by more than 50 castle gates known as the Thirty-six Mitsuke.

Existing structures include the Fujimi Tower, Treasure House, Kitahanebashi Gate, guardhouse inside the Nakano Gate, Sakurada Two-Story Tower, Otemon Gate, Hirakawa Gate, Uchi Sakurada Gate, Fushimi Tower, Sukiya Two-Story Tower, Nishinomaru Otemon Gate, Sakurada Gate under Nishinomaru, the bridge at Wadakura Gate, and Hanzomon Gate (originally Wadakura Gate under Nishinomaru) in Fukiage Bldg. The connecting towers at Otemon Gate, Shimizu Gate, and Tayasu Gate have been restored, and the stone walls of the castle tower base, as well as the stone walls and moat, have been preserved almost perfectly.

[Tetsuo Owada]

"Draft History of Tokyo City: Imperial Castle Volume, 5 volumes (1911-1918, Tokyo City)" ▽ "Edo and Edo Castle, by Naito Masaru (1966, Kajima Institute Publishing Association)" ▽ "Edo Castle, by Murai Masuo (1964, Chuo Shinsho)"

[References] | Imperial Palace

Floor plan of Edo Castle (front of the Honmaru and inner citadel)
©Shogakukan ">

Floor plan of Edo Castle (front of the Honmaru and inner citadel)

Floor plan of the Ooku (Honmaru, Edo Castle)
©Shogakukan ">

Floor plan of the Ooku (Honmaru, Edo Castle)

Otemon Gate
The main gate of Edo Castle. It consists of the Koraimon Gate (front in the photo) and the Watariyaguramon Gate (right in the photo), which is located at a right angle from it. It is said to have been built by Date Masamune and others during the repairs to Edo Castle in 1620 (Genwa 6). It was burned down in the Great Meireki Fire in 1657 (Meireki 3) and rebuilt in 1659 (Manji 2). It was repaired several times after that, and took on its current appearance in 1967 (Showa 42). Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo ©Shogakukan ">

Otemon Gate

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

室町期から江戸期の城。東京都千代田(ちよだ)区千代田にある。千代田城ともいわれ、江戸期には徳川氏15代の居城として、幕府の置かれた所であった。位置的には関東平野の南端、江戸湾の北隅で、関八州のほぼ中央に位置し、陸上交通、水上交通の拠点ともいうべき場所である。

［小和田哲男］

歴史

城が初めて築かれたのは1457年（長禄1）で、関東管領(かんれい)扇谷(おうぎがやつ)上杉氏の家宰太田資長(おおたすけなが)（出家して太田道灌(どうかん)）が古河公方(こがくぼう)足利成氏(あしかがしげうじ)に対抗するための拠点として築いた。道灌時代の江戸城は子城(しじょう)、中城(なかじょう)、外城(とじょう)の三つからなり、その位置は江戸期の城の本丸部分と考えられているが、近年発掘調査が行われた北の丸公園から、道灌時代のものと思われる空堀の断面が出てき、しかも、本丸と北の丸は地続きであったことが明らかになり、本丸から北の丸公園あたりが中心部であった可能性が強くなってきた。道灌死後、一時曽我豊後守(そがぶんごのかみ)が城代として入ったが、さらに扇谷上杉朝良(ともよし)、朝興(ともおき)が入城した。朝興のとき北条氏綱(ほうじょううじつな)の攻撃を受けて開城し、以後、城は北条氏の支城となったのである。北条氏の支城だった期間は1524年（大永4）から1590年（天正18）までの66年間、その間、城代として太田氏、富永氏、遠山氏などが送り込まれていた。

　北条氏時代の江戸城は道灌時代の城をそのまま利用したものと考えられているが、北条氏が滅亡したあと入城した徳川家康によって大改修が施された。家康は、道灌時代の子城、中城、外城に分かれていた曲輪(くるわ)を一つにまとめてこれを本丸とし、山下に二の丸、三の丸を設け、さらに1592年（文禄1）豊臣秀吉(とよとみひでよし)が伏見(ふしみ)に隠居城を築いたのに便乗して、隠居城として西の丸を設けた。関ヶ原の戦いを経て1603年（慶長8）に家康が征夷大将軍(せいいたいしょうぐん)になるに及んで、江戸城は単なる大名の居城ではなく、政治、経済上の中心としての位置づけが加わり、江戸城の整備が要請されたのである。以後、各地の大名を動員しての天下普請が行われ、家康の代では終わらず、2代秀忠(ひでただ)、3代家光(いえみつ)に引き継がれ、結局、1606年（慶長11）から1636年（寛永13）まで大工事が7回も行われた。最終的には6代将軍家宣(いえのぶ)のとき、1710年（宝永7）芝口門(しばぐちもん)ができて、東西約5キロメートル、南北3.9キロメートルに及ぶ日本最大の城ができあがったのである。なお、1867年（慶応3）15代将軍慶喜(よしのぶ)が大政奉還して幕府が滅亡したあと、翌1868年（明治1）明治天皇が京都より遷都し、城も一時東京城と改められ、皇居として現在に至っている。

［小和田哲男］

構造

江戸期の城は内郭と外郭に大きく分けて考えることができ、内部はさらに本城と西城に分けられる。本城の部分は本丸、二の丸、三の丸からなり、この部分の面積はおよそ31万平方メートルであった。文字どおり江戸城の中心で、本丸には本丸御殿が建てられており、表(おもて)、中奥(なかおく)、大奥(おおおく)の三つの部分からなり、表殿舎は幕府の政治上の中枢部で、老中らが政務を行う御用部屋や、諸大名、外国使節らの謁見(えっけん)などが行われる大広間や、白書院、黒書院などの座敷があった。中奥は将軍が日常起居し政務をみたりする「官邸」であり、大奥は将軍の夫人（御台所(みだいどころ)）を中心に後宮の女性が生活する場所で、いわば「私邸」であった。この本丸北側に1607年（慶長12）完成の五層六重の天守閣が建てられていたが、1657年（明暦3）の明暦(めいれき)の大火で類焼し、以後は再建されることなく、城内の富士見櫓(やぐら)（3層）によって代用された。二の丸は本丸南側および東側に南北に細長い形をしており、三の丸はさらにその東側に位置し、江戸期の城の遺構がいちばんよく残る部分である。すなわち、大手門（渡櫓は復原）、平河門(ひらかわもん)、桔梗門(ききょうもん)などがある。

　西城（西の丸、山里曲輪(くるわ)）の西の丸は前将軍の隠居所、次将軍の居所として用いられた所で、ここに伏見櫓がある。明治維新後、明治天皇が入ったのは西の丸で、1873年（明治6）に西の丸御殿（皇居）が炎上したあと、同じ場所に明治新宮殿が1888年に建てられている。なお、以上の内郭に対し、外郭として西の丸下曲輪（現在皇居前広場）、大名小路（現在丸の内）、北の丸（現在北の丸公園）、吹上曲輪からなる中曲輪があり、さらにそれをもう一重の外濠(そとぼり)が巡っていた。これは江戸市中を包み込んだ形の総構(そうがまえ)で、虎口(こぐち)としては芝口門、幸橋門(さいわいばしもん)、虎ノ門(とらのもん)、赤坂門(あかさかもん)、喰違門(くいちがいもん)、四谷門(よつやもん)、市谷門(いちがやもん)、牛込門(うしごめもん)、小石川門(こいしかわもん)、筋違橋門(すじかいばしもん)、浅草橋門(あさくさばしもん)があり、浅草橋門からちょうど螺旋(らせん)状に塁濠が本丸まで入る形になり、三十六見付(みつけ)とよばれる50余の城門によって城と町全体が固められる仕組みになっていたのである。

　現存建造物としては、本丸の富士見櫓、宝蔵、北拮橋門(きたはねばしもん)、中の門内番所、三の丸の桜田二重櫓、大手門、平河門、内桜田門、西の丸の伏見櫓、数寄屋二重櫓、西の丸大手門、西の丸下の桜田門、和田倉門の橋、吹上郭の半蔵門（もとは西の丸下の和田倉門）などがあり、大手門、清水門(しみずもん)、田安門(たやすもん)の渡櫓は復原されており、天守台の石垣をはじめ、石垣、堀はほぼ完全な形で保存されている。

［小和田哲男］

『『東京市史稿　皇城篇』5冊（1911～1918・東京市）』▽『内藤昌著『江戸と江戸城』（1966・鹿島研究所出版会）』▽『村井益男著『江戸城』（1964・中央新書）』

[参照項目] | 皇居

江戸城の平面図（本丸表・中奥）

大奥の平面図（江戸城本丸）

大手門
江戸城の正門。高麗門（写真正面）と、そこから直角に位置する渡櫓門（写真右）からなる。1620年（元和6）の江戸城修築の際、伊達政宗らによって築かれたと伝えられる。1657年（明暦3）明暦の大火で類焼し、1659年（万治2）に再建。その後数度の修築を繰り返し、1967年（昭和42）に現在の姿となった。東京都千代田区©Shogakukan">

大手門

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