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21-426: Hirosaki Castle measures 612 meters east-west and 947 meters north-south. Its grounds are divided into six concentric baileys , which were formerly walled and separated by moats . It is unusual in that its Edo period tenshu and most of its outline remains intact. Noted historian and author Shiba Ryōtarō praised it as one of the "Seven Famous Castles of Japan" in his travel essay series Kaidō wo Yuku . During

42-521: A castle in Hirosaki; however, work was suspended with his death in Kyoto in 1604. Work was resumed by his successor, Tsugaru Nobuhira in 1609, who stripped Horikoshi Castle and Ōura Castle of buildings and materials in order to speed its completion. The current castle was completed in 1611. However, in 1627, the 5-story tenshu was struck by lightning and destroyed by fire. It was not rebuilt until 1810 when

63-465: A four-meter-tall bronze statue of Tsugaru Tamenobu was erected on the site of the tenshu . In 1937, eight structures of the castle received protection from the government as “national treasures”. However, in 1944, during the height of World War II , all of the bronze in the castle, including roof tiles and decorations, were stripped away for use in the war effort. In 1950, under the new cultural properties protection system, all surviving structures in

84-497: Is a leveled courtyard , typically enclosed by a curtain wall . In particular, a medieval type of European castle is known as a motte-and-bailey . Castles and fortifications may have more than one bailey, and the enclosure wall building material may have been at first in wood, and later transitioned to stone. Their layout depends both on the local topography and the level of fortification technology employed, ranging from simple enclosures to elaborate concentric defences. In addition to

105-446: Is often called a yagura , as are similar structures used in other festivals. Yagura-daiko ( taiko drumming from atop a yagura ) is a traditional part of professional sumo competitions. There were signs that the first written form of kanji was (櫓) during ancient periods, simply being a character representing a tower before being changed to (矢倉) – in which the former replaced the latter once again. The term originally derives from

126-648: The Tokugawa shogunate should a larger structure be built. At present, it is a separate standing structure; however, prior to 1896 it had an attached gatehouse. The tenshu is surrounded by three surviving yagura from the Edo period (the Ninomaru Tatsumi Yagura, Ninomaru Hitsujisaru Yagura, Ninomaru Ushitora Yagura), on its second bailey, and five surviving gates (Sannomaru Ōtemon Gate, Sannomaru East Gate, Ninomaru South Gate, Ninomaru East Gate, Kitanokuruwa North Gate) in

147-644: The Germanic castles of the Holy Roman Empire , there is a distinction between a Vorburg and a Kernburg roughly corresponding to lower and upper baileys in English castles. In German-speaking countries, many castles had double curtain walls with a narrow enclosure outside the main walls, acting as a killing ground between them, referred to as a zwinger . The outermost wall was a Zwingermauer or type of low mantlet wall. These were often added at vulnerable points like

168-617: The castle (with the exception of the East Gate of the Third Bailey) were named National Important Cultural Properties (ICP) . In 1952, the grounds received further protection with their nomination as a National Historic Site . In 1953, after reconstruction, the East Gate of the Third Bailey also gained ICP status, giving a total of nine structures within the castle with such protection. Extensive archaeological excavations from 1999-2000 revealed

189-507: The castle was completed in 1811. It is a three-story building with three roofs, and a height of 14.4 meters. The design is smaller than early Edo-period varieties of tenshu , and it was built on a corner of the inner bailey on the site of a yagura , rather than the stone base of the original tenshu . The small size was partly due to the restricted finances of the domain towards the end of the Edo period, but its location and design were also intended to alleviate concerns which might be raised by

210-469: The foundations of the former palace structures and a Shinto shrine . In 2006, Hirosaki Castle was listed as one of the 100 Fine Castles of Japan by the Japan Castle Foundation. In order to repair the castle's stone walls directly below the tenshu , the entire tenshu was relocated in autumn 2015, and will be returned to its original position by 2025 at the earliest. The current tenshu of

231-627: The gate of a castle or town, but were rarely as fully developed as in the concentric castles in Wales or the Crusader castles. Yagura (tower) Yagura ( 櫓, 矢倉 ) is the Japanese word for "tower", "turret", "keep", or "scaffold". The word is most often seen in reference to structures in Japanese castle compounds but can be used in other situations as well. The bandstand tower erected for Bon Festival

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252-522: The gradual evolution of more complex fortification plans, there are also significant differences in regional traditions of military architecture regarding subdivisions into baileys. Baileys can be arranged in sequence along a hill (as in a spur castle ), giving an upper bailey and lower bailey . They can also be nested one inside the other, as in a concentric castle , giving an outer bailey and inner bailey . Large castles may have two outer baileys; if in line they may form an outer and middle bailey. On

273-469: The late Sengoku period , former Nambu retainer Ōura Tamenobu was awarded revenues of 45,000 koku by Toyotomi Hideyoshi for his role in the Battle of Odawara in 1590. He took the family name of Tsugaru at that time. At the Battle of Sekigahara , he sided with Tokugawa Ieyasu and was subsequently confirmed as lord of Hirosaki Domain with revenues increased to 47,000 koku . In 1603, he began work on

294-491: The other hand, tower houses lack an enclosed bailey. The most important and prestigious buildings, such as the great hall and the keep or bergfried , were usually located in the inner bailey of the castle, sometimes called the central bailey or main bailey. Nonetheless, there are a few castles where the keep is outside the inner bailey, such as Château de Dourdan and Flint Castle . The lower or outer bailey often held less important structures, such as stables , if there

315-494: The palace structures, martial arts school and most of the castle walls were pulled down. In 1894, the castle properties were donated by the Tsugaru clan to the government for use as a park, which opened to the general public the following year. In 1898, an armory was established in the former Third Bailey by the IJA 8th Division . In 1906, two of the remaining yagura burned down. In 1909,

336-477: The park's 2600 trees (which were originally planted around in grounds in 1903) during the sakura matsuri (cherry blossom festival) when the cherry blossoms are in bloom, usually during the Japanese Golden Week holidays in the end of April and beginning of May. [REDACTED] Media related to Hirosaki Castle at Wikimedia Commons Ward (fortification) A bailey or ward in a fortification

357-537: The present 3-story structure was erected, but at the southeast corner, rather than the original southwest location. It was built by the 9th daimyō, Tsugaru Yasuchika . With the Meiji Restoration and subsequent abolition of the han system , the Tsugaru clan surrendered the castle to the new Meiji government . In 1871, the castle was garrisoned by a detachment of the Imperial Japanese Army , and in 1873

378-611: The use of fortress towers as high/tall or arrow (矢, ya ) storehouses (倉, kura ), and was thus originally written as 矢倉. The term was used for a collection of towers. Today, modern towers such as skyscrapers or communications towers are almost exclusively referred to or named using the English-derived word tawā (タワー) and not yagura . Castle towers varied widely in shape, size, and purpose. Many served as watchtowers, guardtowers, and for similar military purposes. Arrows were often stored there, with other equipment. As castles served as

399-413: The walls followed the contour lines of the terrain where the castle was sited. Rectangular shapes are very common (as in castra and quadrangular castles ). A particularly complex arrangement of baileys can be found at Château Gaillard . There is both a lower bailey separated from the main castle by a deep ditch, and a concentric arrangement inside the main castle with an inner and middle bailey. In

420-420: The walls of its second and third baileys. All of these structures, including the tenshu itself, are National Important Cultural Properties. The castle grounds also contain a surviving castle guardhouse, although it has been moved to a different location on the castle grounds. The surrounding Hirosaki Park around the castle grounds is one of Japan's most famous cherry blossom spots. Over a million people enjoy

441-465: Was not enough space in the inner bailey. Outer baileys could also be largely defensive in function, without significant buildings. In the concentric castles of the military orders, such as Krak des Chevaliers or Belvoir , the inner bailey resembled a cloistered monastery , while the outer bailey was little more than a narrow passage between the concentric enceintes . In general, baileys could have any shape, including irregular or elongated ones, when

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