Plum Grove in Osaka Castle Park in 201503 008

is a public

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

and historical site situated at Osaka-Jō in

Chūō-ku, Osaka is one of 24 wards of Osaka, Japan. It has an area of 8.88 km2, and a population of 60,085. It houses Osaka's financial district, as well as the Osaka Prefecture offices and principal shopping and tourist areas. Consulates Various co ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. It lies on the south of the Ōkawa (

Kyū-Yodo River The was the main stream of the Yodo River before 1907, when the current (new) Yodo River was constructed by a normalisation project. Now called the ''Kyū-Yodo River'', it is a major waterway in central Osaka and the main drainage of Neyagawa ...

) and occupies a large area in the center of the city of Osaka. This park is the second largest park in the city. The park was constructed on a site with a long history. In the fifteenth century, a militant temple,

Ishiyama Hongan-ji The was the primary fortress of the Ikkō-ikki, leagues of warrior priests and commoners who opposed samurai rule during the Sengoku period. It was established in 1496, at the mouth of the Yodo River, on the coast of the Seto Inland Sea. At the t ...

, was built here. In 1583,

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

destroyed Ishiyama Hongan-ji and built

Osaka Castle is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. The castle is one of Japan's most famous landmarks and it played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century of the Azuchi-Momoyama period. Layout The main tower ...

here. From 1870 to 1945 the Osaka Imperial Arsenal used a large area, and it was destroyed at end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. In 1931, Osaka Castle Park was opened to the public, but most of the area was used by the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emper ...

. After World War II, most of the military complex was removed and replaced by the public urban park. In the park, there is

Osaka Castle Hall is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2.7 ...

, a large athletic field, baseball field, football field, open-air music theatre, open-air concert hall, and

Keep Tower. From the top of keep tower, the vista includes

Osaka Bay Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...

Mount Ikoma is a mountain on the border of Nara Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture in Japan. It is the highest peak in the Ikoma Mountains with a height of 642 meters. Mount Ikoma is a part of Kongō-Ikoma-Kisen Quasi-National Park. It is one of the most famo ...

, which surround the

Osaka Plain The refers to a 1,600 km² area of flat land, the largest plain in the Kinki region, including a large part of Osaka Prefecture and a southeastern portion of Hyōgo Prefecture. It is bordered on the north by the Hokusetsu Mount Range, on ...

. Many

busking Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pr ...

groups perform in the park. In spring,

cherry blossom A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of Prunus, genus ''Prunus'' or Prunus subg. Cerasus, ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especia ...

and

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found ...

blossom viewing is popular at this park.

Facilities

Historical Monuments

(大坂城 Osaka-Jō) **Keep Tower (天守閣 Tenshu-kaku) **Gold Storehouse (金蔵 Kinzō) **Sakura Gate (桜門 Sakura-Mon) **Tamon Gate (多聞櫓 Tamon-Yagura) **Ōte Gate (大手門 Ōte-Mon) **Aoya Gate (青屋門 Aoya-Mon) **Inui Turret (乾櫓 Inui-Yagura) **Sengan Turret (千貫櫓 Sengan-Yagura) **6th Turret (六番櫓 Rokuban-Yagura) **1st Turret (一番櫓 Ichiban-Yagura) **Inner Moat (内濠 Naigō) **Outer Moat (外濠 Gaigō) *

monument (石山本願寺推定地碑) *The pine tree where the priest

Rennyo Rennyo (, 1415–1499) was the 8th Monshu (head priest) of the Hongan-ji Temple of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism, and descendant of founder Shinran. Jodo Shinshu Buddhists often referred to as the restorer of the sect ( in Japanese). He w ...

hung his surplice (蓮如上人袈裟懸の松 Rennyo-Shōnin Kesakake-no-Matsu) *Monument where

Toyotomi Hideyori was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga. Early life Born in 1593, he was Hideyoshi's second son. The birth of Hideyori cr ...

and his mother

Yodo-dono or (1569 – June 4, 1615) was a prominently placed figure in the late- Sengoku period. She was the daughter of Oichi and sister of Ohatsu and Oeyo. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful ...

committed suicide(豊臣秀頼淀殿ら自刃の碑)

Shrines and temples

* Hōkoku Shrine (豊國神社 also ''Toyokuni-jinja'') **Stone Garden (秀石庭 Syuseki-Tei) *Ikukunitama Shrine branch (生國魂神社お旅所 Ikukunitama-jinja

Otabisho is a facility that serves as the temporary destination or midway resting point of a kami (more accurately the mikoshi A is a sacred religious palanquin (also translated as portable Shinto shrine). Shinto followers believe that it serves a ...

) *無縁仏回向供養塔

Cultural and sports facilities

(大阪城ホール Osaka-jō Hall) *Osaka Castle open-air concert hall (大阪城音楽堂 Osaka-jō Ongakudō) *Martial art training centre (修道館 Shudo-Kan) *Baseball field and Athletic field (太陽の広場 Taiyō-no-Hiroba) *Japanese archery Kyudo training field (弓道場 Kyudō-Jō) * Osaka International Peace Center (大阪国際平和センター Osaka Kokusai Heiwa Centre) *There is a large and robust musical presence in the park, with many bands, buskers and musicians performing or practicing.

Public park facilities

*Nishi-no-Maru Garden (西ノ丸庭園 Nishi-no-Maru Teien) **Osaka Government Guest House (大阪迎賓館 Osaka Geihin-Kan) **Japanese Tea Room (豊松庵 Toyomatsu-An) *Japanese Garden (日本庭園 Nihon-Teien) *Plum Garden (梅林 Bairin) *Peach garden (桃園 Momoen) *Citizen's Forest (市民の森 Shimin-no-Mori) *Memorial Forest (記念樹の森 Kinenju-no-Mori) *Waseda Forest (早稲田の森 Waseda-no-Mori) *Forest of Recollections (思い出の森 Omoide-no-Mori) *Marked Stone Place (刻印石広場 Kokuin-Seki-Hiroba) *Fountain

National Geological Survey facilities

*2nd grade triangulation surveying point (二等三角点大阪城)

Government facilities

*City Government, Eastern Area Park Facilities Maintenance Office *City Water Company, Ōte-Mae Water Supply Facilities (大手前配水池,大手前配水場高地区ポンプ場)

Imperial Japanese Army facilities

*Former Headquarters of 4th Division of

*Former Chemical laboratory building of Osaka Imperial Arsenal

Other

*Education Tower (教育塔 Kyoiku-Tou) *大阪社会運動顕彰塔 *Osaka Castle Port (大阪城港) for

Osaka Suijō Bus The is a ship operating company in Osaka. The company belongs to Keihan Group. Founded in 1983, the company operates water buses on Ōkawa River and Dōtonbori Canal, an excursion cruise ship on the Port of Osaka, and a restaurant ship on Ōkaw ...

Parking

*Morinomiya Parking (森ノ宮駐車場) *Jōnan Bus Parking (城南バス駐車場) ___________________________________________

Activities in the park

blossom viewing : January - March *

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...

blossom viewing : March *

viewing : April ----

Access

Temmabashi Station is a railway station in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan, operated by the private railway operator Keihan Electric Railway and Osaka Metro. Lines ;Keihan Electric Railway :Station Number: KH03 :* Keihan Main Line :* Nakanoshima Line ;Osaka Metro :* Tan ...

, Tanimachi Yonchōme Station,

Morinomiya Station is a railway and subway station in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. Lines * ** Osaka Loop Line (Station number: JR-O06) * ** (Station number: C19) ** (Station number: N20) Layout Morinomiya Station layout West Japan Railway Company (JR West ...

and Ōsakajōkōen Station are near to the park.

Photographs

File:OsakaCastle-MainTower02.jpg, Keep Tower File:Osaka-jo Hall in 201408.JPG,

File:OsakaCastle-TaiyouHiroba.jpg, Athletic field File:HeadQuarter4thDiv-Osaka.jpg, Former headquarters of 4th Division File:Osaka Time Capsule.jpg, Time capsule to be open in year 6970 File:DCMI (1116).jpg, Panorama View of Osakajo-koen from atop Aoyamon Gate Ramparts. File:DCMI (1116).jpg, View of Osakajo-koen from atop Aoyamon Gate Ramparts.

References

* *De Lange, William. (2022). ''The Siege of Osaka Castle: The Winter and Summer Campaigns''. Groningen: Toyo Press. *

External links

*
Official page
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Osaka Parks and gardens in Osaka Osaka Castle