HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The site of in
Hakodate is a Cities of Japan, city and seaports of Japan, port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of January 31, 2024, the city had an estimated population of 239,813 with 138,807 househol ...
,
Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...
, Japan, is that once occupied by the Shinori Fort or Fortified Residence (as denoted by the ''tate'' or ''date'' ending). This was the easternmost of the so-called " Twelve Garrisons of Southern Hokkaido", built on the
Oshima Peninsula The Oshima Peninsula (渡島 半島 ''Oshima-hantō'') is the southernmost part of Hokkaidō, the northernmost of the Japanese islands. Where the peninsula starts is open to interpretation. A more generous interpretation is to draw a line southea ...
by the '' Wajin'' from the fourteenth century. The site was designated a National Historic Site in 1934 and is one of the Japan Castle Foundation's
Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles The is a list of 100 Japanese castle, castles, intended as a sequel of 100 Fine Castles of Japan. The castles were chosen for their significance in culture, history, and in their regions by the in 2017. Hokkaidō region Tōhoku region Kant ...
.


Shinori fort

Shinoridate is located some to the east of the center of
Hakodate is a Cities of Japan, city and seaports of Japan, port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of January 31, 2024, the city had an estimated population of 239,813 with 138,807 househol ...
, along a stretch of coast with many good natural harbours. A short distance inland from Shinori Fishing Port, with the mouth of the Shinori River to the west, the gently sloping site overlooks the
Tsugaru Strait The is a strait between Honshu and Hokkaido in northern Japan connecting the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. It was named after the western part of Aomori Prefecture. The Seikan Tunnel passes under it at its narrowest point 12.1 miles ...
and
Shimokita Peninsula The is the remote northeastern cape of the Japanese island of Honshū, stretching out towards Hokkaido. Overview It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, Tsugaru Strait to the north and Mutsu Bay to the west and south. Shaped like an ...
, with views also towards
Mount Hakodate is an inactive volcanic mountain in Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan. The mountain is renowned for its view of the surrounding bay and city. The Michelin Green Guide: Japan gave the experience 3/3 stars in a review, placing it on par with mountain ...
. The earthworks rise to a height of on the north side and to the south and are interrupted by an opening on both the east and the west sides. The moat is wide on the north and west sides and up to deep and is crossed by two earth bridges, that to the west particularly well-preserved. First laid out around the end of the fourteenth century, Shinoridate features in the
Matsumae Domain file:Matsumae Nagahiro.jpg, 270px, Matsumae Nagahiro, final daimyo of Matsumae Domain The Matsumae Domain (松前藩), a prominent domain during the Edo period, was situated in Matsumae, Matsumae Island (Ishijima), which is currently known as M ...
al history '' Shinra no Kiroku'', which tells of it being sacked by the Ainu in
Chōroku was a after ''Kosho (era), Kōshō'' and before ''Kanshō.'' This period spanned the years from September 1457 through December 1460. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * 1457 : The era name was changed to mark an event or a number of e ...
1 (1457), during Koshamain's War, and again falling to the Ainu in Eishō 9 (1512), after which its occupants, the , became subject to the
Matsumae clan The was a Japanese aristocratic family who were daimyo of Matsumae Domain, in present-day Matsumae, Hokkaidō, from the Azuchi–Momoyama period until the Meiji Restoration. They were given the domain as a march fief in 1590 by Toyotomi ...
.「長禄元年五月十四日夷狄蜂起来而、攻撃志濃里之舘主小林太郎左衛門尉良景…殺狄之酋長胡奢魔允」("On the fourteenth day of the fifth month of the first year of the
Chōroku was a after ''Kosho (era), Kōshō'' and before ''Kanshō.'' This period spanned the years from September 1457 through December 1460. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * 1457 : The era name was changed to mark an event or a number of e ...
era (1457), a barbarian uprising occurred, and in an attack on Shinori Fort, its lord Kobayashi Tarō Saemon-no-jō Yoshikage...was killed, the barbarian tribal leader being Koshamain") 「永正九年四月十六日宇須岸志濃利與倉前三舘所攻落夷賊…小林太郎左衛門尉良景之子彌太郎良定」("On the sixteenth day of the fourth month of the ninth year of the Eishō era (1512), the three forts of Usukeshi, Shinori, and Yokuramae fell in an attack by barbarian bandits and...Kobayashi Tarō Saemon-no-jō Yoshikage's son Yatarō Yoshisada was killed")
The Hakodate City Board of Education conducted excavations and surveys of the enclosure and surrounding area between 1983 and 1985, uncovering the remains of a number of buildings, palisades, a well, artefacts made of bronze, iron, stone, and wood,
celadon Celadon () is a term for pottery denoting both wares ceramic glaze, glazed in the jade green Shades of green#Celadon, celadon color, also known as greenware or "green ware" (the term specialists now tend to use), and a type of transparent glaze, ...
s and white porcelain from southern China, as well as domestic Suzu, Echizen, and
Seto ware is a type of Japanese pottery, stoneware, and ceramics produced in and around the city of Seto, Aichi, Seto in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The Japanese term for it, ''setomono'', is also used as a generic term for all pottery. Seto was the locatio ...
. Three different intercolumnar measurements were used in the construction of the buildings, the style of the well is that found in
Heian-kyō Heian-kyō was one of several former names for the city now known as Kyoto. It was the official capital of Japan for over one thousand years, from 794 to 1868 with an interruption in 1180. Emperor Kanmu established it as the capital in 794, mo ...
in the late Kamakura period, while many of the ceramics are typical of the early fifteenth century. Accordingly, three main
phases Phase or phases may refer to: Science *State of matter, or phase, one of the distinct forms in which matter can exist *Phase (matter), a region of space throughout which all physical properties are essentially uniform *Phase space, a mathematica ...
have been identified: the end of the fourteenth or early-fifteenth century; mid-fifteenth century; and sixteenth century or later. With the archaeological evidence pushing back the origins of the fort at least half a century before Koshamain, its construction can no longer be understood as an immediate response to the contingencies of 1457, and other explanations are required.


Shinori hoard

In July 1968, during widening work on the prefectural road (now National Route 278) that runs past the fort, a Nanbokuchō-period (C14)
coin hoard A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts, sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache. This would usually be with the intention of ...
was unearthed some inland from the mouth of the Shinori River, at a location above sea level. This is the largest hoard found to date in Japan in terms of the number of coins it contains. The three large vessels excavated weighed, together with their contents, . Ninety-three different types of coin have been identified: a handful in total of early Japanese coinage of the Asuka,
Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent agency of the United States government within the executive branch, charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It is also task ...
and early
Heian The Japanese word Heian (平安, lit. "peace") may refer to: * Heian period, an era of Japanese history * Heian-kyō, the Heian-period capital of Japan that has become the present-day city of Kyoto * Heian series, a group of karate kata (forms) * ...
periods, late tenth-century Vietnamese coinage of the Đinh and Early Lê dynasties, and late eleventh-century
Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has b ...
coinage from Korea; the bulk comprising Chinese coinage, primarily of the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
, issues ranging in date from 4 Zhu Ban Liang minted in the fifth year of Emperor Wen of Han (175 BC) to Hongwu Tongbao from the first year of the
Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328– 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, founding emperor of the Ming dyna ...
, founder of the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
(1368). The 374,435 coins from this hoard now at the Hakodate City Museum have been designated an Important Cultural Property. A 1999 study of 275 Japanese hoards, totalling 3,530,000 coins, found that the Chinese copper coins used in Japan in the Middle Ages were brought over in the largest number in the thirteenth century, were used primarily in commerce or for paying soldiers, and were buried largely for reasons of security, although there were also instances of ritual or votive deposits. The dating of the Shinori hoard precludes its burial as a response to Koshamain's War; instead it may relate to trade, the local Shinori or ''Kaga''
kombu ''Konbu'' (from ) is edible kelp mostly from the family Laminariaceae and is widely eaten in East Asia. It may also be referred to as ''dasima'' () or ''haidai'' (). Kelp features in the diets of many civilizations, including Chinese and Icela ...
featuring alongside Ezo salmon in the
Nanboku-chō period The , also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period, was a period in Japanese history between 1336-1392 CE, during the formative years of the Ashikaga shogunate, Muromachi (Ashikaga) shogunate. Ideologically, the two courts fought for 50 ...
text . Produce from the area would have been traded along the Hokuriku coast to reach the markets of Kyōto and Ōsaka.


See also

*
List of Historic Sites of Japan (Hokkaidō) This list is of the Monuments of Japan, Historic Sites of Japan located within the Prefectures of Japan#Hokkaidō, Circuit of Hokkaidō. National Historic Sites As of 1 February 2024, fifty-five Sites have been Cultural Properties of Japan, desi ...
*
List of Cultural Properties of Japan - archaeological materials (Hokkaidō) A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
* Hakodate City Museum * Shiryōkaku *
Shakushain's revolt The was an Ainu rebellion against Japanese authority on Hokkaidō between 1669 and 1672 in the Edo period. It was led by Ainu chieftain Shakushain against the Matsumae clan, who represented Japanese trading and governmental interests in the ...
* Chashi *
Kitamaebune The was a shipping route (and also the ships involved) in Japan from the Edo period to the Meiji era. The route went from Osaka through the Seto Inland Sea and the Kanmon Straits to ports in Hokuriku region, Hokuriku on the Sea of Japan and late ...
*
National Ainu Museum The is a museum located in Shiraoi, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is situated within the grounds of Upopoy (ウポポイ), a park complex that serves as a "symbolic space for ethnic harmony". The museum's mission is "to promote a proper understanding a ...


Notes


References


External links


Shinoridate
{{Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles Buildings and structures in Hakodate Tourist attractions in Hakodate Archaeological parks History of Hakodate Historic Sites of Japan Archaeological sites in Japan Castles in Hokkaido 1968 archaeological discoveries