The are historic ruins located in the Kidonouchi section of the city of Fukui,

Fukui Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 737,229 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,190 Square kilometre, km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture border ...

, in the

Hokuriku region The is located in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. It lies along the Sea of Japan and is part of the larger Chūbu region. It is almost equivalent to the former Koshi Province (Japan), Koshi Province and Hokurikudō are ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. This area was controlled by the

Asakura clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group.Edmond Papinot, Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Asakura", ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 3 DF 7 of 80/nowiki> retrieved 2013-5-4. ...

for 103 years during the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

. It is designated as Special Historic Site in 1971, and in June 2007 2,343 artifacts were designated as Important Cultural Property.

Site

Ichijōdani is a valley of a branch of the Asuwa River with an east-west width of approximately 500 meters and a length of approximately three kilometers. The valley is surrounded by mountains on the east, west and south, and by the river to the north, forming a natural fortification.

History

In 1471, Asakura had displaced the

Shiba clan was a Japanese clan.Edmond Papinot, Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)("Shiba," ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 54 DF 58 of 80/nowiki> retrieved 2013-05-03. History ...

as the ''

shugo , commonly translated as ' ilitarygovernor', 'protector', or 'constable', was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the shogun to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The position gave way to th ...

'' military commander of

Echizen Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Echizen bordered on Kaga Province, Kaga, Wakasa Province, Wakasa, Hida Province, Hida, and Ōmi Provin ...

. The same year, Asakura Toshikage (1428–1481) fortified the Ichijōdani by constructing hilltop fortifications on the surrounding mountains and constructing walls and gates to seal off the northern and southern end of the valley. Within this area, he contracted a fortified mansion, surrounded by the homes of his relatives and retainers, and eventually by the residences of merchants and artisans, and Buddhist temples. He offered refuge to people of culture or skills from Kyoto attempting to escape the conflict of the

Ōnin War The , also known as the Upheaval of Ōnin and Ōnin-Bunmei war, was a civil war that lasted from 1467 to 1477, during the Muromachi period in Japan. ''Ōnin'' refers to the Japanese era name, Japanese era during which the war started; the war ende ...

, and the Ichijōdani became a major cultural, military, and population center, and by the time of Asakura Takakage (1493–1548) it had a peak population of over 10,000 inhabitants. Yoshikage succeeded his father as head of the Asakura clan and castle lord of Ichijōdani Castle in 1548. The Asakura maintained good relations with the Ashikaga shogunate, and thus eventually came into conflict with

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...

. Following Nobunaga's capture of

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

Shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

Ashikaga Yoshiaki "Ashikaga Yoshiaki" in '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. was the 15th and final ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate in Japan who reigned from 1568 to 1573 when he ...

appointed

Asakura Yoshikage was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period (1467–1603) who ruled a part of Echizen Province in present-day Fukui Prefecture. He was a regent of Ashikaga Shogunate. Yoshikage's conflicts with Oda Nobunaga (1534–1582) resulted in his de ...

as regent and requested aid in driving Nobunaga out of the capital. As a result, Nobunaga launched an invasion of

. Due to Yoshikage's lack of military skill, Nobunaga's forces were successful at the Siege of Kanegasaki and subsequent

Battle of Anegawa The Sengoku period (30 July 1570) occurred near Lake Biwa in Ōmi Province, Japan, between the allied forces of Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu, against the combined forces of the Azai and Asakura clans. It is notable as the first battle t ...

in 1570, leaving the entire Asakura Domain open to invasion. Ichijōdani was razed to the ground by Nobunaga during the 1573 Siege of Ichijōdani Castle. Excavation of the ruins began in 1967 and continued on in 2017, revealing the shape of the whole town, including the house of the lord, samurai residences, temples, houses of merchants, houses of craft workers, and streets. Residences of samurai as well as merchants' quarters have since been restored along the 200 meter long street. Four

Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desig ...

s were unearthed and partially restored, and those were designated as

Places of Scenic Beauty is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultural ...

in 1991. The ruins of are on top of a nearby hill, with a scenic view of Fukui. Approximately 1,700,000 relics were found at the ruins, and of these 2,343 are nationally designated as Important Cultural Properties, many of which are on display at the Ichijodani Asakura Family Site Museum.

Cultural properties

Designated in the following categories: *

Special Places of Scenic Beauty is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultural ...

— The Gardens, including Nanyōji-ato Garden of a temple and those of residences (Suwa Yakata-ato, Asakura Yakata-ato, and Yudono-ato) *

Special Historic Sites is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultural ...

— The whole site (278 hectares) * Important Cultural Properties — 2,343 pieces from among excavated artifacts File:Suwa Yakata-ato Garden of Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins04s3s4592.jpg, Suwa Yakata-ato Garden File:Yudono-ato Garden of Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins05s3s4592.jpg, Yudono-ato Garden File:Asakura Yakata of Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins12s5s4592.jpg, Asakura Yakata-ato Garden File:Nanyoji-ato Garden of Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins04n4592.jpg, Nanyōji-ato Garden File:Nakanogoten-ato of Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins01n4500.jpg, Stone wall of Nakanogoten gate File:Distant view of restored town of Ichijodani.jpg, Distant view of restored town of Ichijodani

Access

* Take JR

Etsumi-Hoku Line The , also called the , is a railway line operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The line extends 52.5 km (32.6 mi) from Echizen-Hanandō Station in Fukui to Kuzuryūko Station in Ōno with a t ...

from Fukui Station and get off at

Ichijōdani Station is a JR West railway station in the city of Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. Lines Ichijōdani Station is served by the Hokuriku Main Line, and is located 8.3 kilometers from the terminus of the line at and 10.9 kilometers from . Station layou ...

. The lower gate is about 5 min walk from the station and the center of village is about 30 min. Free shuttle bus ''Asakura-Yumemaru'' from Ichijodani Asakura Family Site Museum is also available on weekends to reach the directly to the center of village.

Literature

* *Pitelka, Morgan (2023). ''Reading Medieval Ruins'' New Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 256
ISBN 978-1009069977

References

External links

Ichijōdani Asakura Family Site Museum website

Ichijōdani Asakura Family Site Museum website

Ichijodani Asakura Clan Historic Ruins
- Enjoy Fukui / Fukui Prefecture & Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation {{DEFAULTSORT:Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins Archaeological sites in Japan Tourist attractions in Fukui Prefecture Special Historic Sites Special Places of Scenic Beauty Castles in Fukui Prefecture Important Cultural Properties of Japan Buildings and structures in Fukui (city) Important Cultural Properties of Fukui Prefecture Asakura clan