Goryōkaku
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| Goryōkaku | |
|---|---|
五稜郭 | |
| Part of Boshin War | |
| Near Hakodate in Japan | |
 Goryōkaku viewed from Goryōkaku Tower | |
 Governmental hall of the Republic of Ezo | |
  Goryōkaku | |
| Coordinates | 41°47′49″N 140°45′25″E / 41.79694°N 140.75694°E |
| Type | Star fort |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1866 |
| Built by | Takeda Ayasaburō |
| Battles/wars | Boshin War |
 19th century map of Goryōkaku | |
Goryōkaku (五稜郭, lit. 'five-point fort') is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido.[1][2] The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main headquarters of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.
History[edit]
Goryōkaku was designed in 1855 by Takeda Ayasaburō. His plan was based on the work of the French architect Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban.[1] The fortress was completed in 1866, two years before the collapse of the Tokugawa shogunate. It is shaped like a five-pointed star. This allowed for greater numbers of gun emplacements on its walls than a traditional Japanese fortress, and reduced the number of blind spots where a cannon could not fire.
The fort was built by the Tokugawa shogunate to protect Tsugaru Strait against a possible invasion by the Russian fleet.[1] It became the capital of the Republic of Ezo, a state that existed only in 1869. It was the site of the last battle of the Boshin War between the Republic and the Empire of Japan. The fighting lasted for a week (June 20–27, 1869).[1]
Park[edit]
Today, Goryōkaku is a park declared as a Special Historical Site, being a part of the Hakodate city museum and a citizens' favorite spot for cherry-blossom viewing in spring.
See also[edit]
- List of Special Places of Scenic Beauty, Special Historic Sites and Special Natural Monuments
- Benten Daiba, another key fortress of the Republic of Ezo
- Citadel Hill, a similar shaped fortress in Nova Scotia, Canada
- Fort Bourtange, a similarly shaped fortress in the Netherlands
- List of foreign-style castles in Japan
- Palmanova
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric (2002). Goryōkaku. Translated by Kathe Roth. London, England: Harvard University Press. p. 259. ISBN 0-674-00770-0.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^ Hinago, Motoo (1986). Japanese Castles. Kodansha International Ltd. and Shibundo. pp. 131–133. ISBN 0870117661.
Further reading[edit]
- Benesch, Oleg and Ran Zwigenberg (2019). Japan's Castles: Citadels of Modernity in War and Peace. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 374. ISBN 9781108481946.
- De Lange, William (2021). An Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles. Groningen: Toyo Press. p. 600. ISBN 978-9492722300.
- Schmorleitz, Morton S. (1974). Castles in Japan. Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Co. p. 144. ISBN 0-8048-1102-4.
External links[edit]
100 Fine Castles of Japan by region | ||
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a including Okinawa. | ||
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