Shuri, Japan
Encyclopedia
is a district of the city of Naha, Okinawa
. It was formerly a separate city unto itself, and the royal capital of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
. A number of famous historical sites are located in Shuri, including Shuri Castle
, the Shureimon
gate, Sunuhyan-utaki (a sacred space of the native Ryukyuan religion
), and royal mausoleum Tamaudun
, all of which are designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO
.
Originally established as a castle town
surrounding the royal palace, Shuri ceased to be the capital when the kingdom was abolished and incorporated into Japan as Okinawa prefecture
. In 1896, Shuri was made a of the new prefectural capital, Naha, though it was made a separate city again in 1921. Shuri was merged into Naha in 1954.
(r. 1237-1248), who ruled from nearby Urasoe Castle
. This was nearly a century before Okinawa Island
would become divided into the three kingdoms
of Hokuzan
, Nanzan
, and Chūzan
; nearly two centuries before the unification of those kingdoms and establishment of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. The island was not yet an organized or unified kingdom, but rather a collection of local chieftains (anji
) loyal to the chief chieftain in Urasoe.
Historian George H. Kerr
describes Shuri Castle as "one of the most magnificent castle sites to be found anywhere in the world, for it commands the countryside below for miles around and looks toward distant sea horizons on every side."
By 1266, Okinawa was collecting tribute
from the communities of the nearby islands of Iheya
, Kumejima
, and Kerama, as well as the more distant Amami Islands
; new governmental offices to manage this tribute were established at the port of Tomari
, which lay just below the castle, to the north.
Shō Hashi
(r. 1422-1439), first king of the unified Ryūkyū Kingdom, made Shuri his capital, and oversaw expansion of the castle and the city. Shuri would remain the royal capital for roughly 550 years. The castle was burned to the ground during succession disputes in the 1450s, but was rebuilt, and the castle and city were further embellished and expanded during the reign of King Shō Shin
(r. 1477-1526). In addition to the construction of stone dragon pillars and other embellishments upon the palace itself, the Buddhist temple Enkaku-ji was built on the castle grounds in 1492, the Sōgen-ji
temple on the road to Naha was expanded, and in 1501 construction was completed on Tamaudun
, which would be used as the royal mausoleum from thence forward.
Throughout the medieval and early modern periods, the residents of Shuri were primarily those associated with the royal court in some way. While Naha was the economic center of the kingdom, Shuri was the political center. Residence at Shuri was prestigious into the 20th century.
Samurai forces from the Japanese feudal domain of Satsuma seized Shuri Castle on 5 April 1609. The samurai withdrew soon afterwards, returning King Shō Nei
to his throne, and the castle and city to the Okinawans, though the kingdom was now a vassal state under Satsuma's suzerainty
and would remain so for roughly 250 years. The American Commodore Perry, when he came to Okinawa in the 1850s, forced his way into Shuri Castle on two separate occasions, but was denied an audience with the king both times.
and his court were removed from the castle, which was occupied by a Japanese garrison, and the main gates of which were sealed. The castle, along with the nearby mansions of former court nobles, fell into disrepair and decay over the ensuing years, and the ways of life of the aristocrats of Shuri were shattered. Royal pensions were shrunk or abolished, and income from nobles' nominal domains in the countryside likewise dried up. Servants were dismissed, and the aristocratic population of the city scattered, seeking employment in Naha, the countryside, or the Japanese Home Islands
.
Census figures from 1875-79 show that roughly half of the population of Okinawa Island were living in the greater Naha-Shuri area. Shuri had fewer households than Naha, but each household consisted of more people. Roughly 95,000 people in 22,500 households were of the aristocracy at this time, out of a total population of 330,000 royal subjects throughout the Ryūkyū Islands, with most of the aristocracy living in and around Shuri. Over the following years, however, Shuri shrank in both population and importance, as Naha grew..
Pressure to restore, conserve, and protect the historical sites of Shuri began in earnest in the 1910s, and in 1928 Shuri Castle was declared a National Treasure
. A four-year plan was laid out for the restoration of the structure. Other historical monuments came under protection soon afterward.
Though the Japanese garrison which had originally occupied Shuri Castle in 1879 withdrew in 1896, the castle, and a series of tunnels and caverns below it, were made to serve as general headquarters for Japanese military forces on Okinawa during World War II
. The city first suffered Allied air attack in October 1944. Civilian response preparations and organization were extremely inadequate. Bureaucrats, almost all of them native to other prefectures, and tied up in obligations to military orders, made little effort to protect civilians, their homes, schools, nor historical monuments. Civilians were left to their own devices to rescue and protect themselves, their families, and their family treasures.
The official Custodian of the Family Treasures of the Okinawan royal family returned to the family's mansions in Shuri in March 1945 and sought to rescue a great number of treasures, ranging from crowns granted the kings by the Chinese Imperial Court to formal royal portraits. Some of these objects were sealed away in vaults, but others were simply buried in the earth or amongst the greenery here and there around Shuri. The mansions were destroyed by fire on 6 April, and the Okinawan guards appointed by the Custodian were sent away when the Japanese military occupied the grounds afterward.
As Shuri was the center of the Japanese defense, it was the prime target of American assault in the battle of Okinawa
which was fought from March to June 1945. Shuri Castle was leveled by the USS Mississippi
, and much of the city was burned and destroyed in the course of the battle.
was established on the site of the ruins of Shuri Castle in 1950, though later moved and today has campuses in Ginowan and Nakagusuku
. The castle walls were restored shortly after the war's end, and reconstruction of the palace's main hall (Seiden) was completed in 1992, on the 20th anniversary of the end of the American Occupation
in Okinawa.
is located just outside the grounds of Shuri Castle. One of the university's buildings sits on the site of the former , an office of the royal administration which oversaw the kingdom's official craftsmen, chiefly lacquerers
.
The village of Tobari in Shuri was the home of Masami Chinen
, who founded and taught the martial art Yamani ryu
specialising in Bōjutsu
.
s on the Okinawa Monorail lay within the boundaries of Shuri. Shuri Castle Park, Tamaudun, and other major sites are within easy walking distance of Shuri Station, which is currently the terminus of the monorail line, though there are plans to extend it in the future.
Naha, Okinawa
is the capital city of the Japanese prefecture of Okinawa.Naha is a coastal city located on the East China Sea coast of the southern part of Okinawa Island, the largest of the Ryukyu Islands...
. It was formerly a separate city unto itself, and the royal capital of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
Ryukyu Kingdom
The Ryūkyū Kingdom was an independent kingdom which ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th century to the 19th century. The Kings of Ryūkyū unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan...
. A number of famous historical sites are located in Shuri, including Shuri Castle
Shuri Castle
Shuri Castle is a gusuku in Shuri, Okinawa. It was the palace of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. In 1945, during the Battle of Okinawa, it was almost completely destroyed...
, the Shureimon
Shureimon
This article is about the gate in the Shuri neighborhood in Japan. For the Digimon see Hawkmon.Shureimon is a gate in the Shuri neighborhood of Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is the second of Shuri Castle's main gates...
gate, Sunuhyan-utaki (a sacred space of the native Ryukyuan religion
Ryukyuan religion
Ryukyuan religion is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship and the respecting of relationships between the living, the...
), and royal mausoleum Tamaudun
Tamaudun
is a mausoleum in Shuri, Okinawa, built for Ryūkyūan royalty in 1501 by King Shō Shin, the third king of the second Shō dynasty a short distance from Shuri Castle....
, all of which are designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
.
Originally established as a castle town
Castle town
A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns are common in Medieval Europe. Good example include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles...
surrounding the royal palace, Shuri ceased to be the capital when the kingdom was abolished and incorporated into Japan as Okinawa prefecture
Okinawa Prefecture
is one of Japan's southern prefectures. It consists of hundreds of the Ryukyu Islands in a chain over long, which extends southwest from Kyūshū to Taiwan. Okinawa's capital, Naha, is located in the southern part of Okinawa Island...
. In 1896, Shuri was made a of the new prefectural capital, Naha, though it was made a separate city again in 1921. Shuri was merged into Naha in 1954.
Medieval and early modern periods
Shuri Castle was first built during the reign of ShunbajunkiShunbajunki
was a king of the Ryūkyū Islands.Shunbajunki was the second of the Shunten Line. He succeeded his father Shunten in 1237.Shunbajunki's reign is noted for the construction of Shuri Castle, and the introduction of the Japanese kana writing system...
(r. 1237-1248), who ruled from nearby Urasoe Castle
Urasoe Castle
was an Okinawan castle, or gusuku, which served as the capital of the medieval Okinawan principality of Chūzan prior to the unification of the island into the Ryūkyū Kingdom, and the moving of the capital to Shuri....
. This was nearly a century before Okinawa Island
Okinawa Island
Okinawa Island is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan, and is home to Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture. The island has an area of...
would become divided into the three kingdoms
Sanzan period
The is a period of history of the Ryūkyū Kingdom that lasted from 1322 until 1429.The early 13th century saw a growth in the construction of Gusuku by a number of powerful kings leading to the emergence of three kingdoms in the 14th century: , and...
of Hokuzan
Hokuzan
Hokuzan was one of three kingdoms which controlled Okinawa in the 14th century. Okinawa, previously controlled by a number of local chieftains or lords, loosely bound by a paramount chieftain or king of the entire island, split into these three more solidly defined kingdoms within a few years...
, Nanzan
Nanzan
Nanzan , sometimes called Sannan , was one of three kingdoms which controlled Okinawa in the 14th century. Okinawa, previously controlled by a number of local chieftains or lords, loosely bound by a paramount chieftain or king of the entire island, split into these three more solidly defined...
, and Chūzan
Chuzan
Chūzan was one of three kingdoms which controlled Okinawa in the 14th century. Okinawa, previously controlled by a number of local chieftains or lords, loosely bound by a paramount chieftain or king of the entire island, split into these three more solidly defined kingdoms within a few years after...
; nearly two centuries before the unification of those kingdoms and establishment of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. The island was not yet an organized or unified kingdom, but rather a collection of local chieftains (anji
Anji (Ryukyu)
thumb|AjiAn aji, anji, or azu was a ruler of a petty kingdom in the history of the Ryukyu Islands. The word later became a title and rank of nobility in the Ryūkyū Kingdom. It is said to be related to the Japanese aruji , and the pronunciation varied throughout the islands. It ranked next below a...
) loyal to the chief chieftain in Urasoe.
Historian George H. Kerr
George H. Kerr
George H. Kerr , also known in Taiwan as 葛超智 , was a United States diplomat during World War II, and in later years he was an author and an academic...
describes Shuri Castle as "one of the most magnificent castle sites to be found anywhere in the world, for it commands the countryside below for miles around and looks toward distant sea horizons on every side."
By 1266, Okinawa was collecting tribute
Tribute
A tribute is wealth, often in kind, that one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often the case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance. Various ancient states, which could be called suzerains, exacted tribute from areas they had conquered or threatened to conquer...
from the communities of the nearby islands of Iheya
Iheya, Okinawa
is a village located in Shimajiri District, Okinawa, Japan.As of 2003, the village has an estimated population of 1,586 and the density of 73.02 persons per km². The total area is 21.72 km².-External links:*...
, Kumejima
Kumejima Island
is an island, part of the Okinawa Islands and administratively in the Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It has an area of 59.11 km². It belongs to the Ryukyu Islands . The main town Kumejima has a population of 8,713 ....
, and Kerama, as well as the more distant Amami Islands
Amami Islands
The are a group of islands that is part of the Satsunan Islands, which are then part of the Nansei Islands. The islands are part of Kagoshima Prefecture, in the Kyūshū region of Japan...
; new governmental offices to manage this tribute were established at the port of Tomari
Tomari, Okinawa
is a neighborhood in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, where the Tomari Terminal of the port of Naha is located. The terminal is used for ferries and passenger vessels which connect Naha and neighboring islands....
, which lay just below the castle, to the north.
Shō Hashi
Sho Hashi
Shō Hashi was the first king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom , uniting the three kingdoms of Chūzan, Hokuzan, and Nanzan by conquest...
(r. 1422-1439), first king of the unified Ryūkyū Kingdom, made Shuri his capital, and oversaw expansion of the castle and the city. Shuri would remain the royal capital for roughly 550 years. The castle was burned to the ground during succession disputes in the 1450s, but was rebuilt, and the castle and city were further embellished and expanded during the reign of King Shō Shin
Sho Shin
' was a king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, the third of the line of the Second Shō Dynasty. Shō Shin's long reign has been described as "the Great Days of Chūzan", a period of great peace and relative prosperity. He was the son of Shō En, the founder of the dynasty, by Yosoidon, Shō En's second wife,...
(r. 1477-1526). In addition to the construction of stone dragon pillars and other embellishments upon the palace itself, the Buddhist temple Enkaku-ji was built on the castle grounds in 1492, the Sōgen-ji
Sogen-ji
' was a Buddhist temple and royal mausoleum of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, located in Naha, Okinawa. It was erected during the reign of King Shō Shin , and destroyed in the 1945 battle of Okinawa....
temple on the road to Naha was expanded, and in 1501 construction was completed on Tamaudun
Tamaudun
is a mausoleum in Shuri, Okinawa, built for Ryūkyūan royalty in 1501 by King Shō Shin, the third king of the second Shō dynasty a short distance from Shuri Castle....
, which would be used as the royal mausoleum from thence forward.
Throughout the medieval and early modern periods, the residents of Shuri were primarily those associated with the royal court in some way. While Naha was the economic center of the kingdom, Shuri was the political center. Residence at Shuri was prestigious into the 20th century.
Samurai forces from the Japanese feudal domain of Satsuma seized Shuri Castle on 5 April 1609. The samurai withdrew soon afterwards, returning King Shō Nei
Sho Nei
' was king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom from 1587–1620. He reigned during the 1609 invasion of Ryūkyū and was the first king of Ryūkyū to be a vassal to the Shimazu clan of Satsuma, a Japanese feudal domain....
to his throne, and the castle and city to the Okinawans, though the kingdom was now a vassal state under Satsuma's suzerainty
Suzerainty
Suzerainty occurs where a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which controls its foreign affairs while allowing the tributary vassal state some limited domestic autonomy. The dominant entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the more powerful entity itself, is called a...
and would remain so for roughly 250 years. The American Commodore Perry, when he came to Okinawa in the 1850s, forced his way into Shuri Castle on two separate occasions, but was denied an audience with the king both times.
Under Imperial Japan
The kingdom was formally abolished when, on 27 March 1879, Japanese Imperial forces led by Matsuda Michiyuki proceeded to the castle and presented Prince Nakijin with formal papers expressing Tokyo's decision. King Shō TaiSho Tai
was the last king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom . His reign saw greatly increased interactions with travelers from abroad, particularly from Europe and the United States, as well as the eventual end of the kingdom and its annexation by Japan as Okinawa Prefecture.In 1879, the deposed king was forced to...
and his court were removed from the castle, which was occupied by a Japanese garrison, and the main gates of which were sealed. The castle, along with the nearby mansions of former court nobles, fell into disrepair and decay over the ensuing years, and the ways of life of the aristocrats of Shuri were shattered. Royal pensions were shrunk or abolished, and income from nobles' nominal domains in the countryside likewise dried up. Servants were dismissed, and the aristocratic population of the city scattered, seeking employment in Naha, the countryside, or the Japanese Home Islands
Japanese Archipelago
The , which forms the country of Japan, extends roughly from northeast to southwest along the northeastern coast of the Eurasia mainland, washing upon the northwestern shores of the Pacific Ocean...
.
Census figures from 1875-79 show that roughly half of the population of Okinawa Island were living in the greater Naha-Shuri area. Shuri had fewer households than Naha, but each household consisted of more people. Roughly 95,000 people in 22,500 households were of the aristocracy at this time, out of a total population of 330,000 royal subjects throughout the Ryūkyū Islands, with most of the aristocracy living in and around Shuri. Over the following years, however, Shuri shrank in both population and importance, as Naha grew..
Pressure to restore, conserve, and protect the historical sites of Shuri began in earnest in the 1910s, and in 1928 Shuri Castle was declared a National Treasure
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
. A four-year plan was laid out for the restoration of the structure. Other historical monuments came under protection soon afterward.
Though the Japanese garrison which had originally occupied Shuri Castle in 1879 withdrew in 1896, the castle, and a series of tunnels and caverns below it, were made to serve as general headquarters for Japanese military forces on Okinawa during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The city first suffered Allied air attack in October 1944. Civilian response preparations and organization were extremely inadequate. Bureaucrats, almost all of them native to other prefectures, and tied up in obligations to military orders, made little effort to protect civilians, their homes, schools, nor historical monuments. Civilians were left to their own devices to rescue and protect themselves, their families, and their family treasures.
The official Custodian of the Family Treasures of the Okinawan royal family returned to the family's mansions in Shuri in March 1945 and sought to rescue a great number of treasures, ranging from crowns granted the kings by the Chinese Imperial Court to formal royal portraits. Some of these objects were sealed away in vaults, but others were simply buried in the earth or amongst the greenery here and there around Shuri. The mansions were destroyed by fire on 6 April, and the Okinawan guards appointed by the Custodian were sent away when the Japanese military occupied the grounds afterward.
As Shuri was the center of the Japanese defense, it was the prime target of American assault in the battle of Okinawa
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
which was fought from March to June 1945. Shuri Castle was leveled by the USS Mississippi
USS Mississippi (BB-41)
USS Mississippi , a , was the third ship of the United States Navy named in honor of the 20th state, and the second battleship to carry the name. Commissioned in 1917, too late to serve in World War I, she served extensively in the Pacific in World War II, for which she earned eight battle stars...
, and much of the city was burned and destroyed in the course of the battle.
Post-war
The city was rebuilt over the course of the post-war years. The University of the RyukyusUniversity of the Ryukyus
The , abbreviated to Ryūdai , is a national university of Japan. It is located in the town of Nishihara on Okinawa Honto in Okinawa Prefecture. There are also campuses in Nakagusuku and Ginowan. It is the westernmost national university of Japan and the largest public university in Okinawa Prefecture...
was established on the site of the ruins of Shuri Castle in 1950, though later moved and today has campuses in Ginowan and Nakagusuku
Nakagusuku, Okinawa
is a village located in Nakagami District, Okinawa, Japan.As of 2008, the village has an estimated population of 16,462 and a density of 1,065 persons per km². The total area is 15.46 km²....
. The castle walls were restored shortly after the war's end, and reconstruction of the palace's main hall (Seiden) was completed in 1992, on the 20th anniversary of the end of the American Occupation
USCAR
USCAR means:* United States Council for Automotive Research* US Climate Action Report* United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands...
in Okinawa.
Education
A number of primary, middle, and secondary schools are located in Shuri, along with one university. The Okinawa Prefectural University of ArtsOkinawa Prefectural University of Arts
is a public university in Naha, Okinawa, Japan, founded in 1986.-External links:*...
is located just outside the grounds of Shuri Castle. One of the university's buildings sits on the site of the former , an office of the royal administration which oversaw the kingdom's official craftsmen, chiefly lacquerers
Ryukyuan lacquerware
Ryukyuan lacquerware is one of the chief artistic products of the Ryukyu Islands , and represents a form and style of lacquerware which is distinct from that of the surrounding cultures...
.
The village of Tobari in Shuri was the home of Masami Chinen
Masami Chinen
Masami Chinen was an Okinawan martial arts master who formed Yamani ryu. He taught Bōjutsu privately at his home in the village of Tobaru, in Shuri, Okinawa.- Life :...
, who founded and taught the martial art Yamani ryu
Yamanni ryu
Yamanni-ryū is a form of Okinawan kobudō whose main weapon is the bo, a non-tapered, cylindrical staff...
specialising in Bōjutsu
Bojutsu
, translated from Japanese as "staff technique", is the martial art of using a staff weapon called bō which simply means "staff". Staffs are perhaps one of the earliest weapons used by humankind. They have been in use for thousands of years in Eastern Asia. Some techniques involve slashing,...
.
Transportation
Gibo and Shuri StationShuri Station
Shuri Station is a railway station on the Okinawa Monorail located in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The station was originally planned to be named Tera Station , after the neighborhood within Shuri, but opened as Shuri Station on August 10, 2003...
s on the Okinawa Monorail lay within the boundaries of Shuri. Shuri Castle Park, Tamaudun, and other major sites are within easy walking distance of Shuri Station, which is currently the terminus of the monorail line, though there are plans to extend it in the future.