Kamakura city / The Short Summary Of Kamakura-shi
Kamakura City is the mot famous and popular city for sightseeing in Kanto
Region, there are hundreds of landmarks, National Treasures and Important
Cultural Properties in the city. Kamakura is on the south eastern part
of Kanagawa Prefecture. The city is nearby Tokyo by trains, so it is not
only a tourist city but also a bed town of Tokyo. The population of the
city is about over 170 thousand. Kamakura has very unique landscapes, it
is surrounded by moutains in three directions of the north, east and west,
and the sea laid on the south of it, so it has very wonderful views in
nature, therefore many writers has loved to live Kamakura and it is appears
on their stories. So Kamakura is one of the most beautiful city Japan.
First people settled at Kamakura over 10 thousand years ago, so remains made in old stone ages were fouond Mt. Awahune behind of Joraku-ji Temple. Some remains of Jomon Ages and Yayoi Ages were also found at Kamakura.
Even if people settled in 10,000 years ago, Kamakura first appeared on the written history in 1063, Yoriyoshi Minamoto build Iwashimizu-Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura, so the shrine was the god of samurai worriers, the Minamoto Clan worshipped it in Kyoto for a long time. It is the famous shrine, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine. In 1081, his son Yoshiie Minamoto repaired the shrine. In 1145, Yoshitomo MInamoto lived near Jufuku-ji Temple in Kamakura. These stories tells that the Minamoto Clan deeply related to Kamakura.
In 1192, Yoritomo was appointed as the Shogun and founded the Kamakura
Bakufu (the Kamakura Shogunate) in Kamakura. Yoritomo fixed the administrative
organizetion and planned development of Kamakura. In 1230, Kamakura was
at its zenith and the center of the samurai society in Japan, and the population
of Kamakura was over 30 million, so it almost the capital city of Japan
in real. Kamakura Bakufu was the first sumurai government to control throughout
Japan. Yoritomo Minamoto and his son and his grandchildren, the Minamoto
Clan was ruined in three generations, then the Hojo Clan, the family of
Masako Hojo, the wife of Yoritomo, seized power to rule the Bakufu. While
the development of Kamakura's economy, many products, culture, thoughts,
and technologies were carried there from China, and of course Zen Sect
of Buddhism came in Kamakura, then the Great Buddha at Hase, Kencho-ji
Temple, Enkaku-ji Temple and other temples belonging to Zen Sect were built
in. The Kamakura Bakufu ended in 1333.
When Muromachi Period started, the Muromachi Bakufu established Kamakura-fu
(a regional office of the Muromachi Bakufu)to rule the eight provinces
in Kanto Region. The director of the office was Kamakura Kubo (the Kamakura
shogun), but Kanto Kanrei (the chief counselors of the Kamakura shogun)
seized the power to control the region in real. This relation between them
caused some conflicts in the Kanto Region. The Battle of Kyotoku happened
in 1454, so the Kamakura Kubo Shigeuji Ashikaga assassinated Kanto Kanrei
Noritada Uesugi. It was the beginning of the Sengoku Period in Kanto Region.
In 1455, Kamakura Shogun Nariuji Ashikaga tried to fight against the Muromach
Shogun, but Nariuji lost and escaped to Koga in Shimousa. After left Kamakura,
the city lost its flourishness, it became the agricultural and fishermans
community. In 1495, Soun Hojo (the founder of Go-Hojo Clan) seized the
Odawara Castle in western Kanagawa Prefecture. After Soun moved to Odawara,
he developed his influence through the area of Kanagawa Prefecture actively
and aggressively, and his clan had ruled it almost 100 years. In 1590,
Hideyoshi Toyotomi who was the was the Kanpaku Dajo-daijin (the supreme
minister and chancellor) won the Siege of Odawara, the Hojo Clan ruined,
and Ieyasu Tokugawa moved to Kanto, and he ruled the region at Edo Castle.
In Edo Period, the temples and shrines restored, and vistors of them gradually
increased. In the seventeenth century, Mitsukuni Tokugawa edited Shinpen
Kamakurashi (the new editions of Kamakura's history), visitors from Edo
had read it and came Kamakura to see Enoshima Island and some historical
heritages in the temples and shirines in Kamakura. So the tourist city
Kamakura was born in Edo Period.
In 1889, JR Yokosuka Line constructed, many fashionable people came to base at seashore in Kamakura, so Kamakura became the resort city. People loved its warm climate, nature, historical and cultural traditions there. In Showa Era, many writers and poets moved to Kamakura, they are called 'Kamakura Bunshi' ( the writers of Kamakura).
Now, many visitors came to enjoy Kamakura. Kamakura is very best tourist city in Japan.
参考
鎌倉市ホームページ
鎌倉観光協会ホームページ
神奈川県ホームページ
デジタル大辞林
ブリタニカ国際大百科事典
クロニック戦国全史
ウィッキペディア