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The Castle Town of 'One Town, One Temple' Built by Kato Kiyomasa 🐈‍⬛ A Stroll Through the History of Furumachi

2025年3月16日 19:23

Hello. This report is about my stroll through Furumachi, the castle town of Kumamoto, last March. Along with "Shinmachi," "Furumachi" is a castle town built by Kato Kiyomasa when he constructed Kumamoto Castle, and it is an area that still retains the atmosphere of those days. The characteristic of Furumachi is its "one town, one temple" layout, with a temple placed in the center of a grid, and the temples still remain just as they were back then💡 (Since the Kumamoto castle town was burned down during the Seinan War, it is highly likely that the buildings were rebuilt in later years.) And, I almost cried when I unexpectedly discovered the grave of Aso Koremitsu, the Aso Grand Priest who was forced to commit suicide by Toyotomi Hideyoshi at the tender age of 12 for a crime he did not commit, in the precincts of one of those temples, Amidaji Temple😢, so I will introduce it in the middle of the article. In addition to temples, the Furumachi area also has old townhouses, Western-style buildings from the Taisho era, and Showa-retro spots where young people gather, so please enjoy walking through the town with me❣️ (8400 characters)

The red circle is the Furumachi area (Chuo-ku, Kumamoto City). The blue circle is Shinmachi, another castle town. A link to the Shinmachi walking article is posted at the end of this article☝️

The route I walked this time is shown with a blue line.
The image is borrowed from the local information board.
The black lines and circles on the map are the city tram lines and stations🚋

Now, let's go for a walk through the retro castle town of 'one town, one temple'~🏃‍♀️

Hayano Building

The first place I would like to introduce is the Hayano Building, a registered tangible cultural property near the Keitoku-ko-mae tram stop↓

Isn't it super cool? I heard it's still an active rental building💡 I believe part of the first floor was a rental gallery. Below are photos of the Hayano Building, which is full of Taisho retro vibes📷↓

Plates for the Historic Landscape Formation Building and the Registered Tangible Cultural Property

The retro sign of the kimono shop "Wakura" on the first floor

The entrance interior is too wonderful. Its profoundness makes you feel the history

Let's move on! After turning right from the Keitoku-ko-mae tram station and walking for a while, you will come to the Tsuboi River, which separates Shinmachi and Furumachi↓

The other side of the river is the Shinmachi area, so I will step into Shinmachi for a moment. Visible across the bridge is the "Tomishige Photography Studio," which I also introduced in the Shinmachi walking article.

After passing the Tomishige Photography Studio, turn left and cross the "Meijubashi Bridge" (built in 1877), which spans the meandering Tsuboi River, to return to the Furumachi area. You can see a retro building on your right immediately💡

Before introducing the retro building, here is a view of the Tsuboi River from Meijubashi Bridge. The Tsuboi River is a river that Kato Kiyomasa renovated as a canal to connect the Ariake Sea to the castle town, and it also serves as the inner moat of Kumamoto Castle.

PS Orangery

Standing at the foot of Meijubashi Bridge is the former Dai-ichi Bank Kumamoto Branch building, built in the Taisho era. It is currently used as an office building for the air conditioning manufacturer PS Industry Co., Ltd. Of course, it is a nationally registered tangible cultural property💡

A shot from "Tojin-machi Street," which intersects after crossing Meijubashi Bridge. The two-tone color of brick and concrete is modern~

Now, this "Tojin-machi Street" is the main street of Furumachi, both now and in the past. It developed because the canal "Tsuboi River," which I just crossed, is on the north side, and it was called "Flowery Tojin-machi" in the past. It is now a spot lined with stylish shops renovated from townhouses, and it seems that events are often held there as well💡 Now, let's walk west along Tojin-machi Street from the PS Orangery building to Meihachi Bridge (mentioned later)👟↓

Tojinmachi-dori Street

An area lined with traditional townhouses (machiya).
It looks like some kind of event is taking place.

To the west, there is a somewhat imposing brick structure.

Nishimura Residence

This is the former merchant house 'Nishimura Residence,' built in 1917. It is said that the part facing the road was a warehouse, while the residence and boat landing faced the Tsuboi River. (Information from the internet. Interior not open to the public. It is currently used as a different shop.) Originally an oil merchant, the brick walls on the east and west sides were firewalls to prevent the spread of fire, you know😳

Plates for the Important Landscape Building and Registered Tangible Cultural Property

The space between the main building and the firewall is the passage leading to the entrance?

Now, at the west end of Tojinmachi-dori Street, there is a stylish coffee shop called 'Coffee Kairo' renovated from a townhouse, but ↓

I will stop by there later, so first I would like to introduce the 'Meihachi Bridge' that spans the north side of the shop☝️

Meihachi Bridge

Crossing the bridge leads to the Shinmachi area.

The 'Meihachi Bridge,' built in 1875, connects Shinmachi and Furumachi. The stonemason was Kangoro Hashimoto, one of the master stonemasons who built the Tsujun Bridge in Yamato Town💡 I have posted a report article on the National Treasure Tsujun Bridge at the end of this article, so if you haven't read it yet, please do!

View of the Tsuboi River from Meihachi Bridge. (Looking east)
On the right, in the shadow of the trees, you can see the firewall of the Nishimura Residence, and in the far distance, you can faintly see the PS Orangerie building (in front of the white building).

Well then, let's take a coffee break here☕️ I'd like to stop by the aforementioned Coffee Kairo🤗

Coffee Kairo

Coffee Kairo is a coffee shop renovated from a 120-year-old townhouse, where you can enjoy authentic coffee along with Japanese sweets in an open and stylish interior🤤 Let's go inside immediately🏃‍♀️

Wow, cute Japanese sweets💕 I was interested in the orange chocolate yokan on the bottom right, but it was sold out, so I ordered the strawberry mochi on the top left along with an iced coffee.

This time I'm at the counter seat. Even the wet towel is chic and photogenic! The veranda seats along the road are also open and lovely, but they were full of customers.

After taking a breather with the stylish space and coffee, I will continue my stroll. Let's head south on the road in front of Coffee Kairo that continues from Meihachi Bridge👟

There are many old temples on this street, aren't there~

An old and magnificent temple. There is some kind of information board next to the temple gate.

The cool information board, which features a silhouette of Kato Kiyomasa designed on an old-fashioned wall, really stands out, doesn't it? 😆 As usual, I will quote it below. ↓

　　　　　　　◉Touring One Temple per Block◉
　When building Kumamoto Castle, Lord Kato Kiyomasa actively developed a castle town centered around the castle.
　To prevent the spread of fire and prepare for emergencies, he arranged the town in a grid pattern of square blocks, each about 120 meters on a side. He invited a temple to each block (the One Temple per Block system) and surrounded them with townhouses, creating a castle town structure that is rare even on a national scale.

It is said that placing a temple in the center of a large square block and surrounding it with townhouses was a layout designed to hide armed soldiers in the temple in preparation for enemy attacks. 💡 It seems that the prevention of fire spread was also intended not only for peacetime but also for wartime, as towns were often set on fire during war.

　　　　　　Saiko-ji Temple
　One of the three Jodo Shinshu temples in the Kumamoto castle town.
　This temple was founded in the Meio era (1490s) by a monk named Ryoso in Kataho-hota Village, Yamaga District. In the Eisho era (1508), he traveled to the capital and received the temple name Saiko-ji from Hongan-ji Temple. During the time of the third head priest, Ryokan, it was relocated to its current site by the order of Lord Kato Kiyomasa.
　It has the oldest history of any Jodo Shinshu temple in the prefecture. According to temple records, the temple buildings were constructed using surplus materials from the construction of Kumamoto Castle, and Lord Kato Kiyomasa frequently visited to pray. Most of the "Issaikyo" (complete collection of Buddhist scriptures) donated by Lord Kiyomasa still exists today.

So, Saiko-ji Temple moved here from Yamaga in the north of the prefecture. 💡 This cool information board is installed at each temple, and reading the origins of each one, it seems that Kato Kiyomasa invited temples from all over the prefecture to the castle town of Furumachi. It's a magnificent plan, isn't it? 😲

Saiko-ji Temple gate. I wonder if this gate was also built using surplus materials from the construction of Kumamoto Castle? (Unconfirmed)

The sculpture of the demon? supporting the roof is cute 💕

If you continue further south along this road, you will unexpectedly encounter a fateful temple.

Amida-ji Temple

I thought to myself, 'This is another magnificent temple with a wide approach, it's called Amida-ji Temple.' As I read the temple's information board just like before, I was surprised. ↓

I will quote the explanation about the temple below.

　　　　　　Amida-ji Temple
　This temple is called Jodoshu Amida-ji Temple. Around the Tensho era (1573–1592), during Lord Kiyomasa's rule, it was relocated and built from Minami-Amida-ji Village in Akita District to the banks of the Shirakawa River. However, due to frequent flooding, it was moved to its current location around the Keicho era (1596–1615).
　The temple houses the graves of Iida Kakubei, Nagao Buzen, the Shimizu family, and others, who were among the four heavenly kings of Lord Kiyomasa, known as masters of Kumamoto Castle construction.
　Also, the grave of Aso Koremitsu, the Grand Priest who lost his life at the age of 12 by the order of Hideyoshi in the first year of Bunroku (1592), is enshrined here.

Oh my! To think that I would encounter the grave of Aso Koremitsu, the last head of the medieval Aso Grand Priest family as a samurai, here by chance! 😳❗️ Although, I think many of you might be wondering, 'Who is Aso Koremitsu?' So, I will take this opportunity to explain the relationship between Aso Koremitsu and Kato Kiyomasa, as well as the historical background of that time!

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The Aso Grand Priest family (Aso clan) is a lineage that has served as the priests of Aso Shrine since ancient times. The Aso clan became samurai in the medieval period and grew into a clan representing Higo Province, but a turning point arrived during the Tensho era of the Sengoku period.

Aso Koremitsu (then 3 years old) took over the position of head of the family from his father, Aso Koretane, who had a short life, in the 12th year of Tensho (1584). However, Kyushu at that time was under the strong influence of the Shimazu clan, who had defeated the Ryuzoji and Otomo clans, and the Shimazu clan invaded the Aso territory in the 13th year of Tensho (1585). Consequently, the Aso Grand Priest's mother and child (the former Grand Priest's wife, the head of the family Koremitsu, and his younger brother Koreyoshi) abandoned their base, Hama-no-Yakata, and fled into the mountains. After that, Kyushu was incorporated into the Toyotomi administration by Toyotomi Hideyoshi's conquest of Shimazu in the 14th year of Tensho (1586), but the Aso clan was slow to respond to the Toyotomi administration, leading to a situation where the head of the family, Aso Koremitsu, and his younger brother, Koreyoshi, entered Kumamoto Castle under the Toyotomi administration as hostages. Initially, Sassa Narimasa was entrusted with Higo by Hideyoshi, but Sassa Narimasa was ordered to commit seppuku for his responsibility in the subsequent Higo Kokushu Uprising. After that, northern Higo, including Aso District, was given to Kato Kiyomasa, and southern Higo was given to Konishi Yukinaga. Then, Aso Koremitsu was placed under the care of Kato Kiyomasa, and his younger brother, Koreyoshi, was placed under the care of Konishi Yukinaga.

Hideyoshi intended to invade the continent after pacifying Kyushu, and Kato Kiyomasa and Konishi Yukinaga, who were daimyo raised by Hideyoshi, set out for Korea in March of the first year of Bunroku (1592) as the vanguard of the invasion of Korea. Meanwhile, in Higo, an incident occurred in June where Umebita Kunikane of Satsuma occupied Sashiki Castle within the Higo territory (Umebita Rebellion). Aso Koremitsu, who was 12 years old at the time, was suspected by Hideyoshi of being involved in the rebellion and was forced to commit suicide at Hanaokayama near Kumamoto Castle. Although he was completely innocent, it is believed that Hideyoshi's intention to eliminate the Aso Grand Priest, who was the only one remaining as a medieval lord in Higo, was behind this. This happened while Kato Kiyomasa was away for the invasion of Korea. As a result, the Aso family was severed, and their retainers and shrine families were dispersed. The era of the Grand Priest as a medieval lord came to an end. Regarding Koremitsu, to quote the description in the Yabe Town History as it is, 'He lost his father at a young age, fled through the chaos of war, and was executed for a crime he did not commit; it was truly a life full of hardship and misfortune. (p.219)' This says it all. I feel that Koremitsu's death is the greatest tragedy in the history of our hometown.

Kato Kiyomasa and Konishi Yukinaga withdrew from Korea due to the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, but Konishi Yukinaga, who sided with the Western Army in the subsequent Battle of Sekigahara, was defeated and killed, and Kato Kiyomasa became the lord of the entire Higo Province. In the 6th year of Keicho (1601), Kato Kiyomasa allowed Aso Koreyoshi, the younger brother of Aso Koremitsu who was still alive, to revive the family only as a priestly family, so the Aso Grand Priest family has continued to the present day, and the current Grand Priest is the 92nd generation.

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By the way, I happened to be visiting Amidaji Temple while I was in the middle of a series of articles about the Aso clan, and I had been mentioning Koremitsu-san frequently in my articles. What a coincidence💫 It felt as if the Aso family had guided me here. Now, without further ado, I will pay my respects at the grave in the temple grounds🙏

In front of the main hall, there is a large ginkgo tree and an old Nio statue.

The graveyard is located to the left of the main hall.

The graveyard is lined with old graves and tombstones, and I couldn't easily find Koremitsu-san's grave💦 Where is it? As I was wandering around, I discovered the magnificent memorial tower for Iida Kakubei, which was also mentioned on the information board↓

He grew up as a childhood friend of Kato Kiyomasa, played an active role in the conquest of the Shiki clan of Amakusa and the Korean campaigns, and is said to be one of the three great men of the Kato family. He also demonstrated his talent in civil engineering projects, and it is said that the Iida-maru of Kumamoto Castle was built by Kakubei. After the death of Lord Kiyomasa, he retired from the Kato family, served the Kuroda family, later moved to Kyoto, and passed away on September 18, in the 9th year of the Kanei era (1632). This grave is a memorial tower.

As expected, there are excellent subordinates in the shadows of great people who leave their names in history✨ Kato Kiyomasa is said to be a master of civil engineering and castle construction, but Kakubei-san's contribution must have been significant as well🤔

And after searching for a few minutes, I was finally able to find the grave of Aso Koremitsu-san.↓

Grave of Aso Daiguji Koremitsu

It is an old grave. I'm sure it's from that time.

The characters for "Koremitsu" are clearly visible on the tombstone.

I almost cried when I saw the engraved characters for "Koremitsu." In the end, I didn't find out the reason or circumstances behind why Koremitsu-san's grave is at Amidaji Temple, but considering that it is at Amidaji Temple, which was invited by Kato Kiyomasa in the Kumamoto castle town rather than in Aso or Yamato-cho, I think it was built for Koremitsu-san by someone associated with the Kato family. Besides, such a magnificent grave would not be built for a criminal, and I felt a sense of pity in the characters "Koremitsu" engraved on the tombstone. This is just my own speculation, but even though it was under the orders of his superior, Hideyoshi, I wonder if Kato Kiyomasa felt pity for having forced 12-year-old Koremitsu-san, whom he had been looking after for a long time, to commit suicide. After the Higo Kokushu Uprising, the resistance forces against the Toyotomi regime were wiped out in Higo, but for Hideyoshi, the existence of the Aso Daiguji, who could be called the symbol of Higo since the Middle Ages, was an eyesore, even if he was just a child. As a result, I think he drove Koremitsu-san to his death using the "Umekita Rebellion" as a pretext. (There is no evidence, but this is a generally accepted theory.) Three years after Hideyoshi's death, in 1601, the year after the Battle of Sekigahara, Kato Kiyomasa allowed his younger brother, Koreyoshi-san, who was still alive, to revive the Aso Shrine only as a priestly family. From this, I feel that Kiyomasa-san sympathized with the Aso Daiguji family and Koremitsu-san. As an aside, Koreyoshi-san, who was unexpectedly allowed by Kiyomasa-san to revive the Aso Shrine, worked hard to collect and organize the interrupted Aso family-related documents, and the "Aso Documents" that were passed down through generations are now documents cited in numerous literature that have high historical value for understanding the history of Higo.

Beside Koremitsu-san's grave, there is also a memorial monument? dedicated by Aso Daiguji Korenori-san from the Meiji era.

I found a cat in a corner of the graveyard where old tombstones are lined up❣️ (There are two of them) It's a relief to meet cute animals in a deserted graveyard☺️

Well, that's enough of the long history talk, let's continue our stroll through the castle town♪ The back street on the west side of the street where Amidaji Temple is located seems to be an atmospheric street called "Ozawacho-dori." Turn right after Amidaji Temple and go around into Ozawacho-dori.

Ozawacho-dori

It's a retro street where old townhouses remain and you can feel the atmosphere of the Showa era✨

I just found a retro-cute shop to the left of the foreign tourists💡

According to Google Maps, the "Shifuku no Hitotoki Kanmidokoro" on the left seems to be a shop that mainly serves green tea and shiratama dumplings🍵 I didn't stop by this time, but it seems like a good place to take a break while strolling through Furumachi💓

Now, let's return to the road in front of Amidaji Temple and head south towards the Shirakawa River🏃‍♀️

You can see the bridge over the Shirakawa River (likely Taihei Bridge) ahead, but we will turn left onto the small path before it.

Oh, there are townhouses remaining here that enclose the block as well!
Located in the center of this block is...

Fugen-ji Temple

An information board beside the approach.

According to the guidebook, Fugen-ji was founded in the Muromachi period in Shisui, Kikuchi, but it was moved here in 1605 at the request of Kato Kiyomasa. The main hall was rebuilt after being destroyed by fire during the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877, but the temple grounds and the approach remain as they were at the time of the relocation, preserving the typical 'one-block-one-temple' layout with townhouses arranged on all four sides. It certainly does! 👍

By the way, the location is right here ↑

Now, we will head east from here toward Kawaramachi, the final spot of this walk located at the far right of the map above, but I will introduce some charming buildings along the way as we proceed.

Hayakawa Warehouse

The courtyard is also quite charming, isn't it?

Plaques for the Landscape Formation Building and the Historic Character Formation Building.

I was also drawn to a charming alley on the other side of the road from the Hayakawa Warehouse, and as I walked down it, I found a small shrine where a large camphor tree? beside the grounds tells a story of history ↓

'Soja Shrine.' Its divine virtues are said to be family safety and prosperous business. It must have gathered the faith of the townspeople of Furumachi since long ago.

Carino MS Building

The building is characterized by the Romanesque-style triple arch on the front and the four pseudo-Corinthian columns that support it.

Plaque for the Historic Character Formation Building.

Now, let's continue east along the streetcar line to the Kawaramachi streetcar stop. 👟

We have arrived at the Kawaramachi streetcar stop.

The area beyond this road, on the south side of the tram stop, is Kawaramachi.

Kawaramachi Textile Wholesale District

The Kawaramachi wholesale district began as a black market after the war and was an area where many clothing wholesalers lined the streets. It flourished as a textile wholesale market during the Showa era, but the streets later became shuttered. These streets have since been renovated, and today it has become a place where young people aiming to be entrepreneurs gather. The nostalgic and artistic space, full of Showa-era retro charm, is also said to be popular as a photo spot. Now, let's go for a walk and explore! 🏃‍♀️

There are many stylish shops on the main street you enter from the tram stop, but the narrow arcade streets that branch off from this street are also interesting!

One street looks like this. It's full of greenery and has an artistic feel.

This street has a European atmosphere.
It reminded me of the Italian artisan district depicted in the Ghibli film 'Whisper of the Heart' 🌟

I also discovered a building that used to be a union office

That concludes my report on the Kawaramachi wholesale district! As a place where young people gather, despite its Showa-era retro feel, I felt an atmosphere similar to the Haight-Ashbury hippie district in San Francisco that I visited long ago 👠

Afterword

Furumachi has unique characteristics in each area, and it was fun to walk around. It was also an interesting castle town where the 'one town, one temple' town planning and temples built by Kato Kiyomasa still remain today. Temples like Amidaji and Fugenji, which likely retain their original layout with long approach paths and main halls set deep back, do not allow a clear view of the temple grounds, so I felt it made sense that they would be convenient for hiding soldiers in times of emergency.
Finally, a few thoughts on Kato Kiyomasa, who created this castle town. Kato Kiyomasa has a strong image as a member of the military faction, but I got the impression that he was a very smart practitioner, given that he designed Kumamoto Castle, which is so well-defended it is called the 'over-engineered castle,' as well as this town layout, and was so skilled in water management that he is called the god of civil engineering. I think this applies not only to the hardware but also to the software side of things. When Kato Kiyomasa became the lord of Higo, he enriched the province, which had been devastated by the Higo Kokushu Uprising, through water management and irrigation projects, laying the foundation for modern-day Kumamoto. He also took a 'sunshine policy' approach, such as by restoring the Aso Shrine. For this reason, he is still affectionately known as 'Seishoko-san' by the people of Kumamoto Prefecture, and I feel that Kiyomasa was a very smart person who was excellent at winning people's hearts. Of course, he may have adopted the sunshine policy to avoid repeating the mistakes of Sassa Narimasa, who was disliked by local powerful families and the people, leading to an uprising; he may have wanted to increase national power through water management because he needed to quickly revive Higo as a logistics base for the continental expedition in line with Hideyoshi's wishes; and his restoration of the Aso family, Aso Shrine, and the Aso-san Saiganden-ji temple may have been motivated by a desire to keep the still-influential Aso family, Aso Shrine, and Saiganden-ji under his own control and management. However, I find it amazing that he was able to accomplish all of this in one generation while being thanked by the people ✨ Even so, I don't think Kiyomasa carried out his sunshine policy out of cold calculation, but rather that he was a person with a heart who felt sympathy for Koremitsu-san and affection for the people ❣️

Located near Amidaji is 'Tsuzura,' an inn renovated from a 130-year-old building. I would love to stay at a ryokan like this 💓

Thank you very much for reading until the end 😊

【References & Websites】
• Yabe Town History Compilation Committee, 'Yabe Town History', 1983
• Koreyuki Aso (ed.), 'Aso Shrine', Gakuseisha, 2007
• Yoshiaki Yanagida, 'Medieval Aso Shrine and the Aso Clan: The Mysterious Grand Priest Family', Ebisu Kosho Publishing, 2019
• Furumachi Walking Map, ambula map

Access information can be found here ↓

This map might be useful for walking around the city ↓

Click here for an article on strolling through Shinmachi, another Kumamoto castle town ↓

Click here for an article on strolling through the National Treasure Tsujun Bridge ↓

Click here for an article about the medieval Aso clan and Aso Koremitsu-san ↓

Click here for an article about the Higo Domain Uprising ↓

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