Hara Castle Ruins: Minamishimabara City, Nagasaki Prefecture

The Hara Castle Ruins on the Shimabara Peninsular in Nagasaki Prefecture that stands today is just a small reminder of the Shimabara Rebellion.   It was an uprising on the Shimabara Peninsular in Nagasaki from 1637–1638 during the Edo Period.  It largely involved peasants, most of them being Catholic Christians.

It was one of only a handful of instances of serious unrest during the relatively peaceful period of the Tokugawa Shogunate's rule.  The construction of a new Castle in Shimabara City caused taxes to be drastically raised, which provoked anger from local peasants and the lord less samurai of the time. Religious persecution against the local Christians exacerbated the discontent, which turned into open revolt in 1637.  The Tokugawa Shogunate sent a force of over 125 000 troops to suppress the rebellion, and after a lengthy siege against the 37 000 rebels at Hara Castle, defeated them.

In the wake of the rebellion, the rebel leader Amakusa Shiro was beheaded and persecution of Christianity became strictly enforced. Japan's national exclusion policy was tightened and formal persecution of Christianity continued until the 1850's.

With all this knowledge and still many visual clues available today, it is quite surreal and at times a somber feeling to stroll around the ruins of the Castle and try and visualize all that anger and hatred of opposition forces coming together in death and bloodshed and in many ways a massacre of ordinary people rebellion against injustice.  The site is widely visited by many people today and is a reminder of how Christianity flourished in Japan all those years ago.

A compulsory visit by anyone interested in Christian History in Japan or any History Buff.

Come and checkout the Hara Castle Ruins in Nagasaki here on a map:

 

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The outer walls still remain

Christian Symbols

Fight over Christianity

Amakusa Shiro, the Rebellions leader

The remains of the grounds

The site of the Christian Rebellion

Please click on this video to see more about Hara Castle:

 

Confucius Shrine: Nagasaki City

Nagasaki`s Confucius Shrine is said to be the world's only Confucius Shrine built by Chinese people outside of China.  Even today the land on which it stands is Chinese Territory and the land rights controlled by the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo.

First built in 1893 by Chinese residents of Nagasaki with the support of the Qing Dynasty Government, Nagasaki `s Confucius Shrine was designed to serve as a place of worship and learning for the Chinese community and housed a Confucian sanctuary and primary school.  The buildings were severely damaged by the atomic bomb explosion on August 9, 1945 and was not restored.  It was finally opened to the public in September 1967 and  was extensively renovated in 1982 and remains the same till the present day.

It is a joy and exciting process to walk around the beautifully presented gardens and to graze intensely at the architecture and statues.  The attention to detail is amazing and one can see that a lot of time and effort was put in to the design and final outcome to look as authentic as possible.  One feels like they have stepped out of Japan and back into the realm of China such is the contrast to traditional Japanese buildings and in particular to Japanese Shinto Shrines.

Well worth a visit even if you are not a fan of Chinese History and artifacts.  The Confucius Shrine is located very close to the International Port Terminal so it isn't too far to complete as a walking tour around the area, even if you only have an hour or two to spare it is well worth the effort .

Check out Nagasaki `s Confucius Shrine on a map here!

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Koi Ponds

Dragons

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Chinese Statues

Open Courtyard

Main coridoor

Chinese

Attractive artwork

Confucius Pray Altar

Colorful ceilings

The entrance

Unique Design

Please check out the videos of the Nagasaki Confucius Shrine here:

Sunsets in Nagasaki and Fukuoka Prefecture

Both Nagasaki and Fukuoka are blessed with natural beauty and surrounded nearly completely with coastline, so it is not often that a spectacular sunset cannot be seen on a regular occasion.  Luckily on one of my scenic drives I had my camera at the ready to shoot these amazing sunsets.   Hard to resist having a second look!

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The contrasts are amazing!!

Very pretty hues

Kanahama Fault Geopark, Nagasaki Prefecture

The Kanahama Fault is not the main fault on the Shimabara Peninsular, situated on the south east coast of Nagasaki Prefecture.  There are many faults located on the Peninsular, the main fault is the Chijiwa fault which subsides in the north whilst the Kanahama Fault subsided in the south and the trench  between the two faults is called the Unzen Trough Fault.  The Kanahama Fault with its throw of 150~200m shows the sedimentary layers from the old Unzen Volcano from approx 300 000 to 500 000 years ago.

Looking up the valley from the seaside you can see the deposits from the old Unzen Volcano on the right (south side) and the deposits from a midterm volcano  (approx. 150,000 to 300,000 years ago) on the left (north side). As the Unzen Trough Fault kept subsiding through volcanic eruptions, the deposits from the midterm volcano could not reach beyond the south of the Kanahama Fault.

It's amazing to see the effects of events that happened hundreds of thousands of years ago and how they still exist and create a huge impact today.  I used to enjoy the scenery and drive endlessly around the Peninsular but today with the knowledge I have obtained with the Geopark materials that are available I am able to enjoy in more detail the amazing places that are still within a stones throw away.  Please let me know if you would like more information on Nagasaki Geopark in English and I can help you obtain them.

Check out the Kanahama Fault Nagasaki Geopark on a map!

Here is a video of the Kanahama Fault Nagasaki Geopark: