Kamakura Station

The city of Kamakura, Kanagawa in Japan, is closed off on three sides by very steep hills and on the fourth by the sea: before the construction of several modern tunnels and roads, the so-called Seven Entrances (Nana-guchi), or Seven Passes (七切り通し, Nana-kiridoshi) (all artificial) were its main links to the rest of the world. The city was therefore a natural fortress and, according to the Azuma Kagami, it was chosen by Minamoto no Yoritomo as his base specifically for this reason. The name itself seems to have been modeled on that of Kyoto's Seven Entrances (京都七口)—sometimes translated as the seven "mouths"—which first appears in the literature of the intermediate Muromachi period (around the year 1450). Together with the other "numbered" names like "Kamakura's Ten Wells" and "Kamakura's Ten Bridges", the modern "Seven Entrances" is an Edo period invention probably concocted to stimulate tourism. The Azuma Kagami calls them simply -zaka: Kobukurozaka, Daibutsuzaka, Gokurakuzaka, etc. Besides these seven, there were always other mountain roads that connected Kamakura with, for example, Kotsubo and Shichirigahama. There is one, for example, that connects Kaizō-ji in Ōgigayatsu with Kita-Kamakura Station. The Seven Entrances were simply the most convenient and important. While economically vital because they allowed traffic to and from the outside world, the Seven Passes had also great military value, and as such they were fortified in various ways, for example narrowing them further until a horse could barely pass through, and obstructing the view of incomers. The roads were also modified adding artificial cliffs and forts from which archers could hit enemies below.

Komachi (小町, Small Town) is a locality (a machi or chō (町)) in Kamakura, Kanagawa prefecture, Japan, defined as the part of town north of the Ebisubashi bridge on the Namerigawa. The part of town south of the same bridge is called Ōmachi (大町, Big Town).

Kamakura (鎌倉, Kamakura, [kamakɯɾa] ) officially Kamakura City (鎌倉市, Kamakura-shi) is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 people per km² over the total area of 39.67 km2 (15.32 sq mi). Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939. Kamakura is one of Japan's ancient capitals, alongside Kyoto and Nara, and it served as the seat of the Kamakura shogunate from 1185 to 1333, established by Minamoto no Yoritomo. It was the first military government in Japan's history. After the downfall of the shogunate, Kamakura saw a temporary decline. However, during the Edo period, it regained popularity as a tourist destination among the townspeople of Edo. Despite suffering significant losses of historical and cultural assets due to the Great Kantō Earthquake in 1923, Kamakura continues to be one of the major tourist attractions in the Kanto region, known for its historical landmarks such as Tsurugaoka Hachimangū and the Great Buddha of Kamakura.

The Kamakura shogunate (Japanese: 鎌倉幕府, Hepburn: Kamakura bakufu) was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333.The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Yoritomo after victory in the Genpei War and appointing himself as shōgun. Yoritomo governed Japan as military dictator from the eastern city of Kamakura with the emperor of Japan and his Imperial Court in the official capital city of Heian-kyō (Kyoto) as figureheads. The Kamakura shōguns were members of the Minamoto clan until 1226, the Fujiwara clan until 1252, and the last six were minor princes of the imperial family. The Hōjō clan were the de facto rulers of Japan as shikken (regent) of the shōgun from 1203. The Kamakura shogunate saw the Jōkyū War in 1221 and the Mongol invasions of Japan under Kublai Khan in 1274 and 1281. The Kamakura shogunate was overthrown in the Kenmu Restoration under Emperor Go-Daigo in 1333, re-establishing Imperial rule until Ashikaga Takauji and his offspring overthrew the imperial government and founded the Ashikaga shogunate in 1336 (Nanboku-chō period).

The 1333 siege of Kamakura was a battle of the Genkō War, and marked the end of the power of the Hōjō clan, which had dominated the regency of the Kamakura shogunate for over a century. Forces loyal to Emperor Go-Daigo and led by Nitta Yoshisada entered the city from multiple directions and destroyed it; in the end, the Hōjō leaders retreated to Tōshō-ji, the Hōjō family temple, where they committed suicide with the rest of the clan.

Komachi Ōji (小町大路) is a street in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, that begins at Sujikaebashi (筋違橋) (locality named after a bridge which no longer exists) from the Kanazawa Kaidō, crosses Yoko Ōji, passes in front of Hōkai-ji and Honkaku-ji, crosses the Ebisudōbashi Bridge (see photo), Ōmachi Ōji and Kuruma Ōji, reaches Moto Hachiman and Kōmyō-ji, and finally ends in Zaimokuza near Wakaejima. It is believed this is what the Azuma Kagami calls "Komachi Ōji" and other texts "Komachi Kōji". It used to be also called Machi Kōji (町小路). The name seems to stem from the fact that the Ebisudōbashi Bridge has been for centuries the border between the two areas called Komachi and Ōmachi, Komachi being the more important of the two. The Azuma Kagami says that along Komachi Ōji there were the houses of the powerful (the gokenin) and, for almost the entire Kamakura period, the seat of the government. The entrance of all buildings in Komachi not belonging to the Hōjō (the ruling clan) or to the Bakufu (with the curious exception of houses of ill repute) had to face away from Wakamiya Ōji (Honkaku-ji is a good example).

Ima Kōji (今小路), sometimes also called Ima Ōji (今大路) is the name of a section of a longer street in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan. Strictly speaking, Ima Kōji goes from Katsu no Hashi Bridge (勝ノ橋) in front of Jufuku-ji to Tatsumi Jinja Shrine (巽神社) about 400 m further south, but the name is used all the way to the intersection with Yuigahama Avenue. Although certainly old enough, historical documents written at the time of the Kamakura shogunate like the Azuma Kagami do not mention it.

Ōmachi Ōji (大町大路) is the name of a street in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, which begins at Geba Yotsukado and ends at the Nagoshi Pass. It takes its name from the district of Ōmachi, which it crosses. At the time of the shogunate it was the most important road that went from east to west. The entertainment and red-light district of the city used to be at the intersection between Komachi Ōji and Ōmachi Ōji. The branch of the street that from the intersection goes in the opposite direction is called Yuigahama Ōdori (Yuigahama Avenue). On it stand temples like An'yō-in and Ankokuron-ji.

Kikokuzan Kongō Jufuku Zenji (亀谷山金剛寿福禅寺), usually known as Jufuku-ji, is a temple of the Kenchō-ji branch of the Rinzai sect and the oldest Zen temple in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Ranked third among Kamakura's prestigious Five Mountains, it is number 24 among the Thirty-Three Kamakura Kannon (鎌倉三十三観音, Kamakura Sanjūsan Kannon) pilgrimage temples and number 18 of the Kamakura Nijūyon Jizō (鎌倉二十四地蔵) temples. Its main object of worship is Shaka Nyorai.

Myōhon-ji (妙本寺) is one of the oldest Nichiren sect temples in Kamakura, Kanagawa. Its official name is Chōkō-zan Myōhon-ji (長興山妙本寺). "Chōkō" comes from the posthumous name of Nichiren's father and "Myōhon" from his mother's.

Eisho-ji (英勝寺) is a Jōdo-shū temple in Ogigayatsu, Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, and is the sole nunnery in Kamakura. The mountain name is Tokozan. Okaji no Kata, a concubine of Tokugawa Ieyasu, took the name Eishoin after her pabbajja and founded the temple. The temple is thought to be located at the site of the residence of Ōta Dōkan, who was ancestor of the found. Okaji no Kata bore Ieyasu a daughter, Ichihime, but she died very young. After Ichihime's death, Ieyasu ordered Okaji no Kata to become the adoptive mother of Tokugawa Yorifusa, who later reigned over Mito Domain. The founding priestess Gyokuhōseiinni was a daughter of Yorifusa. From its foundation, princesses of Mito Domain regularly became priestesses of Eisho-ji. Thus people called the temple "Mito palace" or "Nunnery of Mito". After the Meiji Restoration, the practice of obtaining priestesses from the Mito Domain was discontinued and influence of the temple waned. During the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, the temple gate was damaged but volunteers eventually rebuilt it on the original cornerstone, with the completion ceremony being held on May 16, 2011. The temple is the 6th temple of Togoku Hananotera 100 kaji located in Kamakura.

Hatakeyama Rokurō Shigeyasu (畠山六郎重保) was a Kamakura period warrior who fell victim of political intrigue in 1205. The grave under a tabu no ki tree near the Yuigahama end of Wakamiya Ōji Avenue in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan and next to Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū's first torii (Ichi no Torii) is traditionally supposed to be his. It is an Important Cultural Property and a famous example of hōkyōintō (a type of pagoda). Famous for the quality of its manufacture, the hōkyōintō' is 3.45 m tall and is made of andesite.In spite of its prominence, next to nothing is known about the monument. On the base of the hōkyōintō is carved a date, the fourth year of the Meitoku era (1393), but its manufacture suggests it was built during the Muromachi period (1336–1573). Its upper portion, called sōrin, is very long, in the style prevalent at that time. Also, the relationship between the grave and Hatakeyama Shigeyasu is, the traditional attribution notwithstanding, unclear. The reasons for the attribution are probably that it lies within the former Hatakeyama estate, and that Shigeyasu is known to have been killed in battle by Hōjō soldiery in Yuigahama.Next to the hōkyōintō stands a black stele (on the left in the photo) erected in the 1920, which is however only indirectly related to the grave. Its text says: Hatakeyama Shigeyasu's residence Hatakeyama Shigeyasu was Hatakeyama Shigetada's eldest son. He had had a quarrel with Hiraga Tomomasa, who was Hōjō Tokimasa's son-in-law. Tomomasa hadn't forgotten the fact and so spoke to Tokimasa against both the Hatakeyama. Tokimasa himself hadn't forgotten how Shigetada had, following Minamoto no Yoritomo's will, tried to protect the shogun's son and heir Yoriie, and was looking for an excuse to kill them. Having received an order to that effect from shogun Sanetomo, he surrounded Shigeyasu's residence with his soldiers. Shigeyasu fought well, but in the end was killed. The day was June 22, 1205. and this is where the residence stood. The day after, Shigetada himself was tricked into going to Musashinokuni's (a region in the north eastern part of Kanagawa) Futamatagawa, where he was killed. Erected in March 1922 by the Kamakurachō Seinendan Because Shigeyasu suffered from asthma and was having an attack when he was killed in battle, the hōkyōintō is popularly known as Rokurō-sama and is supposed to have the power to cure colds and coughs.