Goryōkaku Audio Guide

Goryōkaku: what does the audio guide cover?

1. 01

   Welcome to Goryōkaku

   Welcome to Goryōkaku, written 五稜郭 in Japanese, the star-shaped fortress that is the centerpiece of Hakodate in southern Hokkaido. The address attached to this stop is a road name, Goryōkaku Park Line, so this guide follows the fortress itself and the story of the city around it. It does not describe individual corners, gates or buildings on the grounds. Hakodate is a compact port town on a narrow strip of land that reaches out to the sea, ending at the dramatic bulk of Mount Hakodate. It was one of the first Japanese cities to break the country's isolation and trade with the wider world, and Goryōkaku is a product of that moment. It was built at the end of the Edo period by the Tokugawa shogunate, and it borrows its shape from the fortified cities of Europe. Over the next few minutes we will look at why the shogunate built a fortress in Hakodate, where its unusual shape comes from, and how it became the headquarters of a last stand by Tokugawa loyalists.

2. 02

   Goryōkaku and a Port Opened to the World

   For more than two centuries, the Tokugawa shogunate kept Japan closed to foreign commerce, with the Netherlands and China as the only exceptions. In 1854 that changed. Japan signed friendship treaties one after another with the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia, and Hakodate became a port open to foreign trade. The shogunate sent high-ranking officials, called Hakodate magistrates, to run the show. They were responsible for negotiating with foreign countries, defending the shores and administering the city. Their government office needed a home, and the plan was to place it inland, away from the port and the downtown area, protected by a fort. That is the origin of Goryōkaku. It began life as an administrative center, but defense was the primary consideration. Western ships were now arriving in the harbor, and the shogunate wanted its office to be able to defend itself. So Goryōkaku was built as a government headquarters wrapped in fortress walls.

3. 03

   The Star That Came From Europe

   Look at Goryōkaku from above, from the tower beside the park, and the reason for its fame is clear. It is a star. This type of fortress, known as a bastioned fort, originated in Europe in the sixteenth century, with Italy and Spain among the first to build them. The design was meant to remove blind spots, because the pointed corners allow defenders to cover the approaches along the walls. The man behind the Hakodate design was an expert in artillery and fortress construction who also studied Western knowledge and marine technology. He was appointed a technical research professor in Hakodate, and he made his design sketches with reference to European fortified cities. The fortress is a rarity in Japan. Apart from Hakodate's Goryōkaku, the only other star-shaped fortress built in the country was Ryugasaki Castle in Saku City, in Nagano Prefecture. The name Goryōkaku, meaning roughly five-cornered fort, was already in use at the budget stage. While the walls were going up, the site was known as the Kameda government office earthworks.

4. 04

   Enomoto Takeaki and the Northern Headquarters

   Goryōkaku's greatest chapter began after the shogunate itself fell. A civil war spread across Japan, and Tokugawa forces and their allies lost battle after battle to the opposing side. Takeaki Enomoto, the vice admiral of the Tokugawa navy, sailed to Hakodate on a warship carrying nearly 3,000 soldiers of the Tokugawa military and its allies. They made Goryōkaku their headquarters. Their stated aim was to pioneer the northern land of Japan, Hokkaido, and they sought permission for this from the Meiji government, the country's new administration. Permission did not come. In 1869 the Meiji government sent a large army to Hakodate to attack the Tokugawa force. A fortress designed to protect a magistrate's office became the last stronghold of a defeated regime, which is why the star-shaped walls beneath your feet carry such a weight of history.

5. 05

   Before You Head Off

   Goryōkaku sits within a city shaped by its port. Hakodate has been a gateway for international trade, and it is still a leading fishing port, known for its morning market, its seafood, and the night view from Mount Hakodate. Western sailors, traders and diplomats once made it their home, and the historic Motomachi neighborhood still shows the mix of British, Russian and Chinese building styles they left behind. As you explore, try holding two ideas together: a European military design drawn in a Japanese port, and a government office that ended up as a last stand. The same shape serves both stories. If you have the chance, view the star from above and trace its points with your eyes. Then ask yourself why a shape born in sixteenth century Europe ended up at the northern edge of Japan.