CastleTowns2

=__ The Great Castle Towns of Japan __=

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From the 15th to 16th century, Castle Towns were a popular place all over Japan. The first castle town was created by Oda Nobunga, a powerful leader who controlled 32 of the 66 provinces in all of Japan. During their existance, castle towns were a sign of wealth and therefore anyone who lived inside them was either very important or very wealthy. Castle towns, as amazing as they were, did not prove to be the best protection in Japan so the idea of more castle towns faded.======

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Castles were made for daimyos, shoguns, and the emperor. It was built on a mountain because it would be harder to get into. The people who built it used geography in their favor. The castle was built to naturally confuse intruders. Castles were made for defense because other daimyos try to attack the castle. Castles were built geographically and man-made protected. Most castles had moats so intruders couldn’t enter. In order to get to the central tower, you must walk many winding paths and pass through many gates. The gates have many samurai stationed at barred windows so they can fire down at intruders. If you finally get to the central tower, you have to pass through a huge gate with many samurai firing at you. If you can get through the gate, there are many samurai behind the gate all armed. If you try to climb the tower, the windows are slanting down, so samurai can fire down on you. Japanese castles are one of the most protected structures in the world. If you can penetrate a castle, the person who owned the castle hat to commit //seppuku//, or suicide.======

Ever since their existence, castle towns have been home to many people. The towns were home to very important nobles, such as daimyos, and the castle town would always welcome any samurai and religious teacher to stay as long as they returned the favor. The castle town was also home to some merchants and artisans but the ones who lived there were typically richer than their average competitor. People of all different jobs were allowed in the castle town day and night and this is why the castle town was home to over 10,000 people. Since Oda Nobunga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi were the two main powers during the castle town era, most people sought their protection so they would try to stay as close to them as possible to avoid other dangers.

In the era of castle towns every inhabitant needed food, water, and shelter. Who would ever provide that for a castle town? The castle towns were typically full of lazy people so they would have others do their dirty work. Oda Nobunga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi captured many small towns, so they would have the nobles of those towns send them food, water, and supplies to add on to their towns. If the people from the town did not listen to Nobunga or Hideyoshi, they would either stop protecting them or kill them depending on their location, population, and quality of resources.

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CITATIONS/ REFERENCES**__

· Williams, Brian. "Japanese Castles". Forts and Castles. New York: Penguin Group, 1994. Print. · Dunn J. Charles. "Samurai". Everyday Life in Traditional Japan. North Clarendon: Tuttle Publishing, 1972. Print. · Reischauer, Craig. "Japan- Revised Edition". Tradition and Transformation. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1989. Print.