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Japan's earliest defence against invasion was a series of castles built along mountain crags and cliffs.
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Katsura Rikyu in Kyoto is an example of the style popular during the Muromachi period (1333-1568).
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Himeji Castle dates to 1333, when Akamatsu Norimura built a fort on top of Himeyama hill.
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Hundreds of castles, called yamajiro, were built as mountain watchtowers, in the Warring States Period (1467-1573).
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The period often called the Japanese 'Golden Age' of castle building lasted from 1570-1690, when castles were built to be bigger and more innovative than traditional Japanese buildings.
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The construction was completed during the reign of Tokugawa Iemitsu in 1626
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built in 1694
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zumo
Shrine
Pictured is the main shrine building (
honden)
of this major shrine in Shimane Prefecture,
which is built in the taisha zukuri style. The
current building was constructed in 1744; -
After the Meiji Restoration (1868) castles were seen as a reminder of the days of feudalism which had ended with the Meiji seizure of power. In 1873 the new government passed the Castle Abolishment Law, destroying two thirds of the remaining castles by 1875
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The opening of Japan to the West in 1868 led to the adaptation of the European architectural tradition.
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September 1868 through July 1912.
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Hokkaido Shrine was built in 1869
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From 1871 through 1946, Kamigamo was officially designated one of the Kanpei-taisha (官幣大社?), meaning that it stood in the first rank of government supported shrines.[10]
