Senganen, the Shimadzu family’s villa
Kagoshima is covered by the Shirasu Plateau, which contains volcanic ash and fused tuff.This soil was not suitable for rice cultivation since the time of the feudal government because it was too well drained.Nevertheless, from the Edo period (1603-1867) through the end of the Edo period (1603-1868) and into the Meiji era (1868-1912), the clan was recognized by the shogunate as a major clan because of the “enterprising spirit” that took root in this region.The word “shindori” means to boldly take on difficult challenges.
The Sengan-en Garden, a villa of the Shimazu family in Kagoshima City, is a symbol of this spirit.
From the garden, one can see Sakurajima, which is repeatedly and heroically erupting, as if it were part of the landscape.As you walk around the garden, you can feel the influence of Ryukyu (Okinawa), China, and Southeast Asia in the “Bogakuro,” an atrium presented by the King of Ryukyu, the “Senjingan,” a huge rock with letters carved on the shore, and the Kyokusui Garden, which shows the influence of a Chinese orchid pavilion.The Shimazu family villa was built in 1658 by Mitsuhisa, the 19th head of the family.From the end of the Edo period to the Meiji period (1868-1912), it was used as a guest house for the Crown Prince of England, the Crown Prince of Russia, and other dignitaries, and is now loved by many residents of the prefecture as a historic garden.
Shoko Shuseikan, a museum of the Shimadzu family
At the adjacent museum, Shoko Shuseikan, visitors can learn about the Shuseikan project (modernization project) undertaken by Nariakira, the 28th head of the Shimazu family.The Satsuma clan, which had the Ryukyu Kingdom under its control, was active in overseas trade and received the latest information through this trade.Shimazu Nariakira, who aimed to create a prosperous country, combined European knowledge with Japanese technology to build a group of factories called “Shuseikan” in the Iso district where Senganen is located.There, he promoted his policy of wealth, national strength, and industrialization by constructing reverberatory furnaces and blast furnaces, shipbuilding, and glass manufacturing one after another.
He was involved in a variety of businesses.I can understand why the shogunate was afraid of the Shimadzu family.
Japan’s modernization was recognized as the first and extremely short-lived leap forward in non-Western regions, and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2015 as “The Industrial Revolution of Meiji Japan: Iron and Steel Making, Shipbuilding, and Coal Industry.The area where the “Shuseikan” factory complex was located is also registered as a component asset, “Former Shuseikan.
For more information on the process leading up to the World Heritage registration and the story of the modernization of the area, please visit the World Heritage Orientation Center in Sengan-en Garden.Sengan-en Garden is now not only a beautiful feudal lord’s garden, but also a representative tourist facility of Kagoshima, with stores selling Kagoshima’s specialties such as Satsuma faceted glass and Satsuma porcelain, and restaurants serving local cuisine.The admission fee for the combined tour of Sengan-en, Shoko Shuseikan, and Goten is 1,600 yen for adults and high school students and older, and 800 yen for elementary and junior high school students.Group rates are also available.
The Satsuma clan produced a number of figures who made significant contributions to the establishment of Japan as a modern nation, including Saigo Takamori, Okubo Toshimichi, and the Satsuma clan’s mission to Britain, which traveled to Europe during the period of national isolation.This must be because they inherited the spirit of Nariakira, who had an early bird’s-eye view of the world.
