Mito Martyrs Memorial Hall (Former Herring Warehouse)
Currently closed for relocation work. For details, please see below.
This is one of the sixteen warehouses that housed the 823 members of the Mito Tengu Party who surrendered in Tsuruga on January 29, 1865 (Genji 2).
The Mito Tengu Party, who surrendered to the Kaga Domain forces participating in the pursuit, were initially entrusted to Honkatsuji, Honmyoji, and Chogenji temples in Tsuruga, where they received respectful treatment. However, when their custody was transferred from the Kaga Domain to the Shogunate, their treatment changed drastically, and they were crammed into this storage building.
Records from the Kaga domain describe the conditions at this time: all windows were boarded up, and the entrance had only a small gap, barely large enough to pass small containers through. Inside the storehouse, the environment was appalling, consisting only of straw mats and a chamber pot placed in the center. It is also reported that the rōnin were given only one rice ball per day and lukewarm water twice daily.
The sixteen cargo storehouses located in Funamachi (present-day Horai-cho, Tsuruga City) were slated for removal after the war due to Tsuruga Port reconstruction projects. However, following a campaign by local residents wishing to preserve them, they were relocated to the grounds of Matsubara Shrine in 1954 (Showa 29) and designated as the "Mito Loyalists Memorial Hall." On November 6, 2020, they were designated as a Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) by Tsuruga City.
Additionally, one other building was relocated to the grounds of Kaiten Shrine in Mito City and still exists today.
Information
- Address
- 福井県敦賀市松原町2
