[Fukushima Prefecture] Is the northern town of Koorimachi the birthplace of the Date clan?

machi, Date-gun, Fukushima Prefecture, is a town located in the northern part of the Nakadori region (central part) of Fukushima Prefecture.

The Tōsan-dō, one of the major highways in ancient times (from the Kofun period to the Heian period) and the medieval period (from the Kamakura period to the Azuchi-Momoyama period), which connected Kyoto with the Tohoku region (Mutsu Province and Dewa Province),passedthrough Kōri.

From the Edo period onward, the Tōsandō road was known as the Ōshū Kaidō, and Kōri was a branching point with the Ushū Kaidō , which led towards Akita, so it flourished as a post town, Kōri-juku

The origin of the place name "Koori" is unknown, but one theory is that it was named after the Koori no Miyake (a county office under the ancient Ritsuryo system) of Date County, and that the characters "Koori" or "Koori" were later adopted from this

It is believed that the Kuwori clan was formed during the Kamakura period, separating from the Date clan

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The lord who ruled the Koori region during the Kamakura period took the name "Date"

The Date clan is said to have originated when Hitachi Nyudo Nensai Tomomune, who achieved military success in the Oshu War (1189, the battle in which Minamoto no Yoritomo destroyed the Oshu Fujiwara clan of Hiraizumi), was granted Date County and adopted the name Date.

Date Masamune , famous as the first lord of the Sendai Domain , was the 17th generation descendant of Tomomune.

It is said that Date Tomomune initially settled in Takako (present-day Date City), and later advanced to Kuwori, where he also built a temple with a tiled roof

This temple became the family temple of Asamune, and his burial ground was established there. Successive heads of the family moved their castle to several locations within their territory, but the 14th head, Tanemune,"Kuwori Nishiyama Castle"and moved their base from Yanagawa Castle.

Remnants from the time of Tanemune remain around the current site of the main castle keep

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Koori Nishiyama Castle was abandoned due to a dispute between parents and children

Kuwori Nishiyama Castle , built by Tanemune, the 14th head of the Date clan , was a castle from Tanemune's heyday during the Sengoku period. It was situated on Takadateyama Mountain, which is 193 meters above sea level, and consisted of the main keep, second keep, central keep, and west keep.

The main keep housed the buildings where Tanemune conducted his political affairs, and the castle was quite large for its time, with the entire structure fortified with moats and earthworks. It seems that residences for his vassals were built around the castle

However, Tanemune clashed with his son Harumune and was defeated in a father-son conflict (the Tenbun Rebellion, 1542-1548), forcing him to leave Kuwori Nishiyama Castle. Harumune, who inherited the family headship, was also ordered by the Muromachi Shogunate to abandon Kuwori Nishiyama Castle, and so he moved to Yonezawa (Yamagata Prefecture).

Currently, no buildings remain at the "Kuwori Nishiyama Castle Ruins," but remnants of Kuwori Nishiyama Castle can be seen in the earthworks and dry moats

The Kuwori-dera Temple Gate , located about 1.5 km south of the Kuwori Nishiyama Castle Ruins , is said to be the gate of Nishiyama Castle that was relocated to the site of the abandoned castle, and is designated as an important cultural property of Fukushima Prefecture.

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Appears in "Oku no Hosomichi" (The Narrow Road to the Deep North). Koori-juku, where Matsuo Basho passed through

Matsuo Basho, after visiting Iizuka (Iizaka Onsen), recorded in "Oku no Hosomichi" that he traveled by horse to Kuwori-juku on his way to Sendai.

I had a terrible experience at Iizaka Onsen and headed to Koori-juku feeling unwell. At Hoenji Temple in Koori-juku, there remains a "rice planting mound" that was later erected by a disciple

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Oiwake, the junction of the Oshu Kaido and Ushu Kaido

The Oshu-Ushu KaidoOiwake is a reconstruction of the point where the Oshu Kaido and Ushu Kaido roads diverged, completed in 2006.

Within the grounds, there are various features such as a gazebo and information signs, centered around an Edo-period road marker

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The former Date County Office from the Meiji period, designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan

Koori thrived not only on the main road but also on the water transport provided by the nearby Abukuma River, becoming a major center for the collection of silk threads and silkworm eggs produced in Date County from the mid-Edo period onward

In 1883 (Meiji 16)the Date County Officewas established, making it the political and economic center of the Date region.

The Date County Office was abolished in 1926 (Taisho 15), but the building continued to be used as a branch office of the prefecture, and its role ended in 1969 (Showa 44)

Although the building appears to be Western-style at first glance, it incorporates Japanese architectural elements, such as the hip-and-gable roof of the balcony, making it ahybrid of Japanese and Western styles, a kind of pseudo-Western architecture.

The central tower was dismantled and removed during the Meiji era, but it was restored in 1979. This building is one of the largest existing county offices and, moreover, has extremely high cultural value as an early Meiji-era example of Japanese-Western eclectic architecture, so it was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1977

The former Date County Officesuffered some damage from the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 and the Fukushima Prefecture Offshore Earthquake in 2021, and underwent restoration work. The work was completed in December 2022, and the building is scheduled to reopen thereafter.

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Handa Silver Mine was once one of Japan's three largest mines and boasted the largest silver production in the country

On Mt. Handa (elevation 863m) in Koori, there was once the Handa Silver Mine , which was so abundant in production that it was called one of Japan's three major mines, alongside the Sado Gold Mine (Niigata Prefecture, a candidate for World Heritage status) and the Ikuno Silver Mine (Hyogo Prefecture, a modernization heritage site) .

The Handa Silver Mine is said to have been discovered during the Heian period, and from the Sengoku period to the early Edo period, it was mined by the feudal lords and daimyo who ruled the area, serving as a source of revenue for them

In the mid-Edo period, the area became a territory directly controlled by the Edo shogunate. Skilled officials and technicians were dispatched from other mines such as the Sado Gold Mine and the Iwami Silver Mine, which significantly increased production, and a large town developed around the silver mine

From the latter half of the Edo period, the ore veins were depleted and production decreased, but in the Meiji era,Tomoatsu Godai, introduced modern technology and redeveloped the area, ushering in another golden age.

During this period, it became the largest silver mine in Japan in terms of production volume

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The huge landslide at Mt. Handa and the abandoned Handa Silver Mine

However, an unusual event occurred in Handayama, where the silver mine was located: a landslide

The signs of this began to appear around 1891 (Meiji 24), and large-scale landslides occurred between 1901 (Meiji 34) and 1903 (Meiji 36). As a result, the Handa Shinnuma marsh collapsed in 1919 (Meiji 43). The Handa Silver Mine also suffered significant damage, but it was rebuilt on a reduced scale at that time

The management of the mine was later taken over by "Nippon Mining," but it was closed in 1950. However, no new, profitable ore veins were found, and the mine was finally closed in 1976

The site where the tracks of the trolleys used to transport ore from the Handa Silver Mine and the stone walls that supported the bridges remain is nowthe "Handa Silver Mine Historical Park."The area around Handa Marsh, where Handayama Mountain collapsed and its banks burst, underwent erosion control work over a long period of 67 years, and the surrounding area wasthe "Handayama Nature Park," wherehiking, trekking, and other nature walks have become popular.

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