A Study by Shiro Fujimura on the Planning Intentions for the Construction of Government Offices in the Castle Town City of Kofu, Japan

EasyChair Preprint no. 13679

Abstract

In Japan, as the social system underwent a transformation from the feudalistic period to the Meiji period, government office districts with a concentration of government facilities were formed in castle towns, which were the main cities during the feudalistic period. In Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture, a government office district with quasi-Western-style architecture was formed by Shiro Fujimura, who was appointed as prefectural governor in 1873. 　The purpose of this study is to clarify the actual situation of the formation of government office districts by focusing on the Kofu Government Office District, which was planned by Shiro Fujimura in the early Meiji period, and how the spatial configuration of the castle town was read to construct public office facilities. Specifically, I will 1) clarify Fujimura's urban planning intentions based on the layout of planned and constructed government facilities, and 2) clarify the uniqueness of Kofu's government district by comparing it with Yamagata and Utsunomiya, where planned government districts were established by prefectural governor Michitune Mishima. 　The findings are follows, 1) an L-shaped government office district was formed in front of Ote-gomon and along Tokiwa-dori in the former samurai district near the castle, with the prefectural office facing east. ; 2) The urban space in the government office district showed modern landscaping with street trees, waterways, road maintenance, fire prevention measures, and shared open spaces; and 3) Mishima developed a symmetrical government office district centering on the prefectural government office as a symbol of the authority of the Meiji government, while Fujimura was the first to construct a silk mill, placing importance on the development of industry and industry, and developed a government office district centering on the silk mill.

Keyphrases: castle town, government offices, Kofu, Michitune Mishima, planning intent, Shiro Fujimura

@Booklet{EasyChair:13679,
  author = {Kenjiro Matsuura},
  title = {A Study by Shiro Fujimura on the Planning Intentions for the Construction of Government Offices in the Castle Town City of Kofu, Japan},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint no. 13679},

  year = {EasyChair, 2024}}