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Fushimi was a riverboat port located just south of Kyoto. Though today constituting Fushimi Ward (''Fushimi-ku'') within the formal administrative boundaries of Kyoto City, it was historically a separate town. The chief river port near [[Kyoto]] proper, Fushimi was a major hub of trade and travel, with numerous ''[[gozabune]]'' and 10- & 30-''[[koku]]'' ships regularly coming and going, loading and unloading cargoes of rice, firewood, charcoal, and other materials. Smaller canal boats carried people and goods up the [[Takase canal]] from Fushimi into Kyoto proper. For many western ''daimyô'', as well as for [[Ryukyuan embassies to Edo|Ryukyuan]] and [[Korean embassies to Edo]], Fushimi was their "gateway" to Kyoto - the final stop along a maritime and river journey before changing to travel overland into Kyoto proper, or onwards along the Tôkaidô to [[Otsu|Ôtsu]] and then to [[Edo]].

Fushimi was a riverboat port located just south of Kyoto. Though today constituting Fushimi Ward (''Fushimi-ku'') within the formal administrative boundaries of Kyoto City, it was historically a separate town. The chief river port near [[Kyoto]] proper, Fushimi was a major hub of trade and travel, with numerous ''[[gozabune]]'' and 10- & 30-''[[koku]]'' ships regularly coming and going, loading and unloading cargoes of rice, firewood, charcoal, and other materials. Smaller canal boats carried people and goods up the [[Takase canal]] from Fushimi into Kyoto proper. For many western ''daimyô'', as well as for [[Ryukyuan embassies to Edo|Ryukyuan]] and [[Korean embassies to Edo]], Fushimi was their "gateway" to Kyoto - the final stop along a maritime and river journey before changing to travel overland into Kyoto proper, or onwards along the Tôkaidô to [[Otsu|Ôtsu]] and then to [[Edo]].

Fushimi first emerged as a prosperous center in the 1590s, as the [[castle-town]] associated with [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi|Toyotomi Hideyoshi's]] [[Fushimi castle]]. The castle was dismantled in the 1620s, but in the meantime, the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] had officially designated Fushimi a post-station in [[1604]], and established a number of ''[[denma]] [[toiyaba]]'' (establishments overseeing the provision of porters and post-horses) there at that time. The town remained under direct [[Tokugawa shogunate]] control for the duration of the Edo period, overseen by a shogunate official known as the [[Fushimi bugyo|Fushimi bugyô]]. Regarded as the 54th [[post-station]] of the [[Tokaido|Tôkaidô]] highway (the first on an extension linking [[Kyoto]] with [[Osaka]]), the post-town was home to some 24,000 people at its [[Edo period]] peak, and boasted over 6200 buildings, of which four were ''[[honjin]]'', two ''[[waki-honjin]]'', and 39 ''[[hatagoya]]'' inns.  

Fushimi first emerged as a prosperous center in the 1590s, as the [[castle-town]] associated with [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi|Toyotomi Hideyoshi's]] [[Fushimi castle]]. The castle was dismantled in the 1620s, but in the meantime, the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] had officially designated Fushimi a post-station in [[1604]], and established a number of ''[[denma]] [[toiyaba]]'' (establishments overseeing the provision of porters and post-horses) there at that time. The town remained under direct [[Tokugawa shogunate]] control for the duration of the Edo period, overseen by a shogunate official known as the [[Fushimi bugyo|Fushimi bugyô]]. It came to be regarded as the 54th [[post-station]] of the [[Tokaido|Tôkaidô]] highway (the first on an extension linking [[Kyoto]] with [[Osaka]]). Bounded by the Takase canal to the west and the [[Ujigawa|Uji River]] to the south, the post-town encompassed an area roughly 1 km east to west and roughly 4.6 km north to south, within which lived some 24,000 people at the town's [[Edo period]] peak; the town boasted over 6200 buildings, of which four were ''[[honjin]]'', two ''[[waki-honjin]]'', and 39 ''[[hatagoya]]'' inns.  

The town is known as the location of a number of significant historical sites and events, including the [[Teradaya]] inn where several famous swordfights or incidents took place in the 1860s, and the [[Battle of Toba-Fushimi]] of [[1868]]. A number of [[han|domains]] from western Japan maintained [[daimyo yashiki|mansions]] here. The town is also known for the particularly high quality of its water, leading to it being a major center of [[sake|saké]] production; the headquarters of the [[Gekkeikan]] saké corporation occupies a considerable footprint in Fushimi, and offers tours for tourists.

The town is known as the location of a number of significant historical sites and events, including the [[Teradaya]] inn where several famous swordfights or incidents took place in the 1860s, and the [[Battle of Toba-Fushimi]] of [[1868]]. A number of [[han|domains]] from western Japan maintained [[daimyo yashiki|mansions]] here. The town is also known for the particularly high quality of its water, leading to it being a major center of [[sake|saké]] production; the headquarters of the [[Gekkeikan]] saké corporation occupies a considerable footprint in Fushimi, and offers tours for tourists.