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The kingdom was abolished and replaced with [[Ryukyu han|Ryûkyû han]] in [[1872]]; the abolition of Ryûkyû ''han'' in turn and establishment of [[Okinawa prefecture]] in [[1879]] was the final nail in the coffin for the Ryûkyû Kingdom. The castle was occupied by [[Imperial Japanese Army|Imperial Japanese forces]], specifically the [[Kumamoto Garrison]]<!--熊本鎮台分遣隊兵営-->, immediately upon being vacated by the former king and his court. The Seiden and Yosoeden became sleeping quarters for the troops, the Nanden and Shoin quarters for the officers, and the Sasunoma the commander's quarters. The Unaa plaza in front of the main hall was used for drills.<ref name=beni>"Beni no ugushiku"「紅の御城(うぐしく)へ」, ''Momoto Special Issue: Shuri, Ryûkyû no miyako o aruku'' モモト 別冊:首里・琉球の都をあるく (2013/8), 52.</ref>
 
The kingdom was abolished and replaced with [[Ryukyu han|Ryûkyû han]] in [[1872]]; the abolition of Ryûkyû ''han'' in turn and establishment of [[Okinawa prefecture]] in [[1879]] was the final nail in the coffin for the Ryûkyû Kingdom. The castle was occupied by [[Imperial Japanese Army|Imperial Japanese forces]], specifically the [[Kumamoto Garrison]]<!--熊本鎮台分遣隊兵営-->, immediately upon being vacated by the former king and his court. The Seiden and Yosoeden became sleeping quarters for the troops, the Nanden and Shoin quarters for the officers, and the Sasunoma the commander's quarters. The Unaa plaza in front of the main hall was used for drills.<ref name=beni>"Beni no ugushiku"「紅の御城(うぐしく)へ」, ''Momoto Special Issue: Shuri, Ryûkyû no miyako o aruku'' モモト 別冊:首里・琉球の都をあるく (2013/8), 52.</ref>
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The Kumamoto Garrison was removed from Shuri castle in [[1896]], and [[1899|three years later]], Shuri Ward petitioned the national government to convert the castle grounds into leisure space, citing the then-popular Victorian idea of the association of public leisure space with social progress. The petition argued that Okinawa Prefecture had failed to provide public leisure space in accordance with policies being implemented throughout mainland Japan, and that it would be most regrettable if the castle were to sink into further disrepair and delapidation due to abandonment. Shuri Ward requested ownership/administration of the castle grounds, but was refused. The following year, the [[Home Ministry]] agreed to sell the castle buildings to the Ward, but only leased the land for a thirty-year period, retaining control/ownership. Shuri Ward was finally permitted to buy the land outright in [[1909]].<ref name=loo/> Even so, the castle continued to fall into ever worse disrepair.<ref>Mire Koikari, “Rethinking Okinawa and Okinawan Studies: Three Perspectives. 40 Years since Reversion: Negotiating the Okinawan Difference in Japan Today," ''The Journal of Asian Studies'' 76:3 (August 2017): 796.</ref> Meanwhile, a number of schools were established on the grounds, including the Okinawa Normal School (''Okinawa shihan gakkô'') and its attached elementary school, an industrial school (''kôgyô gakkô''), and Shuri Women's Crafts School (''Shuri kuritsu joshi kôgei gakkô''), which later became Shuri Girls' High School (''Shuri kôtô jogakkô''). Several of the castle buildings themselves were used for weaving and for other courses. Another elementary school established on the site used the Kobikimon as the main entrance into the school grounds.<ref name=beni/>  
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The Kumamoto Garrison was removed from Shuri castle in [[1896]], and [[1899|three years later]], Shuri Ward petitioned the national government to convert the castle grounds into leisure space, citing the then-popular Victorian idea of the association of public leisure space with social progress. The petition argued that Okinawa Prefecture had failed to provide public leisure space in accordance with policies being implemented throughout mainland Japan, and that it would be most regrettable if the castle were to sink into further disrepair and delapidation due to abandonment. Shuri Ward requested ownership/administration of the castle grounds, but was refused. The following year, the [[Home Ministry]] agreed to sell the castle buildings to the Ward, but only leased the land for a thirty-year period, retaining control/ownership. Shuri Ward was finally permitted to buy the land outright in [[1909]].<ref name=loo/> Even so, the castle continued to fall into ever worse disrepair.<ref>Mire Koikari, “Rethinking Okinawa and Okinawan Studies: Three Perspectives. 40 Years since Reversion: Negotiating the Okinawan Difference in Japan Today," ''The Journal of Asian Studies'' 76:3 (August 2017): 796.</ref> Meanwhile, a number of schools were established on the grounds, including the Okinawa Normal School (''Okinawa shihan gakkô'') and its attached elementary school, an industrial school (''kôgyô gakkô''), and Shuri Women's Crafts School (''Shuri kuritsu joshi kôgei gakkô''), which later became Shuri Girls' High School (''Shuri kôtô jogakkô'').<ref>The Normal School developed out of a ''Kaiwa denshûsho'' established in [[1880]]. It was renamed ''Okinawa shihan gakkô'' in 1943. On 31 March 1945, the 32nd Army ordered the formation of a local Imperial Blood & Iron Corps (''Tekketsu kinnôtai'') made up of male students from the school. Two months later, as the 32nd Army fled south to [[Mabuni]] in late May 1945, some of the students traveled with them. Orders were issued on June 19 to disband the Corps, but many students died even after these orders were issued. Explanatory plaques on-site outside the 32nd Army Headquarters tunnel entrance at Shurijo Castle Park.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49599842707/sizes/h/]</ref> Several of the castle buildings themselves were used for weaving and for other courses. Another elementary school established on the site used the Kobikimon as the main entrance into the school grounds.<ref name=beni/>  
    
Lacking the funds to repair or maintain the castle, Shuri Ward made the difficult decision in 1923 to tear down the Seiden rather than allow it to become an even greater danger. However, a newspaper article about this decision written by [[Sueyoshi Bakumonto|Sueyoshi Ankyô]] caught the attention of ''[[mingei]]'' scholar [[Kamakura Yoshitaro|Kamakura Yoshitarô]], who enlisted the help of [[University of Tokyo|Tokyo Imperial University]] architecture professor [[Ito Chuta|Itô Chûta]], who managed to convince the head of the Bureau of Shrine Affairs (''Jinja kyoku'') within the [[Home Ministry]] (''Naimushô'') to order the demolition halted.<ref name=beni53>"Beni no ugushiku," 53.</ref>
 
Lacking the funds to repair or maintain the castle, Shuri Ward made the difficult decision in 1923 to tear down the Seiden rather than allow it to become an even greater danger. However, a newspaper article about this decision written by [[Sueyoshi Bakumonto|Sueyoshi Ankyô]] caught the attention of ''[[mingei]]'' scholar [[Kamakura Yoshitaro|Kamakura Yoshitarô]], who enlisted the help of [[University of Tokyo|Tokyo Imperial University]] architecture professor [[Ito Chuta|Itô Chûta]], who managed to convince the head of the Bureau of Shrine Affairs (''Jinja kyoku'') within the [[Home Ministry]] (''Naimushô'') to order the demolition halted.<ref name=beni53>"Beni no ugushiku," 53.</ref>
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Around 1925, with the considerable contributions of architect [[Ito Chuta|Itô Chûta]], the castle was converted into "[[Okinawa Shrine]]", a [[Shinto shrine]] within the national networks of [[State Shinto]]. The core of the shrine itself was constructed behind the Yosoeden, in an area known as the Kanegura 金蔵; the Seiden was then made the main worship hall, or ''haiden'', of the shrine.<ref name=beni53/> This was done so that the castle could be designated a [[National Treasure]], which it was that same year, in order for considerable national funds to be diverted to funding restoration and preservation efforts. This transformation of the castle into a shrine was necessary because at the time, up until 1932, Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples were the only sites which could be declared National Treasures.<ref name=loo/> The Seiden (as "Okinawa Shrine") was designated a National Treasure in 1929; the Shureimon, Kankaimon, Zuisenmon, and a number of other structures were named National Treasures in 1933.<ref name=shimposhurireki/> All lost the designation after being destroyed in 1945.
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Around 1925, with the considerable contributions of architect [[Ito Chuta|Itô Chûta]], the castle was converted into "[[Okinawa Shrine]]", a [[Shinto shrine]] within the national networks of [[State Shinto]]. The core of the shrine itself (''honden'') was constructed behind the Yosoeden, in an area known as the Kanegura 金蔵; the Seiden was then made the main worship hall, or ''haiden'', of the shrine.<ref name=beni53/> This was done so that the castle could be designated a [[National Treasure]], which it was that same year, in order for considerable national funds to be diverted to funding restoration and preservation efforts. This transformation of the castle into a shrine was necessary because at the time, up until 1932, Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples were the only sites which could be declared National Treasures.<ref name=loo/> The Seiden (as "Okinawa Shrine") was designated a National Treasure in 1929; the Shureimon, Kankaimon, Zuisenmon, and a number of other structures were named National Treasures in 1933.<ref name=shimposhurireki/> All lost the designation after being destroyed in 1945.
    
===Destruction and Restoration===
 
===Destruction and Restoration===
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This was a long process, however. The Shureimon gate was the first portion of the castle to be restored, in 1958. Ten years later, in 1968-69, the main gate at the nearby [[Engaku-ji]] temple, along with the Benten-dô (Benten Hall) and Tennyo-bashi (Tennyo Bridge) at the [[Ryutan|Ryûtan Pond]] were restored. The Ryukyu Government<ref>The civilian government of Okinawan elected representatives governing alongside the US military government during the Occupation.</ref> decided upon a plan in 1970 to restore the castle and various cultural assets (artifacts) lost in the war. The same year, the national government of Japan reached a cabinet decision regarding the reversion of Okinawa to Japanese authority (i.e. the end of the Occupation), and made clear its support for the restoration of the castle and cultural assets. The following year, funds were explicitly set aside for the restoration project within the budget of the Ministry of State for Okinawa and the [[Northern Territories]]. In 1972, the US Occupation ended and Japanese administration of Okinawa prefecture was resumed; the site was then named a "Historical Site" (''shiseki'') under the [[Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties]],<ref name=okahashi2/> and an official Okinawa Promotion and Development Plan that year explicitly included discussion of a plan to restore the castle and associated cultural assets. Work then began on restoring other portions of the castle compound and surrounding areas, with the Kankaimon being restored over a two-year process from 1972-74 and the royal mausoleum at [[Tamaudun]] in 1973-76. An "Association for Realizing the Restoration of Shuri Castle" (''Shurijô fukugen kisei kai'') was established in 1973, and work began on the castle's Kyûkeimon gate in 1976. The Second Okinawa Promotion and Development Plan, put out in 1982, explicitly discussed matters including determining the extent of the grounds that should be made a public park, and the areas that should be made areas for historical and cultural preservation.<ref name=shimpo1992>"Shurijô fukugen no keii" 首里城復元の経緯, ''Ryukyu Shimpo'', 1 Nov 1992.</ref>
 
This was a long process, however. The Shureimon gate was the first portion of the castle to be restored, in 1958. Ten years later, in 1968-69, the main gate at the nearby [[Engaku-ji]] temple, along with the Benten-dô (Benten Hall) and Tennyo-bashi (Tennyo Bridge) at the [[Ryutan|Ryûtan Pond]] were restored. The Ryukyu Government<ref>The civilian government of Okinawan elected representatives governing alongside the US military government during the Occupation.</ref> decided upon a plan in 1970 to restore the castle and various cultural assets (artifacts) lost in the war. The same year, the national government of Japan reached a cabinet decision regarding the reversion of Okinawa to Japanese authority (i.e. the end of the Occupation), and made clear its support for the restoration of the castle and cultural assets. The following year, funds were explicitly set aside for the restoration project within the budget of the Ministry of State for Okinawa and the [[Northern Territories]]. In 1972, the US Occupation ended and Japanese administration of Okinawa prefecture was resumed; the site was then named a "Historical Site" (''shiseki'') under the [[Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties]],<ref name=okahashi2/> and an official Okinawa Promotion and Development Plan that year explicitly included discussion of a plan to restore the castle and associated cultural assets. Work then began on restoring other portions of the castle compound and surrounding areas, with the Kankaimon being restored over a two-year process from 1972-74 and the royal mausoleum at [[Tamaudun]] in 1973-76. An "Association for Realizing the Restoration of Shuri Castle" (''Shurijô fukugen kisei kai'') was established in 1973, and work began on the castle's Kyûkeimon gate in 1976. The Second Okinawa Promotion and Development Plan, put out in 1982, explicitly discussed matters including determining the extent of the grounds that should be made a public park, and the areas that should be made areas for historical and cultural preservation.<ref name=shimpo1992>"Shurijô fukugen no keii" 首里城復元の経緯, ''Ryukyu Shimpo'', 1 Nov 1992.</ref>
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Prof. [[Takara Kurayoshi]] and a team of other prominent scholars on Ryukyuan history conducted extensive research on the design and appearance of the historical palace buildings, in order for the reconstruction to be performed as accurately as possible. The discovery of the [[1846]] ''[[Umundasui udun gofushin nikki]]'', [[1839]] ''[[Zucho (Shiiduho Ataiho)|Zuchô (Shiiduhô / Ataihô)]]'', and other materials among the [[Ryukyu Royal Sho Family Documents]] (''Shôke monjo'') and in the notebooks of Kamakura Yoshitarô were a tremendous boon to this effort, describing and illustrating in text and image the dimensions, colors, layout, materials, and other key information about the construction of the palace buildings (especially the Main Hall) in their 18th-19th century, Kingdom-era, incarnation. A set of documents entitled ''Kokuhô kenzôbutsu Okinawa jinja haiden zu'' produced in 1933 and held today by the Agency for Cultural Affairs ([[Bunkacho|Bunkachô]]), consisting of 23 blueprint-style technical drawings of the layout of the Main Hall, were also used in this effort.<ref>Taira Hiromu 平良啓、Takara Kurayoshi 高良倉吉, Fukushima Kiyoshi 福島清, Shurijô handobukku 首里城ハンドブック、Naha: Shurijô kôen tomo no kai 首里城公園友の会 (1998), pp102-103.</ref>
    
Reconstruction work on the Seiden and other central buildings began in earnest on July 18, 1989, with a groundbreaking ceremony (''kikôshiki'') and lumber-felling ceremony (''kobiki-shiki'') being held on November 2-3, 1989. While symbolic lumber was ceremonially carried down to Shuri from [[Kunigami]] as had been done in previous centuries, the restoration was completed primarily using wood from outside of Okinawa prefecture. [[Cypress]] from Taiwan was used for much of the central palace structures, including for the largest upright pillars, and woods such as oak<ref>''Quercus salicina'', J: ''Urajirogashi''</ref> and podocarpus (J: ''inumaki'', O: ''chaagi'') from [[Amami Islands|Amami]] and [[Tokunoshima]] were also used, along with materials from elsewhere. Okinawan architects, carpenters, and craftsmen headed the various aspects of the project, aided by ''[[miyadaiku]]'' (experts in traditional Japanese architecture & carpentry) and craftsmen from mainland Japan.<ref>"Shurjiô Q&A," "Shurijô o tsukutta takumi," ''Ryukyu Shimpo'', Nov 1, 1992.</ref> While the Seiden and certain other structures were restored in a traditional manner in all-wood-construction, the Hokuden, Nanden, and most other buildings were rebuilt in reinforced concrete, with only the outward appearance of being traditional-style wooden structures.<ref>"Beni no ugushiku," 57.</ref>
 
Reconstruction work on the Seiden and other central buildings began in earnest on July 18, 1989, with a groundbreaking ceremony (''kikôshiki'') and lumber-felling ceremony (''kobiki-shiki'') being held on November 2-3, 1989. While symbolic lumber was ceremonially carried down to Shuri from [[Kunigami]] as had been done in previous centuries, the restoration was completed primarily using wood from outside of Okinawa prefecture. [[Cypress]] from Taiwan was used for much of the central palace structures, including for the largest upright pillars, and woods such as oak<ref>''Quercus salicina'', J: ''Urajirogashi''</ref> and podocarpus (J: ''inumaki'', O: ''chaagi'') from [[Amami Islands|Amami]] and [[Tokunoshima]] were also used, along with materials from elsewhere. Okinawan architects, carpenters, and craftsmen headed the various aspects of the project, aided by ''[[miyadaiku]]'' (experts in traditional Japanese architecture & carpentry) and craftsmen from mainland Japan.<ref>"Shurjiô Q&A," "Shurijô o tsukutta takumi," ''Ryukyu Shimpo'', Nov 1, 1992.</ref> While the Seiden and certain other structures were restored in a traditional manner in all-wood-construction, the Hokuden, Nanden, and most other buildings were rebuilt in reinforced concrete, with only the outward appearance of being traditional-style wooden structures.<ref>"Beni no ugushiku," 57.</ref>
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