Battle of Ueno
- Bakufu loyalists Vs. Emperor loyalists
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The Battle of Ueno was a significant battle of the Boshin War, fought between forces of the new imperial Meiji government and the Shôgitai, self-appointed defenders of the last shogun, on the grounds of Kan'ei-ji temple (today Ueno Park, Tokyo).
Although Edo castle was handed over to Imperial troops peacefully, many former bakufu retainers disagreed with this decision made by former Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu and Katsu Kaishû to surrender. They formed a group called the Shôgitai and gathered at Kan'ei-ji temple, naming themselves defenders of Yoshinobu, who was under confinement in his lodgings at the temple. Kaishû attempted to negotiate with the Shôgitai, but to no avail.
Yoshinobu was relocated to Mito on 1868/4/11, yet the Shôgitai still remained unmoved.
Imperial troops led by Ômura Masujirô then announced they would attack the Shôgitai and attempt to sweep them from the temple grounds on 1868/5/15. As a result, almost half of the Shôgitai members deserted before that day.
The battle started at the Kuromon ("Black Gate") of Kan'ei-ji, which was being guarded by 450 Shôgitai members. A famous statue of Saigô Takamori stands on this spot today. The Imperial troops attacked from the front of the gate and from behind the temple, attacking the temple directly with thirteen cannon based within the mansion of Kaga han (today the main campus of the University of Tokyo). The Shôgitai was destroyed in about ten hours; much of the temple burned down in the battle and was largely never rebuilt.
The Kuromon can be found today at Entsu-ji in Arakawa-ku, Tokyo.
References
- Bakumatsu Boshin Seinan Senso (幕末戊辰西南戦争) Gakken 2006
- Gallery labels, Edo-Tokyo Museum.[1]
Links
- Entsu-ji, Black gate
- Shogitai Archives
