Changes

Of the many guardhouses (''bansho'') which once stood within the grounds, three survive. The ''hyakunin bansho'', ''dôshin bansho'', and ''Ôbansho'' which survive today all stand between the Naka-no-mon and Chûjakumon gates. The Ôbansho was guarded by the higher-ranking guards (''[[yoriki]]'' and ''[[doshin|dôshin]]''), and was the chief guardhouse before the Chûjakumon, which led directly into the ''honmaru''.<ref>Plaques on-site at guardhouse.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/17577043974/]</ref> The guards of the ''Hyakunin bansho'' and ''Dôshin bansho'', meanwhile, were charged with the security of the area around the ''gejôba'' (the spot where most entering the castle were obliged to dismount), including the walkways from the Ôtemon to the Naka-no-mon.<ref>Yamamoto Hirofumi, ''Edo jidai - shogun bushi tachi no jitsuzô'', Tokyo shoseki (2008), 70.</ref>

Of the many guardhouses (''bansho'') which once stood within the grounds, three survive. The ''hyakunin bansho'', ''dôshin bansho'', and ''Ôbansho'' which survive today all stand between the Naka-no-mon and Chûjakumon gates. The Ôbansho was guarded by the higher-ranking guards (''[[yoriki]]'' and ''[[doshin|dôshin]]''), and was the chief guardhouse before the Chûjakumon, which led directly into the ''honmaru''.<ref>Plaques on-site at guardhouse.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/17577043974/]</ref> The guards of the ''Hyakunin bansho'' and ''Dôshin bansho'', meanwhile, were charged with the security of the area around the ''gejôba'' (the spot where most entering the castle were obliged to dismount), including the walkways from the Ôtemon to the Naka-no-mon.<ref>Yamamoto Hirofumi, ''Edo jidai - shogun bushi tachi no jitsuzô'', Tokyo shoseki (2008), 70.</ref>

The Naka-no-mon was rebuilt after the 1657 fire by [[Hosokawa Tsunatoshi]], lord of [[Kumamoto han]], and though damaged in a [[1703]] earthquake and restored the following year by [[Ikeda Yoshiyasu]], is considered to still date to that [[1658]] reconstruction.<ref>"Facts Revealed by Demolition Work," plaque on-site at Naka-no-mon.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/18173205156/sizes/k/]</ref>

The Naka-no-mon was rebuilt after the 1657 fire by [[Hosokawa Tsunatoshi]], lord of [[Kumamoto han]], and though damaged in a [[1703]] earthquake, it was restored the following year by [[Ikeda Yoshiyasu]].<ref>"Facts Revealed by Demolition Work," plaque on-site at Naka-no-mon.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/18173205156/sizes/k/]</ref> In the 1710s, shogunal advisor [[Arai Hakuseki]] had the Naka-no-gomon refashioned as the chief southern gate to the castle, in emulation of Chinese urban and palace design, in which the most important or "main" gates are to the south; he also had a lavish gate constructed at [[Shibaguchi Gate|Shiba-guchi]], to the south of the castle for this same purpose. However, after Hakuseki lost power around [[1716]], this newly ornate Naka-no-gomon was torn down.<ref>Watanabe Hiroshi 渡辺浩, “’Rei’ ‘Gobui’ ‘Miyabi’ – Tokugawa Seiken no girei to jugaku” 「『礼』『御武威』『雅び』－徳川政権の儀礼と儒学－」, in ''Kokusai kenkyû shûkai hôkokusho 国際研究集会報告書 vol 22, "Kuge to buke - sono hikaku bunmeishi-teki kenkyû" 公家と武家――その比較文明史的研究――, Kokusai Nihon Bunka Kenkyû Center 国際日本文化研究センター (2004), 171-172.</ref>

===Honmaru===

===Honmaru===