Changes

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>

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>

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]]. 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/>  

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]]. 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===

The chief royal residence, or Seiden (正殿), the structure at the heart of Shuri castle, faces and overlooks the ''unâ''. The largest wooden building in the Ryûkyû Kingdom, it is three stories tall, and lavishly painted and otherwise decorated in vermillion and gold, with intricate carvings and other embellishments painted in bold colors. Its construction incorporates Chinese, Japanese, and native Okinawan architectural elements, including among many other features a Japanese ''[[karahafu]]'' gabled arch over the entrance, and Chinese-style two-tiered roof modeled upon that of the Chinese Imperial Palace. From the time of its reconstruction in the early 1990s until its destruction in an Oct 2019 fire, the Seiden was the largest wooden building in Okinawa prefecture. Sadly, regulations did not require a structure of its size and character to have a built-in sprinkler system; this, combined with the inaccessibility of the site and the early morning outbreak of the fire, contributed to the ultimate outcome of the structure burning to the ground before firefighters could get the fire under control.<ref name=nhkfire/>

The chief royal residence, or Seiden (正殿), the structure at the heart of Shuri castle, faces and overlooks the ''unâ''. The largest wooden building in the Ryûkyû Kingdom, it is three stories tall, and lavishly painted and otherwise decorated in vermillion and gold, with intricate carvings and other embellishments painted in bold colors. Its construction incorporates Chinese, Japanese, and native Okinawan architectural elements, including among many other features a Japanese ''[[karahafu]]'' gabled arch over the entrance, and Chinese-style two-tiered roof modeled upon that of the Chinese Imperial Palace. From the time of its reconstruction in the early 1990s until its destruction in an Oct 2019 fire, the Seiden was the largest wooden building in Okinawa prefecture. Sadly, regulations did not require a structure of its size and character to have a built-in sprinkler system; this, combined with the inaccessibility of the site and the early morning outbreak of the fire, contributed to the ultimate outcome of the structure burning to the ground before firefighters could get the fire under control.<ref name=nhkfire/>

Two stone dragon pillars flank the central stair of the Seiden; these, like just about everything on the grounds today, are reconstructions, though pieces of the pre-1945 pillars are now housed at the Okinawa Prefectural Museum. While most elements of the castle's design reflects Chinese, Korean, and Japanese influence, these dragon pillars resemble not those found anywhere in East Asia, but rather, a form typically seen in palaces and temples of Cambodia and Thailand<ref name=Kerr109/>, two of the many regions with which Ryûkyû traded heavily in the 14th-16th centuries. Dragons could also be found carved into and painted onto handrails, ceiling beams, and pillars throughout the structure<ref name=seiden>"Shisetsu annai: Seiden." Shuri Castle Park Official Website.</ref>.

Two stone dragon pillars, roughly three meters in height, flank the central stair of the Seiden; these, like just about everything on the grounds today, are reconstructions, though pieces of the pre-1945 pillars are now housed at the Okinawa Prefectural Museum. While most elements of the castle's design reflects Chinese, Korean, and Japanese influence, these dragon pillars resemble not those found anywhere in East Asia, but rather, a form distinctive of Ryûkyûan architecture, and perhaps bearing connections to elements seen in palaces and temples of Cambodia and Thailand<ref name=Kerr109/>, two of the many regions with which Ryûkyû traded heavily in the 14th-16th centuries. Dragons could also be found carved into and painted onto handrails, ceiling beams, and pillars throughout the structure<ref name=seiden>"Shisetsu annai: Seiden." Shuri Castle Park Official Website.</ref>.

Though palaces in China, in accordance with the principles of Chinese geomancy, generally face south, those same principles were applied to Okinawa with the result that it was deemed most appropriate for the Seiden to face, not south, but west. It does so with the mountains at its back, facing the port of Naha, it being believed that dragon lines connect the two points, the palace sitting on a spot which is a source of energy, which then flows down to the harbor.<ref>Kitahara Shûichi. ''A Journey to the Ryukyu Gusuku'' 琉球城紀行。 Naha: Miura Creative, 2003. p11.</ref>

Though palaces in China, in accordance with the principles of Chinese geomancy, generally face south, those same principles were applied to Okinawa with the result that it was deemed most appropriate for the Seiden to face, not south, but west. It does so with the mountains at its back, facing the port of Naha, it being believed that dragon lines connect the two points, the palace sitting on a spot which is a source of energy, which then flows down to the harbor.<ref>Kitahara Shûichi. ''A Journey to the Ryukyu Gusuku'' 琉球城紀行。 Naha: Miura Creative, 2003. p11.</ref>