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Hakodate

Hakodate is a city and port located in , Hokkaidō, Japan. It is the capital city of Subprefecture.

As of March 2008, the city has an estimated population of 287,691 and a density of 442.24 persons per km². The total area is 677.77 km².
Contents

History

Pre-Meiji restoration

Hakodate was founded in 1454, when Kono Kaganokami Masamichi constructed a large in the fishing village of Usukeshi (the word for bay in ). The mansion is said to have included a barricade and looked like a box from the distance giving the area its name, box mansion.[1]

After his death, Masamichi’s son, Kono Suemichi, and family were driven out of Hakodate into nearby during rebellion in 1512 and little history was recorded for the area during the next 100 years. There was constant low level conflict in the peninsular at the time with the as armed merchants like the Kono family established bases to control trade in the region. This conflict culminated in an uprising from 1669 to 1672, led by warrior Shakushain after which the in the region were suppressed.[2]

Hakodate flourished during the Hoei period (1704-11) and many new temples were founded in the area. The town’s fortunes received a further boost in 1741 when the Matsumae clan, which had been granted nearby areas on the Peninsula as a march fief, moved its magistracy to Masamichi’s house in Hakodate.

In 1779, the took direct control over Hakodate, which triggered in the area. Merchant Takadaya Kahei, who is honoured as the founder of Hakodate port, set up , which included the opening the northern to the fisheries. He is credited with turning Hakodate from a trading outpost into a thriving city. A Hakodate magistracy was established in 1802.[3]

[edit] Meiji restoration

The port of Hakodate was surveyed by a fleet of five US ships in 1854 under the conditions of the Treaty of Kanagawa, as negotiated by Commodore Matthew Perry. Hakodate port partially opened to foreign ships for provisioning in the following year and then completely to foreign trade on 2 1859 as one of three Japanese open ports designated in the 1858 Treaty of Amity and Commerce signed with the US.

A mariner in Perry’s fleet died during a visit to the area and became the first US citizen to be buried in Japan when he was interred in Hakodate’s cemetery for foreigners. British merchant, naturalist and spy, Thomas Blakiston, took up residence in Hakodate in the summer of 1861 to establish a saw milling business and in doing so acquainted the city with western culture. He stayed in Hakodate until 1884, during which time he documented the local natural environment, equipped the local meteorological station and ran guns to the Boshin War rebels.[4]

As one of few points of Japanese contact with the outside world, Hakodate was soon host to several overseas consulates. The Russian consulate included a chapel from where Nicholas of Japan is credited with introducing Eastern Orthodox Christianity to Japan in 1861 (now the Japanese Orthodox Church). The Orthodox church is neighbored by several other historical missionary churches, including Anglican and Catholic.

Hakodate also played a central role in the Boshin War between the and the Meiji Emperor which followed Perry’s opening of Japan. Shogunate rebel Takeaki fled to Hakodate with the remnants of his navy and his handful of French advisers in 1866, including Jules Brunet. They formally established the Republic of Ezo on December 25. The republic tried unsuccessfully to gather international to foreign legations in Hakodate, including the Americans, French, and Russians.

The rebels occupied Hakodate’s famous fort and used it as the centre of their defences in southern Hokkaidō. Government forces defeated the secessionists in the Battle of Hakodate in 1869 and the city and fort were surrendered to emperor. Military leader, Hijikata , was one of those slain in the fighting.

In 1878, Isabella Bird reported of the city in her travelogue:

The streets are very wide and clean, but the houses are mean and low. The city looks as if it had just recovered from a conflagration. The houses are nothing but tinder… Stones, however, are its prominent feature. Looking down upon it from above you see miles of grey boulders, and realise that every roof in the windy capital is “hodden doun” by a weight of paving stones.

[edit] 20th century to present day

Hakodate was awarded city status on August 1, 1922. The city escaped most of the ravages of World War II. Areas around were fortified and access restricted to the public. Many prisoners of war were interned in Hakodate and historians record a total of 10 camps.[5] The city was subjected to two Allied bombing raids on 14 and 15 July 1945. Around 400 homes were destroyed on the western side of and an Hakodate ferry was attacked with 400 passengers killed.

Hakodate’s size nearly doubled on December 1, 2004 when the neighboring municipalities of Toi, Esan, Todohokke and Minamikayabe were merged into it.

[edit] Geography
Night view seen from Mount Hakodate.
Night view seen from Mount Hakodate.

Hakodate is located in the centre of peninsula.

The city is overlooked by Mount Hakodate (函館山, ?), a lumpy, forested mountain whose summit can be reached by hiking trail, cable car, or car. The night view from the summit is renowned in Japan as one of the best in the country. An obscure local nickname of the bumpy mountain is Gagyuzan (Mount Cow’s Back), alluding to the way the mountain resembles a resting cow.

The former Goryukaku fort is now used in as a public park and is popular in Hokkaidō for hanami (cherry blossom viewing). Since April 2006, the park has also featured the tall, white Tower. Resembling an air traffic control tower, the structure offers a panoramic view of the park, including mainland Japan across the Tsugaru Strait on clear days.

[edit] Nearby cities and towns

* Hokuto city to the west
* : Nanae town to the north
* : Shibkabe town to the north east
Located at the southern tip of , Hakodate features a relatively temperate climate and bountiful nature and has continued to develop as a center of administration, economy and culture in southern . Opened as Japan’s first port of international trade, Hakodate has experienced contact with various foreign cultures. This influence can still be felt in the city streets and the Western Area to this day. These cityscapes and the night view from the top of Mt. Hakodate, fresh and abundant seafood and hot spas are some of the assets that attract about 5 million visitors annually to Hakodate.
The city underwent a merger with surrounding 4 municipalities in December of 2004 and became one of the nation’s leading marine cities as a result. In May 2005, construction of the Shinkansen line between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate started. In 2006, the regular international flight service between Hakodate and Seoul (Inchon) was inaugurated.

Hakodate Chronology
1454 Masamichi Kawano builds a residence in Usukeshi. Hakodate (”box house”) named after the
form of the building.
1793 Laxman, a Russian envoy, arrives in Hakodate in the Ekaterina.
1799 Kahei Takadaya opens the Route. Fishing grounds developed by him the following year.
1802 Ezo Magistrate’s established in February. Renamed Hakodate Magistrate’s in May.
1854 Treaty of Peace and Amity concluded between Commodore Perry of the US Navy and Japan.
A fleet of five US ships enters Hakodate to survey the bay.
1855 Hakodate port partially opened for provision of food and water to foreign ships.
1858 The shogunate concludes Treaty of Amity and Commerce with five countries: US, , Russia, and France.
1859 Hakodate, Yokohama, Nagasaki designated as free ports. Hakodate Port fully opened on 2nd. (July 1st by lunar calendar)
1864 Construction of , a star-shaped citadel, completed.
1869 surrendered to the imperial forces. Ezo renamed .
1922 Hakodate municipalized.
1935 July 1 designated as the Day of Opening of Port. The first Hakodate Port Festival held on the day to celebrate the 77th anniversary of Hakodate Port. “Hidari Tomoe” designated as the city emblem.
1939 Merges with Yunokawa town.
1966 Merges with Zenikamezawa village.
1972 Hakodate Goodwill Citizens Ship visits and Khabarovsk commemorating the 50th anniversary of the city government.
1972 Merges with city.
1982 Twin-city affiliation concluded with Halifax, Canada
1983 The Russian Orthodox Church designated as an important cultural property.
1988 Seikan Tunnel opens followed by the closing of the 80-year-old Seikan Ferry
1989 Seikan twin city agreement concluded with Aomori
Hakodate declared of Tourism
1992 Sister-city affiliations concluded with , Russia and Lake Macquarie, Australia
1994 Far Eastern State University Hakodate Branch opens.
International regular air route opens between Hakodate and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia
1997 International Star-Shaped Cities Summit held in Hakodate.
Sister-city affiliation concluded with Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk
2001 Friendship-city affiliation concluded with Tianjin, China.
2003 Recognized as national Marine Frontier Science Technology Research Zone.
Hakodate of Consulate-General of Russian Federation in Sapporo opens.
Hakodate International Trading Incorporation, HAFEXX, opens.
2004 Merges with Toi, Esan, Todohokke and Minami-Kayabe towns.
2005 Construction of the Shin-Aomori / Shin-Hakodate section of the Shinkansen line started.
Regular international container route between Hakodate Port and Pusan Port, South Korea inaugurated.
2006 International regular air route between Hakodate and Seoul (Inchon), inaugurated.

Surrounding Environment
Hakodate is located in the south eastern part of Peninsula at latitude 41°46′ north, longitude140° 44′ east, and the total area is 677.79km². With Mt. Hakodate (elev. 334m) as its pivot, the city spreads out in a fan-like form to the north and faces Aomori across Tsugaru Straits. Surrounded by three seas, Hakodate enjoys relatively mild climate with light snowfall for , thanks to the marine climate influenced by warm Tsushima Current.

Climate
Classification 2003 2004 2005

Atmospheric Temperature
Annual Average 9.1 10.1 9.2
Maximum 28.0 32.2 30.7
Minimum -9.8 -11.1 -12.7
Annual Precipitation (mm) 960.5 1,468.0 1,148.0
Annual Average Relative Humidity (%) 73 71 73
Annual Average Wind Velocity (m/s) 3.4 3.6 3.5
Annual Average Sea-Level Pressure (hPa) 1,013.9 1,012.8 1,011.9

Atmospheric Temperature Precipitation
January -2.0 131.5
February -3.3 97.0
March 0.9 80.5
April 7.4 61.5
May 10.4 63.5
16.8 43.0
July 19.3 180.5
August 23.6 101.0
September 19.2 105.0
October 13.5 83.0
November 6.1 108.5
December -1.9 93.0

(2005)Data from Hakodate Marine Meteorological Observatory

Population
294,732 (as of May 2006)

International Exchanges
Capitalizing on the history of development as Japan’s first port of international trade, Hakodate is engaged in a variety of international exchanges. Among them are friendly relations with four sister cities and a friendship city, commercial relations with neighbouring countries through the collaboration with Hakodate International Trading Incorporation, and the participation in the International Star-Shaped Citadel Cities Summit that aims at world peace.

Sister Cities
Halifax, Canada (affiliated in 1982)
In response to the growing voice requiring a sister city abroad, the affiliation was concluded with Halifax that shares some similarities with Hakodate such as Halifax Citadel comparable to . Affiliated in 1982 at the time of the 60th anniversary of the Hakodate city administration.

Activities:
-Administrative, economic, civic delegations visiting each other
-Language study tours for high school students
-College students’ exchanges
-Library exchanges
-Co-hosting of the International Star-Shaped Citadel Cities Summit
-Support for the Hakodate Christmas Fantasy

, Russia (affiliated in 1992)
Affiliated at the time of the 70th anniversary of the Hakodate city administration as a result of an active campaign by friendship associations among citizens.

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