In 1857, four years after Commodore Matthew Perry forced the opening of Japanese ports, the Magistrate’s Office (Bugyosho) of Hakodate was the administrative center of the Ezo region and a diplomatic base representing the shogunate. It was located next to the port, at the foot of Mount Hakodate.
Anxious about the hard to defend position, the officials decided to move the building and to protect it with a fort. The new Goryokaku fort was built far from the shore, and the Magistrate’s Office was moved right inside its walls. Covering an area of more than 250,000 square meters, Goryokaku was Japan’s first and largest Western-style
Anxious about the hard to defend position, the officials decided to move the building and to protect it with a fort. The new Goryokaku fort was built far from the shore, and the Magistrate’s Office was moved right inside its walls. Covering an area of more than 250,000 square meters, Goryokaku was Japan’s first and largest Western-style