Explanation of the Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido 10 Odawara
16.6km from Hakone to Odawara, 35°14′55.4″N, 139°9′39.7″E
Odawara is the ninja town at the ninja station of the Tokaido.
Odawara is in the western part of Kanagawa Prefecture.
Located in the southwestern corner of the Kanto region, it flourished as a castle town of the Later Hojo clan during the Sengoku period.
It is the home of the Fuuma ninja, who supported the prosperity of the five generations of the Hojo clan from Hojo Soun to Hojo Ujinao.
There are four honjin , four wakihonjin , and 95 hatago, with a population of 5,404 and 1,542 houses.
During the Edo period, Odawara was a castle town of the Odawara Domain, whose lord was a fudai daimyo, and was a key point in the eastern region.
Since 1686, it has been a castle town of the Okubo clan for generations.
Odawara-juku was the largest of the 53 Stations of the Tokaido, located before crossing the Hakone Mountains.
Kayama, on the outskirts of Odawara, is famous as the birthplace of Ninomiya Sontoku, an agricultural politician.
Odawara Castle is a castle on the Hirayama mountainside.
The Hojo clan built their residence around the current castle tower, and used Hachimanyama, which is behind it, as a defensive castle.
The residence dates back to the Omori clan, who preceded the Hojo clan.
During the Omori clan’s time, it was closer to the Tokaido and remains from the 15th century have actually been excavated.
During the time of the third head of the family, Hojo Ujiyasu, it was said to be an impregnable and invincible castle.
It withstood attacks by Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen.
During the Edo period, the residence was renovated into a modern castle, and became the main castle of the current Odawara Castle site.
Early modern and medieval castles coexisted throughout the Edo period, and it is a rare castle in Japan in that both ruins remain today.
Its greatest feature is the vast outer wall built to counter the Toyotomi forces.
The entire town of Odawara was surrounded by earthworks and dry moats stretching a total of 9 kilometers from Mt. Hachiman to the sea.
In 1614, Tokugawa Ieyasu personally led tens of thousands of troops to remove the outer wall.
After the fall of the Hojo clan, the Okubo clan became the lord of the castle.
Odawara Castle suffered two major earthquakes during the Edo period, in 1633 and 1703.
The Genroku earthquake caused extensive damage, including the collapse of the castle tower and turrets.
The castle tower was rebuilt in 1706, and was dismantled in the Meiji era.
Ninomiya Sontoku was an economist, agricultural politician, and thinker of the late Edo period.
In his handwritten documents, he signed his name as Kinjiro.
He advocated the Hotoku philosophy with the aim of economically and socially benefiting the people, and led a rural revival policy known as the Hotoku Service Method.
He was born as the eldest son of a farmer in what is now Kayama, Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Fuma Kotaro was from Ashigarashimo County, Sagami Province.
He led the Fuma clan or Fuma Ninja, and was the leader of the Ranpa clan, which served the Hojo clan for generations.
After the downfall of the Hojo clan, he went to Edo and is said to have become a thief.
Odawara’s specialty is kamaboko (fish cake).
It was blessed with an abundance of fish due to its proximity to Sagami Bay, and mineral-rich water sourced from the Hakone-Tanzawa mountain range.
It was a post town on the Tokaido road, where many people passed through.
It is different from the grilled kamaboko that is mainstream in the Kansai region.
Steamed kamaboko, a favorite dish of the Edo period, became known throughout the country as a specialty of Odawara.
① “Hoeido version”
A scene of people crossing the Sakagawa River.
The mountain in the background is the mountain of Hakone.
A large number of laborers are crossing the river with palanquins placed on lotus pedestals.
Nude laborers are hanging out on the other side of the river.
At the foot of the mountain, Odawara Castle and the townscape below the castle are depicted.
The Edo shogunate’s policy prohibited the construction of bridges and ferries over the Sakagawa River.
The only way to cross was by foot, with laborers crossing the river.
②”Gyousyo version”
A scene of people crossing the Sakagawa River.
It is drawn from a slightly higher perspective.
The Hakone mountain in the background is depicted in a monotonous manner.
③ “Reisho version”
A scene of people crossing the Sakagawa River.
The scene of people crossing the river is drawn from a close-up.
The Hakone mountain in the background appears low.
④ “Hokusai version”
A scene from a rest area beside the Sakagawa River.
⑤ “Travel image”
The sign for Koiseya.
Koiseya is a restaurant and teahouse with over 400 branches.
Unfortunately, it closed in August 2015.
⑥ “Stamp image”
A stamp from Odawara Station.
Hoeido version
Gyousyo version
Reisho version
Hokusai version
Travel image
Stamp image
