Ashikaga School

It is the oldest school in Japan and is designated as a national historic site. There is no clear information on the founding of the school, and there are various theories as to the exact date of its founding.

Some say that Ono Takamura founded the school in the early Heian period (794-1192). After the middle of the Muromachi period (1336-1573), Uesugi Norimitsu, a feudal lord of Kanto, invited Kaigen, a monk of Engakuji Temple in Kamakura, to become the first head of the school in 1439, and established school regulations and trained students.

The school maintained academic continuity even in the midst of fierce warfare, and produced more than 3,000 students. Its achievements were remarkable and were introduced abroad by the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier.

Today, the museum is open to the public in a recreation of its Edo period appearance. Visitors can see the kind of environment in which students studied and learned in those days.

On Sundays, there is also a program in which all participants can try their hand at reading the Analects of Confucius out loud.

In the center of the hall is a seated statue of Confucius, to the right is a statue of Ono Takamura, said to be the founder of the Ashikaga School, and to the left is the Deity of Tokugawa Ieyasu.

To the left of the mausoleum is the Ashikaga Gakko Site Library, where many old documents are preserved.

It is believed that the school was founded in the early Heian or Kamakura period. The Ashikaga School Site was designated as a national historic site in 1921, and was recognized as a “Japan Heritage” in 2015. The school was located in Ashikaga-so, Shimono-kuni (present Ashikaga City, Tochigi Prefecture) and served as an institution of higher education.

Ashikaga Gakko flourished even during the period of warfare after the Onin War, and reportedly had more than 3,000 students enrolled.

The school was known as the most prestigious academic institution in the Kanto region during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods.

In particular, in 1549, it was introduced to the world by the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier as “the largest and most famous university in the Kanto region of Japan.

The school was closed in 1872, but since then, a preservation movement has been developed among Ashikaga citizens, and the school has been cherished as a symbol of the community.

On the site of the former Ashikaga School, a seated statue of Confucius is enshrined in the center of the hall, with Ono Takamura, the supposed founder of the school, on the right and Tokugawa Ieyasu’s divine throne on the left. To the left of the mausoleum is the Ashikaga Gakko Site Library, which houses numerous old documents. This is a spot where one can feel a sense of history and nostalgia.

Ashikaga Gakko continued to exist until the first year of Meiji (1868), after which it was used as a library. After the school was closed, it ceased to exist as an organization, and there was a time when only a few remains remained, including parts of the building and the Confucius Temple.

However, following a reevaluation, the Hojo and garden were restored and opened to the public in 1990.

Today, the temple is positioned as an important cultural center of Ashikaga City and is used as a spiritual center for citizens and a place for lifelong learning. It is managed by the Board of Education.

There are various theories as to the date of Ashikaga Gakko’s founding, and the debate has continued for a long time.

Although the school had declined in the early Muromachi period (1333-1573), Uesugi Norinami became the lord of Ashikaga in 1432 (Eikyo 4) and devoted himself to reviving the school. He invited Kaigen, a monk of Engakuji Temple in Kamakura, to take charge of the school and donated his library of books to boost the school. Kaigen later became the “headmaster” of the school, and thereafter, schoolmasters succeeded him from all over the country.

In 1447, Uesugi Norimitsu established three regulations for Ashikaga Villa and Ashikaga School. Among these were the limitation of the studies to be taught at Ashikaga School and the elimination of the Buddhist flavor from the educational content. Therefore, Confucian studies took center stage, but due to Kaigen’s extensive knowledge, Yi-gaku, military science, and medicine were also taught. During the Warring States period, graduates of Ashikaga Gakko acquired practical learning and often served warlords.

The school temporarily declined due to a fire in the Kyoroku era (around 1530), but Kyuka, the seventh headmaster of the school, rebuilt the school under the protection of Hojo Ujimasa, and the number of students reached 3,000 and it enjoyed a prosperous period. At this time, Ashikaga School was well known abroad, and the Christian missionary Xavier wrote of it.

However, the school lost its patron in the conquest of Odawara by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1590, which deprived the school of its financial resources. Nevertheless, San’yo, the ninth headmaster of the school, was able to protect the school under the protection of Tokugawa Ieyasu. In the Edo period (1603-1867), the Ashikaga Gakko became outdated and declined due to the shift to government-run Shu-shi-gaku, but it flourished as a local school for the people of Ashikaga and its suburbs.

In the Edo period (1603-1867), the Ashikaga School received a donation of 100 koku of land, and at the beginning of each year, the Ashikaga School submitted an annual register to the shogunate to predict the fortune of the year. The Ashikaga School was also protected by the lords of Ashikaga and enjoyed a second period of prosperity in the early to mid-Edo period as a local school where people from the Ashikaga area studied.

However, during the Edo period, the Ashikaga School’s studies became outdated, centered on the study of Yi-gaku, due to the officialization of Shu-shi-gaku, which was introduced to the Kanto region from Kyoto. In addition, the continuation of peaceful times meant that practical studies such as Yi-gaku and military science were no longer favored, and the Ashikaga School began to decline. Its role as a center of learning faded quickly, and scholars of the Edo period only focused on the Ashikaga Gakko as a library of valuable classical books.

After the Meiji Restoration, the Ashikaga clan attempted to restore the Ashikaga Gakko as a clan school, but in 1871 the clan was abolished and the Ashikaga Gakko was transferred to the Ashikaga Prefecture (later merged into Tochigi Prefecture), and the school was closed in 1872.

After the school was closed, the eastern half of the site was converted to an elementary school, and many of the buildings were removed. In addition, Tochigi Prefecture attempted to transfer part of the Ashikaga School’s collection to the prefecture, and the Ashikaga School’s buildings and collection were in danger of being scattered. However, thanks to the activities of former Ashikaga clan member Soun Tasaki and others, the books were returned to the local community, and the western half of the Ashikaga School, including the Confucius Temple, was also returned to the local community.

In 1903, the local Ashikaga Town established the Ashikaga Gakko Ruisei Library, the first public library in Tochigi Prefecture, on the Ashikaga Gakko grounds, preserving the old Ashikaga Gakko collection and also collecting books for the general public. In 1921, the Ashikaga School site, Confucius Temple, school gate, and other buildings were designated as a national historic site, and preservation of the site was promoted.

In the 1980s, the elementary school was relocated, and the general books in the relic library were transferred to the Ashikaga Prefectural Library, and preservation of the historic site began. In 1990, the restoration of the building and garden was completed, recreating the site as it was in its heyday during the mid-Edo period.

On April 24, 2015, Ashikaga Gakko was recognized by the Japanese government as a Japan Heritage Site as part of the “Educational Heritage Sites in Early Modern Japan -The Spirit of Learning and the Source of Civility.