Hama-rikyu Gardens is an excellent example of the feudal lord gardens which arose after the Tokugawa shogun clan took possession of Edo. The garden is 25 hectares in area, making it one of the largest remaining feudal lord gardens in Tokyo.
The garden got its start when Matsudaira Tsunashige, a relative of the Tokugawa shogun clan and lord of Kofu Domain, was granted a villa in Edo in 1652 by Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth Tokugawa shogun. The majority of the land was shallow sea. The estate was known by various names, including the Kofu Hama Palace and the Estate by the Sea.
In 1707, the grounds underwent major renovations. A garden was created in the northwest corner, a large pond was constructed which drew in sea water (the Shioiri Pond)*, and a bridge across the pond was built (the Otsutai-bashi). Other new buildings were also erected, including a tea house, temple to Kannon, and the Otemon Gate.
During the time of Tokugawa Ienobu (1709-1712), the sixth Tokugawa shogun, the estate’s name was changed to Hama Goten (“Beach Palace”); for 160 years thereafter, it was used as a villa for the clan of the shogun. As an envoy for the Emperor, Ienobu used the estate frequently to receive court nobles visiting Edo. Ienobu and his visitors would recite poetry while looking out over the pond from the tea house, listen to music while floating on boats in the pond, and look in on the state of rice being grown in paddies in the garden.
From 1789 to 1804, Tokugawa Ienari, the 11th Tokugawa shogun, frequently came to the estate for falconry*. (Falconry had long been a pastime of the samurai, but by this time it had become common to do so not in the wild but at one’s own duck reserve*.) Kodai’in, Ienari’s legal wife, also visited the estate in August of 1826 and enjoyed fishing in the pond.
Based on the likes and whims of the shogun at the time, the estate was also used to cultivate various garden plants such as Japanese apricots, as a horse riding and military arts training ground, and space for researching science and industry such as pottery and weaving.
