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Concept
Shuri, Okinawa
Summary
Shuri is a district of the city of Naha, Okinawa, Japan. It was formerly a separate city in and of itself, and the royal capital of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. A number of famous historical sites are located in Shuri, including Shuri Castle, the Shureimon gate, Sunuhyan-utaki (a sacred space of the native Ryukyuan religion), and royal mausoleum Tamaudun, all of which are designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
Originally established as a castle town surrounding the royal palace, Shuri ceased to be the capital when the kingdom was abolished and incorporated into Japan as Okinawa prefecture. In 1896, Shuri was made a ward of the new prefectural capital, Naha, though it was made a separate city again in 1921. In 1954, it was merged again into Naha.
Shuri Castle was first built during the reign of Shunbajunki (r. 1237–1248), who ruled from nearby Urasoe Castle. This was nearly a century before Okinawa Island would become divided into the three kingdoms of Hokuzan, Nanzan, and Chūzan; nearly two centuries before the unification of those kingdoms and establishment of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. The island was not yet an organized or unified kingdom, but rather a collection of local chieftains (anji) loyal to the chief chieftain in Urasoe.
Historian George H. Kerr describes Shuri Castle as "one of the most magnificent castle sites to be found anywhere in the world, for it commands the countryside below for miles around and looks toward distant sea horizons on every side."
By 1266, Okinawa was collecting tribute from the communities of the nearby islands of Iheya, Kumejima, and Kerama, as well as the more distant Amami Islands; new governmental offices to manage this tribute were established at the port of Tomari, which lay just below the castle, to the north.
Shō Hashi (r. 1422–1439), first king of the unified Ryūkyū Kingdom, made Shuri his capital, and oversaw expansion of the castle and the city. Shuri would remain the royal capital for roughly 450 years.
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