St. Francis Xavier Memorial Church
This church is a catholic church in Hirado, Nagasaki. Hirado is a place where Francis
Xavier visited 3 times in Japan to spread Christianity, and even during the Kinkyo
Ordinance of the Edo Period that prohibited religions, Christianity was very widespread.
For that reason when the ordinance was lifted this church was constructed, and the image
of Francis Xavier was put on the side.
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Francis Xavier visited here |
Catholic church in Hirado |
St. Francis Xavier statue |
One of the sites of the town is “the view of temples and church” which can be had halfway up
the lane leading up the hill. The church was originally built on a different site in 1913, but was
reconstructed at its present location in 1931.
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Matsura Historical Museum
The museum stores and displays the historical collection of the Matsura family who ruled
over the northern area of Nagasaki prefecture since the 13th century.
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The museum is housed in the former private residence of the Matsura family, the grand
Tsurugamine Mansion, built in 1893. Hirado has a long history of overseas exchange due
to its geographical location.
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Yamada Church
After the discovery of the numerous hidden Christians in Ikitsuki Island in 1865, they began
to work on recovering their Catholic faith although they were not too successful at first.
Then in 1878, a priest named Fr. Pelu came to Hirado and baptized many people who are
said to be the ancestors of the churchgoers of Yamada Church today.
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The butterfly-wing decorations adorning the wall surface of the church interior was personally
made and painted on by the priest at the time, and the mosaic-like paintings are made from
actually, ground butterfly wings. These are considered as one of the church’s “seven sacraments.”
In 1981, St. Thomas Nishi along with 15 other martyrs were beatified in the Philippines. St.Thomas
was later canonized and a statue of him was built in commemoration of his canonization, in a
garden in Ikitsuki.
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Dutch Trading Post
Set up in Hirado in 1609 as the base of operations of the Dutch East India Company in Japan.
The building seen today is a warehouse which was originally constructed here in 1639 as part
of the trading post, but torn down just three years later after the Dutch had been relocated to
Dejima Island in the port of Nagasaki.
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The warehouse was reconstructed in 2011. It was built as close to the original design as possible
and exhibits the facility’s original Dutch architecture of interlocking stone blocks supported by large,
exposed wooden beams. The structure is capped by a Japanese-style tile roof, just like the original.
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General information
| Address | 2477 Okubo, Hirado-city, Nagasaki-prefecture |
| Access |
5 minutes walk from Hirado bus terminal |
| Open hours | 8:30 to 17:30 |
| Admission fee | JPY 300 |
| Days closed | the third Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of June |
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Nakae no Shima / Christian Pilgrimage site
Nakae no Shima is a Christian Pilgrimage site and is the UNESCO World Heritage site of
Hidden Chriatian Sites in the Nagasaki Region. Located two kilometers off the coast of
Hirado Island, Nakae no Shima is a small, uninhabited island where religious leaders
were executed during the persecution of Christians. The island is considered sacred,
and water collected there is used for baptism.
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Tabira Church
The church is a Christian Pilgrimage site and was designed by Tetsukawa Yosuke, a famous
architect of various churches in Nagasaki-prefecture, and built between December 1915 and
October 1917. It is one of the latest brick churches in the prefecture of Nagasaki. Tetsukawa
Yosuke has called this one of his best works. The beautiful building facing Hirado Strait offers
artists and photographers a motif typical of the Tabira district. The church has been designated
an important cultural asset by the Japanese government.
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The history of the Tabira district began with the work of two foreign missionaries. In 1886,
the French missionary Emile Raguet, in charge of Kuroshima Church at the time, purchased
one hectare (2.5 acres) of wilderness at his own expense and urged three families in need to
settle there. The same year, Marc-Marie de Rotz of Shitsu Church bought one hectare and
sent four families to cultivate the pristine land. Gradually the number of the settlers increased a
nd reached 80 families by the early Taisho era (1910s).
In 1914, the Japanese priest Nakata Tokichi arrived in the parish. To replace the humble prayer
house, he made tremendous efforts to raise funds for a formal church. Tetsukawa Yosuke designed
the brick building, and the parishioners cooperated in the construction project, gathering a large
number of seashells and burning them into lime powder. The site of the processing ground still
remains in front of the church. Construction was finally completed under Tetsukawa’s supervision
in 1918. The brick church was the architect’s last in a long series of ecclesiastical works.
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General information
| Address | 19 Kotedamen, Tabiracho, Hirado-city, Nagasaki-prefecture |
| Access |
1 hours and 50 minutes by a vehicle from Nagasaki-city 50 minutes by a vehicle from Sasebo-city 2 hour and 15 minutes by a vehicle from Fukuoka-city |
| Open hours | 9:00 to 12:00 and 13:00 to 17:00 |
| Admission fee | No fee is required |
| Days closed | No closing day |
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Hirado Castle
Stands on a hill guarding Hirado Port and the Hirado Strait, which used to be part of an important
trade route between Japan and the Asian mainland. The original fortress was built in 1599 by the
local Matsura Lord; however, he destroyed the structure after fighting the Tokugawa on the losing
side of the Battle of Sekigahara as a gesture of loyalty to the victor. The Matsura Clan continued
ruling Hirado for the next two and a half centuries.
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A new castle, also known as Kameoka Castle was built on the site a hundred years later in 1718 as
part of the coastal defences erected during Japan’s self imposed seclusion in the Edo Period.
This structure stood for over 150 years, but eventually fell into disrepair and was dismantled during
the Meiji Period.
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General information
| Address | 1458 Iwaanouemachi, Hirado-city, Nagasaki-prefecture |
| Access |
1 hours and 50 minutes by a vehicle from Nagasaki-city 50 minutes by a vehicle from Sasebo-city 2 hour and 15 minutes by a vehicle from Fukuoka-city |
| Open hours | 8:30 to 17:30 |
| Admission fee | 510 JPY |
| Days closed | December 30 and 31 |
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Kasuga Village / Hidden Christian Site
Kasuga Village and Mount Yasugatake is a Christian Pilgrimage site and is registered on
the World Heritage as Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region.
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This idyllic, remote village was refuge to a small community of Hidden Christians who practiced here
for centuries, far from the prying eyes of the government. After the ban on Christianity was lifted, the
local villagers decided to continue practicing their own unique brand of the religion rather than rejoin
the Catholic Church. As a result, churches were not erected in the village, and the religion remains
outwardly invisible.
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General information
| Address | Kasuga Village Kararina : 166-1, Kasuga-cyo, Hirado-city, Nagasaki-prefecture |
| Access |
1 hours and 50 minutes by a vehicle from Nagasaki-city 50 minutes by a vehicle from Sasebo-city 2 hour and 15 minutes by a vehicle from Fukuoka-city |
| Open hours | 8:30 to 17:30 |
| Admission fee | No fee is required |
| Days closed | Dec. 31 to Jan. 3 |
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