12 Yotsuya／四谷

Yotsuya station is located at the crossing of the outer moat of the Edo castle and Koshu-kaido (a major road connecting Edo, Kofu in Yamanashi and Suwa in Nagano) where the guard house and the gate were located in the Edo period (1603-1868). 

The outer moat on the south of the station was excavated in 1636 and reclaimed in 1949 after the WWII.  Since then, the land has been used as a playing field of Sophia University.

Akasaka Palace (the State Guest House), originally built as the Imperial Palace in 1909 at the site formerly used as a Kishu Tokugawa Family’s main residence, is just three-minute walk south of Yotsuya Station.

After the completion of the outer moat in 1936, the inside area of the moat was developed as a residential area for high-class samurai families and many temples were relocated to the outer area of the moat.  After the Great Fire of Meireki in 1657, many merchants and craftsmen also moved to the outer area.  Below is a photo of an alley just in front of Yotsuya station on the northwest side (outside of the moat).

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