Yamanashi Gokoku Shrine
山梨縣護國神社- Kōfu StationChūō Main LineMinobu Line
- Walk 39 minutes
- 16 minutes bus drive to 武田神社
Yamanashi Gokoku Shrine is a Shinto shrine in the northern part of Kofu. As a gokoku ("nation-protecting") shrine, it is dedicated to the spirits of the war dead and military personnel connected to the prefecture. The shrine traces its origins to December 1879, when the spirits of fifty men from Yamanashi who had died fighting as government soldiers in Japan's civil conflicts were enshrined at Ota-machi in Kofu. In November 1944 it moved to its present site, and today it honours more than 25,000 spirits of those who died in conflicts from the First Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War through to the Pacific War.
The current grounds carry their own history. The site was formerly Eikeiji, the family temple of Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, lord of the Kofu domain in the Edo period. It was also known as a scenic spot, designated one of the "Eight Views of Kai" by Yoshiyasu's son Yoshisato.
In more recent years around 300 cherry trees have been planted on the grounds, making the shrine one of the best-known places to see cherry blossom near Kofu; in spring it draws many visitors from within the prefecture and beyond.
It is also one of relatively few shrines in Yamanashi where visitors may come with their pets.
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