Tate Castle ruins on a small hill in Assabu town located in the northwestern direction of Hakodate city, and is surrounded by fields. The castle is the last castle of Matsumae clan, a daimyo of Matsumae Domain, in the Edo period, and it is said that the castle is the last Japanese style castle in Japan. In the Meiji Restoration, it was attacked by the old Shogunate forces, and the castle was fallen for 75 days after construction.
The castle was not rebuilt. A parking space is along a road, and cherry trees are planted at the site, and there is no sightseeing facility in particular except a very small museum. Tatejo-ato Festival is held on the second Sunday in June, and visitors can enjoy the stage of Hakodate war. Admission free. The parking space is free of charge.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.