Stone Lantern Dedicated by Mizuno Tadanao
The ornate stone lantern on the southern side of the Honmaru Garden was originally a gift from Matsumoto’s Lord Mizuno Tadanao (1652–1713) to Kan’eiji Temple in Tokyo. He donated it in 1681 in memory of the fourth Tokugawa shogun, Ietsuna (1641–1680). In 1953, the lantern was brought back to Matsumoto by a resident who purchased it from the temple.
Toda Family Stone Lanterns
Three stone lanterns and a stone washbasin stand in the perimeter of the Honmaru Garden. They originally stood on the grounds of a residence in Edo (now Tokyo) owned by the Toda family, who were lords of Matsumoto Castle between 1617 and 1633 and again between 1726 and 1869.
Ogasawara Peonies
The white peonies in the Honmaru Garden have nearly 500 years of history. In 1550, the Matsumoto region was ruled by the Ogasawara family, but the warlord Takeda Shingen (1521–1573) was moving to attack them from the south. Ogasawara Nagatoki (1514–1583) decided to flee, but he preserved his treasured white peonies by having them moved to Tosenji Temple. Over the centuries, the peonies were maintained and propagated by one of the temple’s parishioner families, who later donated the flowers that now grace the castle garden.
Komatsunagi Cherry Tree
A cherry tree in the Honmaru Garden is associated with a colorful castle legend: in the 1590s, lord Ishikawa Yasunaga (1554–1642) hosted fellow daimyo Katō Kiyomasa (1562–1611) at Matsumoto Castle. At the end of Kiyomasa’s stay, Yasunaga offered him one of two peerless horses. Kiyomasa famously took both.
Kiyomasa is said to have tied his steeds to a cherry tree before departing, and the current Komatsunagi (“horse-tether”) Cherry Tree is the modern successor to the tree of legend.
