Around Daiba Station: before it was Daiba

Odaiba Was Built to Defend Edo Against Foreign Warships

Odaiba's name comes from a chain of coastal gun batteries constructed by the Tokugawa shogunate. After Commodore Matthew Perry's fleet arrived in 1853, the government began building artificial defensive islands off Shinagawa to protect Edo from foreign warships. These fortifications became known as Shinagawa Odaiba. The original project called for eleven offshore batteries, later revised to twelve positions including a land-based battery. Construction ended in December 1854, after five offshore batteries and one coastal battery had been completed. Two of the offshore structures, the Third and Sixth Batteries, survive today. They were designated National Historic Sites in 1926. The district's modern shopping centers, entertainment venues, and waterfront attractions developed around a name that originally referred to military defenses. Odaiba was not first conceived as reclaimed land for leisure; it was a defensive line across Edo Bay.

→ From the Odaiba waterfront, look toward the surviving Third Battery and its distinctive artificial-island outline.

Sources (in Japanese): 港区史・通史編 近世下：品川台場

Was Odaiba Built to Defend Edo Against American Warships?

Odaiba began as a chain of artificial gun batteries built to defend Edo from foreign warships. When Commodore Matthew Perry arrived at Uraga in June 1853, the Tokugawa government urgently reconsidered its coastal defenses.

Under the direction of Hidetatsu Egawa, construction began in August 1853. The ambitious plan called for eleven fortified islands across Edo Bay. Workers reclaimed land from the sea, constructed stone embankments and prepared positions for artillery. The first three batteries involved approximately 5,000 laborers, while the overall construction cost reached 750,000 ryo.

The first, second and third batteries were completed in July 1854. The fifth, sixth and Gotenyamashita batteries followed that December. Only six of the eleven planned installations were finished.

The batteries remained under guard until shortly before the shogunate collapsed in 1868. They subsequently lost their military purpose. In 1926, the third and sixth batteries became nationally designated historic sites. The third battery opened as Daiba Park in July 1928, preserving a remarkable piece of the city's defensive landscape.

→ From Odaiba Marine Park, look toward the stone walls of the Third Battery. Explore Daiba Park's surviving earthworks and gun positions, and spot the protected Sixth Battery offshore.

Sources (in Japanese): 東京港埠頭株式会社・海上公園なび：台場の歴史