Fukuchiyama, Castle town in northern Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Fukuchiyama is a castle town in northern Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, that spreads across wooded hills and the floodplain of the Yura River. The center gathers shops, residential streets and public buildings around the railway station, while rice paddies and smaller hamlets mark the outer districts.
General Akechi Mitsuhide built a castle here in 1579, laying the foundation for the present town. During the Edo period the settlement served as the administrative center for the local clan and linked the coastal areas with the interior.
The town's name translates as "mountain of fortune" and dates back to samurai rule. Fukuchiyama Castle's reconstruction in the 1980s now serves as a history museum where visitors can climb to the upper floors and look out over the rooftops and river below.
Regional trains on the JR West line link the town with Osaka, Kyoto and the San'in coast. Local buses run to surrounding villages and the castle site, while the main streets in the center are easy to walk.
The railway museum preserves a large collection of locomotives that document the shift from steam power to modern rolling stock. Visitors can step inside some of the carriages and examine the fittings from different eras.
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