Satsuma Students Statue

Kagoshima


This statue and landmark commemorates the students from Satsuma (the feudal name for Kagoshima) who went to study Western technology in the UK in 1865. Their mission was said to be the spark of Japan's industrial revolution.


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Nearby Kagoshima attractions

1. Statue of Ōkubo Toshimichi

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This monument honours the Kagoshima samurai turned statesman (1830–78) who helped overthrow the feudal regime and pave the way for the modernisation of…

2. Museum of the Meiji Restoration

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This museum offers insights into the unique social system of education, samurai loyalty and sword techniques that made Satsuma one of Japan's leading…

3. St Francis Xavier Church

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This landmark church, originally built in 1908 but rebuilt in 1999, honors the first Christian missionary to visit Japan.

4. Terukuni-jinja

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This famous shrine is in memory of Shimazu Nariakira (1809–58), celebrated 11th leader of the Satsuma clan in the late Edo period. He is credited with…

5. Nishi Hongan-ji Kagoshima Betsuin

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The current building of this large Buddhist temple near Tenmonkan dates from 1982 and was renovated in 2013. Inside, it's unlike most temples you may have…

6. Saigō Takamori Statue

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Kagoshima's most famous historical figure, Saigō Takamori has been called the 'last samurai' and was known as both a loyalist and a rebel. His statue is…

7. Kagoshima City Museum of Art

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The Kagoshima City Museum of Art has a small permanent collection of works by modern-day Kagoshima painters, as well as some 16th-century porcelains and…

8. Kagoshima City Hall

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Kagoshima's large city hall, in a tan brick building, is a handy landmark.