My favorite part of Nikko are the Temples and Shrines. The most famous is the Toshogu Shrine (hence my blog web address). The Toshogu Shrine was built in 1617 as the mausoleum of the Tokugawa Ieyasu. Ieyasu was the most important Shogun of Japanese history as he was the first Shogun to completely unify the country. The Tokugawa family reigned for over 250 years, longer than the age of the United States.
The main shrine buildings were built by the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu in 1636. The Yomeimon, probably the most famous work of architecture in Nikko, was built in 1636. It is the most elaborately decorated of the shrine buildings of Toshogu. The workmanship is amazing as witnessed in the decorative carvings and other designs.
