Hamazaki, Fukui

Hamazaki (浜崎市) is a city in Fukui, Hinomoto, Yamatai. Located on Yonojima Island in north-east Hinomoto, it is the largest city on the island and has a population of 631,636.

Hamazaki is a transport hub in the north of Hinomoto, and Hamazaki Station is the Hinoan terminus of the Hamato Express and other rail lines passing through the Chisei-Hinomoto Tunnel. Since the opening of the Chisei-Hinomoto Tunnel, the city has undergone a revival and now has a booming tourism industry catering to Chiseian day-trip tourists and other travellers proceeding beyond Hamazaki. There are also several casinos in Hamazaki catering to tourists. Hamazaki Station is the only train station in Yamatai to have signs in, and such Saramosiri-friendly signs are common throughout the city as well.

In 2018, the Yamatai Air Defence Force vacated the Hamazaki Airfield, which was expanded into the new Hamazaki International Airport in early 2020 to cater to domestic and regional flights.

Early history
Yonojima Island was only sparsely inhabited until the 15th century, when bushi Higashizono Nobumasa established a military port to carry out anti-piracy activities on the orders of his patron, the Kinoshita Clan. The fort quickly became a strategic hub after Lord Kinoshita Teruyoshi ordered Higashizono to build Hamazaki Castle in 1500, in order to act as a front line against a feared invasion from Chisei. After the completion of the castle in 1505, Higashizono and his family was granted oversight over the Hamazaki area for his loyalty to the Kinoshita, and he built a large private estate at the inn-town of Urawa, today the Yonojima Historical Museum.

Hamazaki would see major expansions in the 16th century, when the Hinoan Shogunate had become subordinate to the Yamataian Empire, and Yonojima became a major staging ground for the Yamataian invasion of Chisei. The expansion of military facilities and the Hamazaki Port, as well as logistical support for the invasion forces, provided heavy prestige and wealth to the Higashizono Clan. During the period of Yamataian occupation on the mainland, Hamazaki served as a crucial resupply port for vessels moving between the mainland and Hinomoto.

In 1611, the Shirakawans invaded Hinomoto in the Second Shiro-Yamataian War. Yonojima was invaded conquered in late spring, with the castle heavily damaged and occupied. Yonojima in turn became the staging area for the Shirakawan invasion, and later again continued acting as a resupply port and military port for Shirakawan vessels throughout the period of occupation. The Higashizono Clan followed the Kinoshita Clan to Yamatai, where they became fiefless Botsuhan Clans that nonetheless participated in the increasingly Hinoan-dominated Yamataian Imperial Court.

Following the Third Shiro-Yamataian War in 1676, the Shirakawans were driven out of Hinomoto. While the Kinoshita Clan chose not to return to their lands in Hinomoto, remaining as Botsuhan, the Higashizono Clan returned to Yonojima under Higashizono Munehide. Extensive renovations were made to Hamazaki Castle, which had been abandoned by the Shirakawans due to the heavy damage it sustained in the Second Shiro-Yamataian War. Higashizono Munehide later aligned himself with Fukumura Mochimune, who challenged the ruling Sakuma Shogunate in the Incident at Miyahira-ji, seizing control of the Shogunate. The Higashizono were handsomely rewarded for their loyalty, and Hamazaki prospered as well.

Modern history
After the annexation of Hinomoto into the Yamataian Empire in 1867, the Higashizono Clan like all other Hinoan feudal clans were stripped of their holdings. The Higashizono lands were merged with the lands of the Miyake, Naitou, and Gosanke Clans to form the Fukui Region. The Yamatai Imperial Navy initially took great interest in Hamazaki due to its strategic location. However, the harbour was deemed too small for heavy naval activity, and the Navy established their base at Tohama instead. With Yamatai-led industrial development occurring further south and leaving much of Yonojima unspoiled, Yonojima and Hamazaki became favoured amongst the Yamataian elite as a "rustic" holiday spot. Hamazaki was still a crucial port for interactions with mainland Chisei, and in 1885 a ferry service between Hamazaki, Toshima, and Amagishi was begun by the Higashi Shipping Company.

Hamazaki once again became a major military staging area during the First Escar-Varunan War, housing Yamatai Imperial Army troops preparing to be deployed to Chisei. A submarine base was constructed in Hamazaki to shelter Yamataian submarines carrying out raids along the Chiseian coast. After the Yamataian victory in the war, Hamazaki became a major military installation with the establishment of the Hamazaki Airfield, becoming a crucial stopover in military logistics between Hinomoto and the New Territories. In 1928, the Urawabashi Bridge was completed, linking Yonojima Island with the Hinoan mainland for the first time, and enabling a rail connection to Hamazaki. Hamazaki Station was completed in 1930, and was officially opened by Crown Princess Kiyono.

During the Second Escar-Varunan War, Hamazaki Airfield was the base for the 1st and 3rd Imperial Army Bomber Squadrons, which initially provided air support for troops fighting defensively on the mainland and later carried out long-range bombing raids into Chisei. Hamazaki Airfield was also a staging area for paratroop formations that deployed into Chisei during the Yamataian counter-offensive. When the war turned against Yamatai, Hamazaki was subject to numerous punitive bombing raids by Chisei and the Allies, with over two-thirds of the city burning to the ground after a particularly devastating raid on 16 June 1943. Hamazaki was quickly captured during the Invasion of Hinomoto by the Allies, and again became an important staging area for the Allied invasion, though the Hamazaki Airfield had been rendered inoperable by Imperial Army engineers prior to their retreat. Hamazaki briefly served as the headquarters for the Allied invasion effort before it was moved to the port of Akakiri after the crucial port city was captured.

Due to its loss of strategic importance after larger cities were captured towards the south, the Allies vacated Hamazaki and largely left the city to its own devices during the Occupation of Hinomoto. The city quickly became a noted tourist destination for Chiseian troops on leave due to numerous uncontrolled gambling dens and a substantial red light district that had appeared following the war. In 1952, Mayor Nonaka Yoshinori started a movement to clean up Hamazaki and restore its reputation, and succeeded in aggressively driving out many criminal groups, though the red light district remains to this day.

Present day
After the handover of Hinomoto in 1974, Hamazaki Airfield was taken over by the Yamatai Air Defence Force, which stationed the 33rd Fighter Wing there. With construction beginning on the Chisei-Hinomoto Tunnel, Yonojima saw a large increase in activity and Hamazaki and its surrounding towns experienced an economic upturn. Seeking to capitalise on the eventual completion of the tunnel, various tourist sites and attractions such as the Little Heian shopping district in downtown Hamazaki were created, initially with poor returns. However, after the completion of the tunnel in 1988, heavy tourist activity began in the area via the rail link.

In 1994, the neighbouring town of Sakura was merged into Hamazaki City.

In 2018, the Air Defence Force vacated the Hamazaki Airfield, which was sold to the Government of Hinomoto. Expansion into a regional airport began, and in 2020 the Hamazaki International Airport opened, with flights to Chisei, Shojin, Chanha, and domestic flights throughout Hinomoto and Yamatai.

Ferries
Hamazaki Ferry Terminal is a substantial civilian port that has facilities for both ferries and cruise liners. There are multiple daily ferries between Hamazaki, Toshima, and Amagishi, run by the Higashi Shipping Company.

Rail
Hamazaki Station is the terminus for the Hamato Express, a high-speed passenger rail service between Hamazaki and Toshima, Chisei, via the Chisei-Hinomoto Tunnel. Hamazaki is a major train depot for cargo and other longer-distance passenger trains heading into Hinomoto via the Urawabashi Bridge.

Inside of the city, there are tram services.

Air
Hamazaki International Airport opened in January 2020, and has regional international flights to Chisei, Shojin, and Chanha, as well as domestic flights throughout Hinomoto and Yamatai. The carriers at the airport are mostly low-cost regional budget carriers. The airport was opened to help ease the flow of travellers heading to other locations in Yamatai, who previously had to take the train to Fukui Regional Airport for domestic flights.

Visitor attractions
Hamazaki Castle has been preserved and converted into a museum dedicated to the history of Hamazaki, the castle, and the Higashizono Clan. The castle also affords spectacular panoramic views of the city and surrounding countryside.

Little Heian is a shopping district in downtown Hamazaki modelled after the Shinsekai shopping district in Sōtenbori, Heian. In addition, there are numerous museums catering to both local, Hinoan, and Yamataian history, as well as the Naisen Jidai! Yamataian Civil War theme park.

There are also numerous legal casinos in the area around Midori Street, which is also home to the red-light district.