Stained Glass

Published July 1, 1998, in "Juku" 1998, No. 213

In the early Meiji era, to meet the educational aspirations of students from regional areas, Keio University established a series of branch schools in places like Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokushima.
Within the 140-year history of the Gijuku, the existence of these branch schools is surprisingly little known.
In this issue, we will introduce schools across the country that bore the name "Gijuku," look back at the history of the branch schools, and trace the footsteps of the Gijuku's development in various regions.

Kyoto Keio Gijuku was established at the request of Masanao Makimura, then a councilor of Kyoto Prefecture, and operated for about one year starting from February 1874.

According to "Keio Gijuku no Ki (Notes on Keio Gijuku)," published at the time of its founding, this branch school opened as "a school where instructors from Keio University at 2-chome, Mita, Tokyo, would be dispatched." It also states, "Although there is only a lecture hall and no rooms for sleeping and eating, a dormitory may be established in the future depending on the students' needs," suggesting there were initial plans to build a dormitory based on student enrollment.

The branch school was located almost in the center of Kyoto City, on the grounds of the Kyoto Shugoshoku (Military Governor of Kyoto) residence in Yabunouchi-cho, Shimotachiuri-dori Shinmachi Nishi-iru, Kamigyo-ku—the site of the present-day Kyoto Prefectural Office. Today, a small stone monument stands just to the right after entering the gate of the Prefectural Office, and another monument, engraved horizontally with the four characters for "independence and self-respect," remains in a secluded spot behind the guardhouse on the left.

Osaka Keio Gijuku was the first branch school of the Gijuku, opened in November 1873 "to provide educational opportunities for students in the Kansai region who found it difficult to travel to the eastern capital (Tokyo)."

Heigoro Shoda, Rokuto Nagoroya, Shigeru Iwata, Senjiro Tsuboi, Zenzo Yabe, Fumio Yano, Michiyo Naka, Yoshikusu Nakai, and others took turns as visiting professors, teaching subjects such as English books, translated books, Western mathematics, and Japanese mathematics. Students were allowed to take multiple courses in one category or across several categories as they wished. Until its closure in June 1875, it educated a total of 86 students: 75 in the English books course and 11 in the translated books course.

The branch school was initially located at "Maruya Zenzo Hikae-ya, No. 192, 3-chome, Andojibashi-dori, 6th District, Minami-ogumi." It is said to have moved on June 6, 1874, to the house of Tokube Kodera in 2-chome, Kitahama-cho. After its closure, Osaka Keio Gijuku was relocated to Tokushima and succeeded by Tokushima Keio Gijuku.

Tokushima Keio Gijuku was established for just over a year, from July 1875 to November 1876.

Regarding the circumstances of its opening, the biography of Fumio Yano, "Ryukei Yano Fumio-kun Den," states that "influential figures in Tokushima, with the support of the Hachisuka family, pleaded with the venerable Fukuzawa to establish a branch school of the Gijuku." Since it opened as a direct successor to Osaka Keio Gijuku, 40 of the initial 49 enrolled students were already listed in the "Osaka Keio Gijuku Nyushacho" (Enrollment Register), with only nine new names added to the new register. Fumio Yano, who had been the last headmaster during the Osaka period, also served as headmaster until Sentaro Jo took over in March 1876.

According to the application documents for its establishment at the time, the branch school's location was recorded as "No. 3, Tomita-ura, Myodo-gun, 5th Subdistrict, 1st Major District, under the jurisdiction of Myodo Prefecture, 3rd University District," but this place name no longer exists.