Shoin Shrine

Yoshida Shoin is a samurai of Choshu Domain (old name of Yamaguchi) and one of the most influential thought leaders at the Meiji Restoration. His private school, Shokason-juku, produced many historical figures who led Japan to become a new, modern nation from the old “samurai” regime, such as Ito Hirobumi, the first Prime Minister of Japan, and Yamagata Aritomo. Kusaka Genzui and Takasugi Shinsaku learned Confusianism, Military science, and history at the school. In the Shoin Shrine, you can visit the main shrine that enshrines Yoshida Shoin and the school building of Shokason-juku itself at the same place where it was built in those days. It is designated as a World Cultural Heritage.