Information Revolution

Oda Nobunaga began construction of his castle on a hill on the East coast of Lake Biwa in the new year of 1576. By 1579, its symbolic seven-story keep dominated the surrounding landscape, and in the autumn of 1781 the ensemble was completed. Nobunaga resided within its solid walls, and his retainers occupied spaces lower down the hill. The keep was of little military function, but had intended to indicate Nobunaga’s authority.
The city below was laid out carefully with a ditch and embankment, and inside, homes for the warriors and tradesmen. The markets were places slightly outside this. The whole occupied the entire hillside. There was a huge coming and going, encouraged by the tax-free status that Azuchi enjoyed, as became typical of many local castle-towns. The daimyo was pivotal to the economics was well as the administration of his domain.