Taiko Yagura, a Samurai Castle's Valued Feature

The Roles of the Taiko Yagura and the Taiko Banten Who Manned Them

Every castle across medieval Japan, large and small, had a Taiko Yagura, a Drum Tower,  or watchtower housing a large drum, or a Taiko Mon, a large watchtower gate structure with huge taiko drum inside. Thesedrums were used for time-keeping, for shift changes, as a fire and flood warning device, and in times of war, as a signal to bear arms and pass on information. As such, the samurai who manned the drums, the “Taiko Banten” held a very important position within a samurai castle. The position was so important, the Taiko Banten and sometimes his family lived within the castle confines, in, or beside the Taiko Yagura! The position was not hereditary. Among the many time-keeping duties of the Taiko Banten, was to determine the start and the end of every day.