鶴ヶ城は、福島県会津若松市にある城。 会津若松城とも呼ばれるが、地元では愛着をこめて鶴ヶ城と呼ぶことが多い。 会津盆地にそびえ立つ天守は会津市民のシンボルであり、この城の歴史抜きには会津の歴史は語れない。 会津盆地が白く染まった年末に雪化粧したこの会津のシンボルを撮影した。

鶴ヶ城を語る時、幕末の戊辰戦争は外せない。
慶応4年（1868年）、戊辰戦争の戦闘の一つである会津戦争（会津城籠城戦）にて、会津勢の立て篭もる鶴ヶ城は新政府軍に包囲され砲撃を受けた。1か月間籠城の後、板垣退助による降伏勧告を受諾して開城した。

Tsuruga Castle is a castle in Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture. It is also called Aizuwakamatsu Castle, but locals often refer to it affectionately as Tsurugajo Castle. The castle tower towering over the Aizu Basin is a symbol of the citizens of Aizu, and the history of Aizu cannot be told without the history of this castle. I photographed this snow-covered symbol of Aizu at the end of the year when the Aizu Basin was painted white.

When talking about Tsuruga Castle, the Boshin War at the end of the Edo period cannot be left out. In 1868 (Keio 4), during the Aizu War (Aizu Castle Siege Battle), one of the battles of the Boshin War, Tsuruga Castle, where Aizu forces were holed up, was surrounded and bombarded by the new government forces. After a month of siege, they accepted Itagaki Taisuke’s recommendation to surrender and opened the castle.