François Caron
An eye-witness account is given by the French director François Caron from the Dutch colony at Dejima. He described the gates and courts being laid out in such a manner as to confuse an outsider. Caron noted the gates were not placed in a straight line, but were staggered, forcing a person to make a 90 degree turn to pass on to the next gate. This style of construction for the main gates is called "masugata" (meaning "square"). As noted by Caron, the gate consisted of a square-shaped courtyard or enclosure and a two-story gatehouse which is entered via three roofed "kōrai-mon". The "watari-yagura-mon" was constructed at adjacent angles to each side within the gate. All major gates had large timbers that framed the main entry point and were constructed to impress and proclaim the might of the shogunate.