徳川家宣
In 1654, Tokugawa Tsunashige, the younger brother of Shōgun Tokugawa Iemitsu and "daimyō" of Kōfu Domain, received permission to reclaim land from Edo Bay, upon which he built a villa and garden. The property was inherited by his son, Tokugawa Ienobu, who later became 6th Tokugawa shōgun. Succeeding generations of shōgun used the location as a secondary residence, and from the time of Tokugawa Ienari through Tokugawa Ieyoshi, it was a place where the shōgun could indulge in falconry. In 1729, an elephant which had been received by the shōgun as a present from Annam was kept on the grounds for 12 years. During the Bakumatsu period, the site was turned over to the Tokugawa Navy as a training ground. In 1867, the shogunate erected a western-style stone building as a place for foreign diplomats to stay when visiting Edo.