From a treaty-port classroom to the edge of the Imperial Park
Heian Jogakuin (平安女学院) is a Christian school in Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto, beside the western edge of the Kyoto Imperial Park; it opened on this site in 1895, and two of its campus buildings, Meijikan and Showakan, are Registered Tangible Cultural Properties, registered in 2004 and 2007 respectively.
The school traces its start to 1875, when Ellen G. Eddy, a missionary sent by the Episcopal Church in the United States, began teaching a handful of girls in the Kawaguchi foreign settlement of Osaka. The school took the name Shoan Jogakko in 1880, with the English name St. Agnes' School that it still uses,, was renamed Heian Jogakuin in 1894 as it prepared to move to Kyoto, and began classes in the new city the following April.
Meijikan was the building put up for that move, and the school's own chronology records its completion in the same year as the Kyoto opening, 1895. Showakan, a steel-reinforced concrete block, followed in 1929, so the two registered buildings stand roughly 34 years apart. The school marked its 150th anniversary in 2025.
The campus and the ground beneath it
The campus occupies the block south of Shimodachiuri-dori between Karasuma-dori on the east and Muromachi-dori on the west. On the Karasuma corner stands St. Agnes' Church, completed in 1898 and designated by the city of Kyoto. Meijikan lies deeper inside the grounds; Showakan fills the northwest corner of its lot, close to Muromachi-dori.
The school describes its site as part of the former Nijo Castle that Oda Nobunaga built for the shogun Ashikaga Yoshiaki, not to be confused with the Tokugawa castle further west. In the Muromachi period the area held the Buei-jin, the mansion of the Shiba family, relatives of the Ashikaga; the district name Bueijin-cho, where Showakan stands, preserves it.
Across Shimodachiuri-dori to the north is Arisukan, the relocated residence of the Arisugawa-no-miya princely house. The school owned it from 2008 to 2024 and it was registered during that time, which is why its main house and two gates still carry the Heian Jogakuin name.
Visiting and getting there
Heian Jogakuin is a working campus for a university and a junior and senior high school, and Meijikan and Showakan are normally closed to the public. A Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art guide to modern buildings lists Meijikan as not open for visits.
The realistic way inside is a citywide architecture event such as the Kyoto Modern Architecture Festival. In 2026 Meijikan and St. Agnes' Church are on the list for the first weekend, October 31 and November 1, and entry requires the paid festival passport; Showakan does not appear on that year's list. At the 2023 festival, photography and posting online were generally allowed, provided that no students or staff appeared in the frame. Rules change from year to year, so check the official programme before you go.
The nearest station is Marutamachi on the Kyoto Municipal Subway Karasuma Line. From Exit 2, walk north along Karasuma-dori beside the Imperial Park for about 5 minutes to the corner of St. Agnes' Church. The Karasuma Shimodachiuri city bus stop is close by. General enquiries go to the school's head office (tel. 075-414-8155).
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Heian Jogakuin Meijikan
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004140
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Heian Jogakuin Showakan
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006142
- Heian Jogakuin University: History (Japanese)
- https://www.heian.ac.jp/about/history/univ
- Heian Jogakuin: 150th anniversary (Japanese)
- https://head.heian.ac.jp/150th
- Heian Jogakuin University: Historic cultural properties of the university (Japanese)
- https://www.heian.ac.jp/about/history/properties
- Heian Jogakuin University: Kyoto Campus (Japanese)
- https://www.heian.ac.jp/about/facility/kyoto
- Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art: Meiji Hall of Heian Jogakuin (MAK en 18)
- https://kyotocity-kyocera.museum/wp-content/uploads/MAK_en_18.pdf
- Kyoto Travel Navi (Kyoto City Tourism Association): Kyoto Modern Architecture Festival 2026 (Japanese)
- https://ja.kyoto.travel/event/single.php?event_id=7046
- Kyoto Modern Architecture Festival 2023: Meijikan, Heian Jogakuin University (Japanese)
- https://kyoto2023.kenchikusai.jp/program/detail.php?id=2466
- Heian Jogakuin Junior and Senior High School: Access (Japanese)
- https://jh.heian.ac.jp/access
- Heian Jogakuin University: Access (Japanese)
- https://www.heian.ac.jp/access
Last verified: 2026.09.27
Basic Information
| Name | Heian Jogakuin |
|---|---|
| Location | Bueijin-cho and Gochome-cho, Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture |
| Owner | Heian Jogakuin Educational Corporation |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (2) |
| Coordinates | 35.01964, 135.75842 |
