特徴～Features – ページ 150 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

39.Gifu Castle Part2

Please pay attention to both the top and foot of the mountain.

Features

The map around the castle

To Castle Ruins on Top

Now, the area around Mt. Kinkazan has become one of the most popular tourist spots in the Gifu Prefecture. You can easily go to the top of the mountain by the Kinkazan Ropeway. If you want to climb up there, it is common to use the Nanamagari Trail which was the Main Route for the castle. The tail is relatively gently sloped, so it takes around one hour to reach the top, climbing to about 300m from the ground.

A view of the Main Tower from the city area

The top is actually also a tourist spot where the ropeway terminal, a restaurant, a zoo, and the imitation Main Tower stand. The routes around the top have also been paved in a modern style. However, you can see rocky surfaces made of chert everywhere on the top. As for the ruins of the castle, there are the ruins of the First Gate where the huge stones for the gate collapsed. After seeing the defensive trenches called “Horikiri”, next comes the ruins of the Second Gate. Their plaster walls have been rebuilt recently, but some of the stone walls are original. You should check out the two steps of stone walls under the route from the Second Gate to the Main Tower. The method for building the stone walls is very old, so it is thought that they were built by Nobunaga.

The defensive trenches called “Horikiri”

The stone walls under the route to the Main Tower

A Great View from Main Tower

The imitation Main Tower was built in 1956, based on the drawings of the Three-Story Turret in Kano Castle. The turret was burned in the Edo Period, but there was a rumor that it might have been moved from the Gifu Castle. The interior of the tower is used as a museum which exhibits the history of the castle and Nobunaga. The top floor is also a sightseeing tower where you can see a great view of the area around, including Nagara-gawa River. The stone wall base of the tower looks very old. In fact, the stones are original, but the style is not, as the stones were re-piled when the tower was rebuilt.

A view from the Main Tower (Nagaragawa River side)

*A view from the Main Tower (Mountain side)*

You can also climb down on another tail, for example, from the ruins of the Back Gate. The gate also used huge stones of which you can see the remains on the route. After going down for a while, you can also see the huge, holy rock called “Eboshi-iwa”. The Inaba Shrine was originally located around the rock.

You can see rocky surfaces made of chert here and there

Ruins of Nobunaga’s Residence

At the foot of the mountain, I recommend that you visit the ruins of Nobunaga’s palace residence, because, in fact, it might have been the center of the castle. At the entrance, you can see the remains of the alternate huge stones which were 1.7m high in the past. Walking up the stairs around the terraced stone walls, there is an empty spacious space where the main building was constructed. In the back of it, there were also buildings for the tearoom and sightseeing with an artificial water garden using huge stones. Another pond garden was next to it, and an artificial river flew from the fountain between them. Moreover, these gardens were connected to the main building by the air corridors. Nobunaga seemed to use his palace residence for official ceremonies and for hosting important visitors.

The stairs to the ruins of the main building

The imaginary drawing of around the gardens *(Gifu Castle Museum)*

The imaginary drawing of the residence (from the signboard at the site)

To be continued in “Gifu Castle Part3”
Back to “Gifu Castle Part1”

39.岐阜城　その２

山上と山麓、両方の城跡に注目です。

特徴

城周辺の地図

山上の城跡へ

現在、金華山周辺の地区は岐阜県で最も人気のある観光地の一つとなっています。金華山ロープウェイを使えば簡単に山の頂上に行くことができます。もし登って行かれたいのであれば、通常はかつて城への大手道であった七曲り登山道を登っていきます。この登山道は比較的なだらかな坂になっていて、麓から約300ｍ登って、頂上に着くには約１時間ほどかかります。

頂上もまた、まさに観光地化していて、ロープウェイの発着場、レストラン、動物園、そして模擬天守があります。頂上周辺の道は、現代的な舗装がされています。それでも、どこでもチャートによるごつごつした岩の面が見られます。城跡としては一ノ門跡があり、門にあった巨石が転がっています。防衛のために加工された「堀切」を見たあとは、二ノ門跡が現れます。ここの白壁は近年再建されたものですが、一部の石垣はもとからあったものです。そして、二ノ門から天守に向かう道の下にある二段の石垣は必見です。この石垣の作り方はとても古く、よって、信長により築かれたと考えられています。

素晴らしい天守からの眺め

模擬天守は、加納城の三階櫓の絵図に基づいて1956年に建てられました。その櫓は江戸時代に焼けてしまったのですが、元は岐阜城から移築されたという言い伝えがありました。天守の内部は博物館として使われていて、城の歴史と信長についての展示があります。また、最上階は展望台になっていて、長良川を含むこの地域一帯のすばらしい景色を眺めることができます。天守を支える石垣はとても古いものに見えます。実際は、石自体はもとからあったのですが、この天守を作るときに積み直されたのです。

山から下るときは、例えば裏門からなど、別の登山道を使うこともできます。裏門もかつては巨石を使っていて、道すがら残っている一部の石が見られます。しばらく下っていくと、「烏帽子岩」と呼ばれる巨大な聖なる岩も見学できます。伊奈波神社はもともとこの岩の周辺にありました。

信長の居館跡

山麓に着いたら、是非信長の居館跡に行ってみてください。実はそこが城の中心地だったかもしれないからです。入口では、互い違いに並べられた巨石跡を見ることができ、かつては高さが1.7ｍありました。階段状になっている石垣の辺りの階段を上がっていくと、広い空き地があり、そこには母屋が建っていました。その後ろ側には茶室や展望のための建物が、巨石を使った人口の池泉庭園とともにありました。池を使ったもう一つの庭園がとなりにあり、人工の川が滝から流れ出て、庭園の間を流れていました。更にこれらの庭園と母屋とは、空中回廊を通じてつながっていました。信長は、彼の居館を公的行事や重要な客のもてなしのために使っていたようです。

「岐阜城その３」に続きます。
「岐阜城その１」に戻ります。

40.Yamanaka Castle Part2

A beautiful historical park, now with a view of Mt. Fuji

Features

Third Enclosure as Entrance

Now, the ruins of Yamanaka Castle have been well developed and maintained as the Yamanaka-jo Castle Park by Mishima City, though the ruins have only earthen foundation. The entrance of the ruins is alongside the old Tokaido Road, and you can park at the parking lot inside when you visit the ruins by car. The entrance was also once that of the Third Enclosure which is now the town area. So, you will walk to the center of the castle by passing through the ruins of the moats for the enclosure. Most of the moats are dried, but part of them remains as a pond called “Tajiri-no-Ike”.

The map around the castle

Second Enclosure as Pivot of Defense

From the pond, you have to walk up the stairs and winding slope to reach the Second Enclosure. The Second Enclosure was large and the connecting point with the center of the castle and the other parts. You can see good views of the area around, including Mt. Fuji from the enclosure. It is surrounded by high, thick earthen walls. It was the important point to protect the castle. Two more enclosures, including the North Enclosure, have been built to protect the Main Enclosure.

Main Enclosure as Center of Castle

You have to walk up more and across the bridge to the center of the castle, the Main Enclosure. The bridge, which is made of half wood and half earth, looks very interesting. The part of woods could be destroyed when a battle happened. The Main Enclosure is the highest place in the castle and has two tiers. It is thought that a high turret called “Tenshu Turret” stood on the upper tier. The enclosure is surrounded by deep valleys.

The bridge made of half wood and half earth

The ruins of Tenshu Turret at the Main Enclosure

The dry mort surrounding the Main Enclosure

Group of Western Enclosures

On the west of the Second Enclosure, there are the West Enclosure and the West Turret over another small enclosure called the former West Turret. Though they were all connected by wooden bridges in the past, we can now go to these enclosures through wooden or earthen bridges. The West Turret is also a kind of enclosures, but once had buildings for defense as the frontline of the castle. Actually, the severe battle between Hojo and Toyotomi occurred there. Many of the latticed dry moats called Une-bori and Shoji-bori remain around the West Turret and the West Enclosure. They were originally deeper and the soil was exposed. The original surfaces have been buried and planted to protect them, as a result, the moats look very beautiful like a waffle with a great view of Mt. Fuji.

The latticed dry moat called Shoji-bori between the West Enclosure and the West Turret

the latticed *dry moat called Une-bori around the West Turret*

Taizaki-demaru defense strongpoint, others

Going back to the entrance of the ruins, you can also visit Taizaki-Damaru defense strongpoint to the south. This is a long and gently sloped enclosure which is also surrounded by earthen walls and Une-bori dry moats. The severe battle also occurred there, but it has a good atmosphere to walk around now. It may be a good idea to have lunch with a beautiful view of Mt. Fuji. You can also walk on the stone pavement of the old Tokaido Road below Taizaki-Dmaru. If you have time, I recommend that you visit the Sokan-ji Temple in the former Third Enclosure town area. There is the tomb of Naosue Hitotsuyanagi, a Hideyoshi’s commander, together with other tombs of Hojo’s soldiers.

A view from Taizaki-Damaru defense strongpoint

*the latticed dry moat called Une-bori* at *Taizaki-Damaru defense strongpoint*

The stone pavement of the old Tokaido Road

The old Tokaido Road through the Third Enclosure

To be continued in “Yamanaka Castle Part3”
Back to “Yamanaka Castle Part1”