特徴～Features – ページ 35 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

93.Hitoyoshi Castle Part2

The supply of the water from the Kumagawa River provides specialties such as hot spring, Kuma-shochu spirit, and sweet fish while the water could sometimes cause flood damages.

Features

Today, if you get close to the ruins of Hitoyoshi Castle, you will see a grand view of the Kumagawa River which collects water from mountain areas around, where you can also see students in canoes.

The supply of the water from the river provides specialties such as hot spring, Kuma-shochu spirit, and sweet fish while the water could sometimes cause flood damages. There was recently the Kumagawa River flood disaster in July, 2020 which actually caused serious damage to the castle ruins beside the river. The ruins have already resumed to be seen by visitors, but the Hitoyoshi Castle History Museum at the site is still closed as of September, 2023.

The closed Hitoyoshi Castle History Museum

Mysterious Water Bath of Basement

The museum is in the lowest area of the riverside which was used as the Main Gate, the domain’s facilities, and the senior vassals’ residences. Some turrets and walls surrounding the area have been restored. In fact, the museum is exactly on the same residence ruins of Seibe Sagawa who was banished during the Edo Period.

The aerial photo around the castle

The ruins of warriors’ residences at the riverside

The restored row-style turret beside the Main Gate

An interesting thing about the residence was that a water bath made of stones was found in the basement of the ruins. The water comes from the river and the bath is over 2m deep. There are no other similar cases in Japanese castles so far. Some speculate that it might have been used as a bathing place of a Jewish chapel because the specs were similar. There were secret Christians in the Hitoyoshi area though being Christians was prohibited during the Edo Period. Some of them might have believed Judaism.

The discovered water bath of the basement, quoted from the Hitoyoshi City website

Stone Walls with Hanedashi system surrounding Main Hall

The next area is the former Main Hall for the lord, called Mitachi, which is used as the Sagara-Gokoku Shrine. Some items for the hall remain, such as a pond garden, the stone entrance bridge over the moat, and stone walls surrounding it.

In particular, the stone walls facing the riverside use the Hanedashi system which refers to all the stones on the top row are layered to prevent enemies from invading. That’s why it is also called Musha-gaeshi or the Repelling Warriors system. The system is rarely seen in other Japanese castles only in Goryokaku, Shinagawa Batteries, and Tatsuoka Castle which were built at the end of the Edo Period.

The stone walls with the Hanedashi system of Hitoyoshi Castle

The stone walls with the Hanedashi system of Goryokaku

The stone walls with the Hanedashi system of Shinagawa Batteries

The stone walls with the Hanedashi system of Tatsuoka Castle

In front of the stone walls, the ruins of Mizunote-mon or the Water Gate are open to the Kumagawa River, which proves that the castle was involved in water transportation.

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

93.人吉城　その２

球磨川の豊かな水は、温泉、球磨焼酎、鮎などの土地の名産、名物を生み出すとともに、時には洪水の被害も引き起こします。

特徴、見どころ

豊かな恵みやときには水害をもたらす球磨川

現在、人吉城跡に近づいていくと、人吉盆地の周りの山々からの水を集めた球磨川の雄大な姿が目に入ってきます。そこでは学生たちがカヌーの練習をしているのも見えたりします。

この川の豊かな水は、温泉、球磨焼酎、鮎などの土地の名産、名物を生み出すとともに、時には洪水の被害も引き起こします。最近の出来事としては、2020年６月に球磨川水害が発生し、実際に川沿いにある城跡に深刻な被害をもたらしたのです。城跡は既にビジターを受け入れるところまで復旧していますが、2023年９月時点で人吉城歴史館はまだ休館となっています。

謎の地下室水槽

歴史館は、城では一番低い川岸地区にあり、かつてそこには大手門、藩の施設、重臣の屋敷などがありました。櫓（隅櫓、大手門脇多門櫓）とこの地区を囲む白壁が復元されています。実は歴史館は、江戸時代に追放された相良清兵衛の屋敷と全く同じ場所にあるのです。

城周辺の航空写真

この屋敷について大変興味深いことがあるのですが、屋敷跡の地下室から石造りの水槽が発見されたのです。水槽の水は川から引かれていて、その深さは２ｍ以上あります。今のところ、他の日本の城には類似した事例は見つかっていません。中には、これはユダヤ教の神殿の沐浴施設だったのではないかと考える人もいます。実際の施設とよく似ているとのことです。人吉地域にはキリスト教が禁止されていた江戸時代の間、隠れキリシタンの人たちがいました。そのうちの誰かがユダヤ教に関わっていたのかもしれません。

御殿跡を巡る跳ね出し石垣

となりの地区は、以前「御館（みたて）」と呼ばれる城主の御殿だったところです。現在では相良護国神社となっています。御殿に関連するものとしては、池泉庭園、入口のところの堀にかかっている石橋、そして御殿を囲んでいた石垣が残っています。

特に、川に面した部分ある石垣は跳ね出し形式になっていて、最上部の列の石が飛び出して積まれ、敵が登って侵入してくるのを防いでいました。そのため、この仕組みは「武者返し」とも呼ばれています。日本の他の城でも滅多に見られないもので、江戸時代末期に築かれた「五稜郭」「品川台場」「龍岡城」に見られるのみです。

その石垣の手前の方には水の手門跡があって、球磨川の方に開いています。かつて城が水上交通にも関与していたことがわかります。

「人吉城その３」に続きます。
「人吉城その１」に戻ります。

161.Kishiwada Castle Part3

The only thing I would ask the city to improve on the castle would be to open the views from the Main and Second Enclosures.

Features

Outside of Main Enclosure

The Main Enclosure is only connected to the Second Enclosure by the earthen bridge which is the same as the past. It looks like a castle island floating on the moat which must have had a defensive design.

The aerial photo around the castle

The earthen bridge to the Main Enclosure

However, if you go around the back side, you will find its back entrance ruins with stone steps, where a bridge to the outside was built. The bridge can not be seen in the drawing of the castle submitted to the shogunate. The reason for it could be that it was built after the drawing had been submitted or it was removed from the drawing intentionally.

The back entrance ruins of the Main Enclosure

The bridge in the back was not seen in the drawing (the upper right part)

The high stone walls surrounding it also look technical as they are curved elaborately to counterattack the enemies’ sides. They also use the lips as their base which is a rare case in Japanese castles. Some historians think that the reason may be to support the sandstones used for the walls which are weaker than the other types of stones. That’s why the stone walls were partially repaired in the present time, using granite to make them durable.

These stone walls were built on the lips

The white stones seem to have been used for the repair

Inside of Main Enclosure

The inside of the Main Enclosure has the reconstructed Main Tower, a gate, a corner turret and white walls. They have different designs from the original ones compared with those in the drawing. For example, the current Main Tower has three levels with many decorations while the original one had five levels with a simple roofing. In case like the current Main Tower of Kishiwada Castle, which was rebuilt but has a different design, should be called “reconstructed”. The enclosure also has a modern Japanese dry garden, called Hachijin-no-Niwa or the Garden of Eight Battle Formation, which was built in the same period as the current Main Tower and was designated as a National Scenic Beauty in 2014. The builders might also have created the Main Tower freely without its original design as a modern building.

The reconstructed buildings in the Main Enclosure

The tower is used as a historical museum inside and an observation platform on the top floor. The floor has a good viewing spot where you can enjoy the scenery of the area around including Osaka Bay. However, you can’t see anything on the outside from the enclosure except for the platform due to the high white walls on the top of the stone walls.

A view of the city area towards Osaka Bay from the platform

*This is also not a good view point because of the walls*

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Kishiwada Castle was abandoned and all the castle buildings were demolished. The castle land excluding the Main and Second Enclosures was turned into the city area. There was probably no other way to use it, other than modernizing the city of Kishiwada. After a long time, people in Kishiwada wanted to rebuild the Main Tower of the castle though they needed donations for it. As a result, it was finally completed in 1954 as the three-level Main Tower, but actually a modern concrete building has become a symbol of the city. Some people had argued that it should have been a five-level wooden one which was the same as the original tower, but there was a budget problem and the former lord, the Okabe Clan supported the original reconstruction plan. Kishiwada City is currently struggling to consider the earthquake-resistance measures of the reconstructed Main Tower due to its old age and the stricter regulations than before. It is also continuing to repair the remaining stone walls by replacing collapsed sandstones with new granite stones.

My Impression

I think the more you visit the current Kishiwada Castle, the more you will be interested in its history. The castle started out as a small one facing the sea, and it developed into the only one in Izumi Province, and finally became the symbol of the city. However, the only thing I would ask the city to improve on the castle would be to open the views from the Main and Second Enclosures. Currently, visitors can’t see the views below from them because of the walls or hedges probably for the safety reasons. I think the city will be able to replace them with other fences which can provide the views so that visitors can fully understand how the castle was developed more.

How about using this fence, partially used in the Second Enclosure, more?

*This is a good view point because of the fence*

That’s all. Thank you.
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