特徴～Features – ページ 45 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

191.Nakatsu Castle Part2

Basically, newer stone walls use more processed stones. However, in the case of those in Nakatsu Castle, it looks like it is the other way around.

Features

Private Company runs Imitation Main Tower

Today, the ruins of Nakatsu Castle have been developed as a tourist attraction called “Nakatsu Castle Park”. This is because the ruins have an outstanding five-level Main Tower on a corner of the stone walls in the Main Enclosure. However, the tower is an imitation, which was built at the place where another original turret had been built. A company, which the former lord of the castle, the Okudaira Clan ran, built it to boost tourism. Because of its origin, it mainly exhibits the history of the Nakatsu Domain under the clan’s rule as the Okudaira Clan Historical Museum. However, when the museum lost money, the clan sold it to another private company. This current castle is considered the only one which a private company runs, so they may approach you. If you want to know much about Yoshitaka Kuroda who was the founder of the castle, you can visit the Kuroda Kanbe Museum which Nakatsu City owns, in front of the tower.

The Imitation Main Tower of Nakatsu Castle

A view of Nakatsu River from the top of the tower

An exhibition of the Kuroda Kanbe Museum

Several kinds of Stone Walls from Kuroda and Hosokawa Periods

The historical items of the castle mainly remain in the Main Enclosure, such as the stone walls and water moats. If you look at the northern side of the stone walls, they are divided into the older part on the right and the newer one on the left. You can clearly see the joint which was the corner of the older part. Basically, newer stone walls use more processed stones. However, in the case of those in Nakatsu Castle, it looks like it is the other way around. The stones in the new left stone walls are natural while those in the older ones are more processed. The reason for it was that the founder, Yoshitaka Kuroda brought the stones from an ancient mountain castle, Tobarusan-jo nearby to build the new castle rapidly.

The aerial photo around the castle

The newer stone walls from the Hosokawa Period on the left and the older stone walls from the Kuroda Period on the right

Did the stone walls base for the tower come from the Kuroda Period?

The Main Enclosure is still beside the Nakatsu River but the concrete bulkhead with a promenade is between them now. It may be a good idea to walk on the promenade to see the river and the castle. The stone walls, which use the ancient mountain castle’s stones, lie along the riverside. They were probably built there with castle buildings on them to consider the scenery of the castle from the river. However, you can see modern residence or shrine buildings on them now, which are an interesting contrast. There are the stone walls of the Water Gate at the edge of the enclosure, which makes us understand the castle was directly connected to the river in the past.

Other stone walls from the Kuroda Period lie along the riverside

There might have been a large turret like a Main Tower on this stone wall base

Some modern residences are on the stone walls

The ruins of the Water Gate *(licensed by Mukai via Wikimedia Commons)*

There are another type of stone walls which Yoshitaka originally built opposite the riverside. They are long but not so high, built using smaller natural stones than the Hosokawa Clan’s period. They were recently repaired with the water moat in front of them, where you can walk along.

The stone walls and the water moat opposite the riverside

The Nakatsu City Historical Museum and the promenade are over there

New and Old Entrances of Main Enclosure

In addition, you can see the cut sections of the stone walls at the main entrance of the Main Enclosure with the shrine gate. This is because the entrance was built by breaking part of the stone walls in the Meiji Era and the gate was built in the Showa Era.

The front entrance of the Main Enclosure

The cut section of the stone walls, the lower part was first built by the Kuroda Clan and the upper part was added by the Hosokawa Clan

The stone walls on the other side of the entrance had once been destroyed but was restored

There are the ruins of Shiiki-mon Gate, the original main entrance, near the current one, which are still surrounded by stone walls. The gate also had a fan-shaped space for defense, surrounded by other stone walls in the back. However, the stone walls were partially removed.

The remaining part of the fan-shaped space inside the gate

The inside of the gate was like this illustration, the remaining part is marked red, from the signboard at the site

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

191.中津城　その２

一般的には新しい石垣はより加工された石を使います。ところが、中津城の石垣の場合は真逆のように見えるのです。

特徴、見どころ

民営となっている模擬天守

現在、中津城跡は「中津城公園」という観光地として整備されています。そのように言う理由は、城跡の本丸石垣の角に、大変よく目立つ五層の天守があるからです。しかし、これは模擬天守であり、元はオリジナルの他の櫓があった場所に建てられたものです。以前城主であった奥平家が経営していた会社が、観光振興のために建設したのです。その経緯によりこの天守では、奥平家歴史資料館として奥平氏が支配した中津藩の歴史を主に展示しています。しかし赤字運営のために、奥平家は天守を他の民間会社に売却しました。現在の中津城は、唯一の民間経営の城とされていて、現地では民間企業らしくお客を呼び込む従業員の姿が見られるかもしれません。もし、城の創立者である黒田孝高のことをより知りたければ、天守の手前にあって、中津市が運営している黒田官兵衛資料館に行ってみてはいかがでしょう。

黒田時代と細川時代の石垣が共存

城に関する歴史的遺物は、石垣や水堀など、主に本丸にあります。本丸北側の石垣を見てみると、石垣は右側の古い部分と左側の新しい部分に分かれています。古い部分のかつては角であった継ぎ目がはっきりと見て取れます。一般的には新しい石垣はより加工された石を使います。ところが、中津城の石垣の場合は真逆のように見えるのです。左側の新しい石垣の石は自然石で、右側の古い石垣の石は前者よりずっと加工されているのです。その理由は、創始者の黒田孝高が新しい城の建設を急ぐために、近くにある古代山城の唐原山城（とばるさんじょう）の石を運んできて使ったからだそうです。

城周辺の航空写真

本丸は今でも中津川沿いに位置していますが、その間は遊歩道があるコンクリートの護岸壁となっています。川と城を一緒に眺めながら遊歩道を歩いてみるのもよいでしょう。古代山城にあった石を使って築かれた石垣が、川沿いに並んでいます。この石垣の上に建物を築くことで、川の方から見た城の見栄えが良くなるようにしていたと思われます。しかし今ではその石垣の上に現代の住居や神社の建物があって、面白いコントラストとなっています。本丸の端には水門の石垣があって、過去には城と川が直接つながっていたことがわかります。

水門跡の石垣 (licensed by Mukai via Wikimedia Commons)

川の反対側には、孝高が最初に築いた別のタイプの石垣があります。この石垣は長く伸びていますが、そんなに高くはありませんし、細川氏の時代に使われていたものより小さな自然石を使って築かれています。最近になって手前にある水堀と一緒に修繕されて、その周りを歩いてみることができます。

本丸の新旧正門

更には、神社の鳥居がある本丸の正面入口では、その石垣の断面を見ることができます。それは、この入口が明治時代にこの石垣を壊した場所に作られたからで、鳥居は昭和になってから建てられました。

石垣の断面（内部に見える石垣が黒田時代のもので、細川時代に積み増しているようです）

この現在の正面入口の近くには、オリジナルの本丸正門である椎木門（しいきもん）跡があります。この場所は今も石垣に囲まれています。この門の背後には防衛のために別の石垣で囲まれた扇形のスペースがあったのですが、今では一部しか残っていません。

「中津城その３」に続きます。
「中津城その１」に戻ります。

93.Hitoyoshi Castle Part3

A big event for the Hitoyoshi area happened in 1877, when a hero of the restoration, Takamori Saigo started a rebellion against the government known as the Seinan War.

Features

Climbing to Moutain part

Next comes the hill area of the castle, which probably has existed since the first stage of it, but was modernized with stone walls in the later stage. There are no buildings but the foundations remain. You will climb the ruins of Oshita-mon or the Lower Gate which was the only entrance to the Third, Second, and Main Enclosures. You will need to climb wide stone steps and then turn right and walk around below the edge of the hill, where the defenders on the hill must have attacked enemies in the past.

The map around the castle

Enemies must have been attacked from above

You will first be in the Third Enclosure which widely covers the edge of the hill. The enclosure has mostly been made of soil and a square since the castle was active. It may be a good viewing spot of the Hitoyoshi city area.

A view of the city area from the Third Enclosure

Going to Second and Main Enclosures

The Second Enclosure is higher than the Third Enclosure and surrounded by stone walls with two ruins of defensive gates, Nakano-gomon and Uzumi-gomon. This is because there was another Main Hall for the lord which had been considered as the center of the castle before the Mitachi hall was built below the hill.

The Second Enclosure seen from the Third Enclosure

The Main Enclosure is the highest enclosure of the castle, but it is small and had no Main Tower. Instead, this enclosure seemed to be used as a religious spot of the Sagara Clan. Its stone steps and foundations have become curved which make us feel its long history.

The stone steps and foundations have become curved

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Hitoyoshi Castle was abandoned and all the castle buildings were sold or demolished. Only one gate of the Main Hall, called Horiai-mon, was move to the residence of a senior vassal, the Shingu Clan and remains. A big event for the Hitoyoshi area happened in 1877, when a hero of the restoration, Takamori Saigo started a rebellion against the government known as the Seinan War. His troops started an attack on Kumamoto Castle from the south in Kagoshima, while many warriors of Hitoyoshi also joined the Saigo’s side as the Hitoyoshi Party. However, they failed to capture Kumamoto Castle and withdrew to the Hitoyoshi area. The party suggested for Saigo to go there because the area has natural defenses, surrounded by mountains.

*The portrait of Takamori Saigo by* **Edoardo Chiossone** *(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons*)

Saigo’s headquarters was at the Eikokuji Temple in the area and his staff stayed in the Shingu Clan’s residence. They thought they would be able to hold the area for a long period of time, but the response of the government army was prompt. A gun battle occurred between the army in the north and the Saigo troops in the south, binding the Kumagawa River. The Saigo troops shot from around the Third Enclosure of Hitoyoshi Castle on the hill, however, the shot did not reach the enemy because their guns were outdated. As a result, Saigo withdrew again to other places and was eventually defeated at Kagoshima Castle, his home base. The Hitoyoshi Party surrendered before then.

The map aound the castle

The Third Enclosure of hitoyoshi Castle, where the Saigo troops set their butteries

As castle ruins, they have been developed as Hitoyoshi Castle Park and were designated as a National Historic Site in 1961. Some castle buildings at the riverside, such as Sumi-Yagura or the Corner Turret and Otemon-waki-Tamon Yagura or the row-style turret beside the Main Gate, were recently restored. The Hitoyoshi Castle History Museum opened in 2005 but is currently closed as mentioned in the previous section.

The closed Hitoyoshi Castle History Museum

My Impression

I was very impressed by the great view of Hitoyoshi Castle Ruins with a large stream of the Kumagawa River. I understood nature could provide not only good things like the terrain for the castle but also bad things like disasters. I really hope that the castle ruins will be completely repaired soon and would like to visit their again so that I will be looking forward to seeing the mysterious basement in the museum and walking over the castle ruins to see larger area of the first stage of the castle.

The panorama view of Hitoyoshi Castle Ruins from a bridge over the Kumagawa River

How to get There

If you want to visit the castle ruins by car, it is about a 10-minute drive away from Hitoyoshi IC on the Kyushu Expressway. There is a parking lot for visitors in the castle ruins.
If you want to use public transportation, it takes about 20 minutes on foot to get there form JR Hitoyoshi Station.
From Tokyo or Osaka to Hitoyoshi Station: Get an express bus from Kagoshima Airport or Sin-Yatsushiro Station of the Kyushu Shinkansen super express, get off at the Hitoyoshi IC bus stop, and transfer to the Sanko bus bound for the station.

Links and References

・Hitoyoshi Tourist Information, Hitoyoshi City

That’s all. Thank you.
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