English – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

205.Matsuoyama Castle Part1(draft)

Location and History

Introduction

The battle of Sekigahara, which occurred on the 15th of September 1600 (according to the lunar calendar), is one of the biggest events in Japanese history. The highlight of the battle has been said to be the betrayal of Hideaki Kobayakawa. The widely accepted theory says the followings. Hideaki first supported the western allies and settled on Matsuoyama Castle, in the south of the Sekigahara field. However, he still waited to see the battle for a while, wondering which ally would be better, the eastern or the western. He had made a secret agreement with Ieyasu Tokugawa, who was the top of the eastern allies, to support. Initially, Koyakawa did not move, therefore Ieyasu got tired of waiting. He then ordered his soldiers to shoot at the Hideaki’s troops. The shooting was called “Toi-deppo” which means to force by guns. Hideaki was very surprised to hear that. In that instance, he quickly decided to support the eastern allies. This indecision by Kobayakawa lead to the death of Mitsunari, but gave victory to Ieyasu.

The folding screens of the Sekigahara Battle, owned by Sekigahara Town History and Folklore Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Recent studies suggest the betrayal of Hideaki and the Toi-deppo story.
The whole story of the Sekigahara battle is consisted of very few primary sources and many other secondary sources. The Toi-deppo story comes from one of the secondary sources. The Sekigahara Battle is long. One part of the story refers to Toi-Deppo, which was first written in the Keicho Gunki, a war chronicle which was written over 50 years after the battle. If the story is a fiction, the timing of Hideaki’s decision would also be doubtful. Historians are trying to re-create the Sekigahara story by reviewing the few remaining primary sources and some of the secondary ones which were reliable. In addition, Matsuoyama Castle has been said to be the base of Hideaki Kobayakawa during the Sekigahara battle. However, it would also be important to know when and how the castle was built and used.

The portrait of Hideaki Kobayakawa, owned by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

This article will explain three different theories of Hideaki and Matsuoyama Castle with three different viewpoints.
The viewpoints will include:
a. What and where did Hideaki go before the Sekigahara battle?
b. Why did Sekigahara become the battlefield and when and how did Hideaki settle on Matsuoyama Castle?
c. When did Hideaki really decided to support the eastern allies?

The theories on this article will include:

The defacto theory including the Toi-deppo story
The theory that Hideaki was not a betrayer
The theory that the western allies would attack Matsuoyama Castle

As a preface, I will describe the prehistory of Hideaki and Matsuoyama Castle before the battle.

Hideaki and Matsuoyama Castle before Sekigahara Battle.

Hideaki was born in 1582 as the fifth boy of Iesada Kinoshita who was the big brother of Kitano-mandokoro, the first lady of Hideyoshi Toyotomi. He was adopted by Hideyoshi when he was a child and was raised by Kitano-mandokoro. Surprisingly, Hiedaki celebrated his Coming of Age at only 7 years old and became a noble. This was because he was one of the candidates to be Hideyoshi’s successor. However, after Hideyori Toyotomi, Hideyoshi’s own child was born, Hideaki was adopted again by the Kobayakawa Clan. Hideyoshi thought Hideyori would have become his successor.

The portrait of Iesada Kinoshita, the biological father of Hideaki, owned by Kenninji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

There is an interesting episode about that from a war chronicle as follow. Hideyoshi originally wanted to adopt Hideaki to the Mori Clan and for the Mori Clan to take over, which was the head family of the Kobayakawa Clan. Takakage Kobayakawa, the lord of the clan offered to Hideyoshi to accept Hideaki to protect his master. However, according to historians, Takakage probably decided it by himself. This was because Takakage was an independent lord after he was given his own territory by Hideyoshi. Takakage assumed he would return the territory to Hideyoshi so that he could build a good relationship with him.

*The portrait of Takakage Kobayakawa, owned by Beisanji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

Hideaki’s new territory was at Chikuzen Province (which is part of Fukuoka Prefecture now) which was one of the basements for the invasion of Korea by Hideyoshi. Hideaki also went to Korea as the supreme commander when he was 16 years old (so, it was just a formality). However, when he went back to Japan in 1598, he was forced to move to Echizen Province (the current Fukui Pref.) by Hideyoshi. The reason for it is uncertain. War cornicles suggest that Hideaki made a mistake in the invasion, while historians speculate that Hideyoshi wanted to rule Chikuzen Province directly to boost his invasion. The fact is, after Hideyoshi died, that Hideaki returned to Chikuzen Province and was considered one of the great lords of Japan, following the members of Counsil of Five Elders in the top government. This would trigger the Battle of Sekigahara.

The Portrait of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, owned by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Matsuoyama Castle was located on the border between Omi (the current Shiga Pref.) and Mino (Gifu Pref.) Provinces. A record says that a retainer of Nagamasa Azai, who owned Omi Province, was assigned to the castle during the Sengoku Period. This was probably because Nagamasa was against Nobunaga Oda who owned Mino Province at that time. Nobunaga would eventually get Omi Province before the castle was abandoned. On the 10th of Argust, 1600 (according to the luna calendar), Mitsunari Ishida entered Ogaki Castle. Mitsunari ordered his retainer to resume Matsuoyama Castle. Mitsunari thought that his Western Allies would attack the Eastern Allies based on Ogaki Castle, backed up by other mountain castles. Matsuoyama Castle was one of them. A historian speculates that Mitsunari thought that Terumoto Mori, the greatest lord in the Western Allies would enter Matsuoyama Castle. Anyway, the castle was refortified again to prepare for the battle.

The flag of Hideaki Kobayakawa at the ruins of Matsuoyama Castle; You can see this flag on top of the mountain, This is a modern flag that helps tourist find this location

The defacto theory including the Toi-deppo story

It is confirmed that the Western Allies captured Fushimi Castle on the 1st of August (according to the lunar calendar). It is also certain that the troops of Hideaki Kobayakawa joined the attackers as the main force. After that, according to the de facto theory, many of the Western Allies, including Mitsunari Ishida, stayed in Ogaki Castle, while Hideaki marched over to Omi Province (the current Shiga Province). There is evidence of his actions there. remains at a temple of the province. There is a noticeboard where Hideak’s soldiers were asked not to be violent in the temple. Hideaki still supported the Western Allies, however, he also negotiated with the Eastern Allies. A secret letter from Nagamasa Kuroda and Yoshinaga Asano was given to Hideaki before the battle. The letter is written as followed.

“We (Nagamasa and Yoshinaga) will need to serve Kitano-mandokoro.
You need to decide whether or not you will support us until Ieyasu arrives here.”

Kitano-mandokoro took care of Nagamasa earlier on. He managed to persuade Hideaki that it would be needed to support the Eastern Allies if Hideaki wanted to serve Kitano-mandokoro from then on.

The temple whom Hideaki gave the noticeboard (quoted from the website of Maibara City)

Ieyasu arrived at Aakasaka Camp on the 14th of September, near Ogaki Castle. He wanted to have an open field battle, which he was good at, so he needed to lure Mitsunari out from the castle. Ieyasu intentionally announced that he would attack Sawayama Castle, which was Mitsunari’s home and far to the west from Ogaki. When Mitsunari heard this, he was surprised and left the castle in a hurry, got ahead of Ieyasu, and took up positions on Sekigahara Field on the way to Sawayama. Hideaki also reached Matsuoyama Castle in the south of Sekigahara in accordance with Mitsunari’s instructions. Historians speculate that Mitsunari might have tried to escape to Sawayama Castle with his own decision. This is because a letter of Hiroie Kikkawa, who was one of the members of the Western Allies on Nangusan Castle between Ogaki and Sekigahara, says so. However, Mitsunari couldn’t do that because had to prevent the eastern allies from invading Sekigahara on the way there. Yoshitsugu Otani, a lord of the Western Allies only expected that Hideaki would betray him, therefore, Yoshitsugu’s troops moved closer to Matsuoyama.

The portrait of Mitsunari Ishida, from the database of Historiographical Institute, the University of Tokyo (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The battle between the Eastern and the Western Allies occurred early in the morning on the 15th of September. It went back and forth until noon. Hiroie’s troops on Nangusan and Kobayakawa’s troops didn’t move because of their secret pact with Ieyasu. However, Ieyasu got annoyed as Hideaki had also promised that he would join the Eastern Allies. That’s why Ieyasu ordered the Toi-deppo (a way to induce or encourage solider to move by shooting directly at them). Hideaki’s decision happened around noon. Some of the soldiers who joined the Western Allies testified after the battle as followed:

The Eastern Allies and Otani’s troops battled each other 6 or 7 times in the morning. Kobayakawa’s troops, then, rushed down from the mountain into Otani’s side and destroyed them.

As for the Toi-deppo story, it may be a fiction as mentioned above. However, a historian found another tradition that might have been the origin of the story as followed:

An old man in Bizen Province (the current Okayama Pref.) heard about an interesting story from Kobayakawa’s retainer. During the battle, Hideaki heard gunshots at the foot of the mountain. His retainers reported that the shooters of the Eastern Allies said that the gunshots were not intentional and that they just misfired. The retainers also added it might have included something else.

The historian speculates that the shooting could have been an indirect warning from Ieyasu. However, this theory is still not the number one theory according to historians.

The Portrait of Ieyasu Tokugawa, attributed to Tanyu Kano, owned by Osaka Castle Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The theory that Hideaki was not a betrayer

I will next explain a new theory about Hideaki and Matsuoyama Castle. Accorting to this theory, it is uncertain where Hideaki was after the battle of Fushimi Castle just before the Sekigahara Battle. The de facto theory says he was in Omi Province at that time. However, that comes from the family records of the Inaba Clan which was written during the Edo Period. The records also say their founder, who was a senior vassal of Hideaki, captured Matsuoyama Castle for the Eastern Allies. That means the records were manipulated by his descendants to show their contributions to the current shogunate, which may not be plausible now. On the other hand, a lord of the Eastern Allies reported that Hideaki stayed in Ogaki Castle just before the Sekigahara Battle. This is contradictory. Overall, in my opinion, I think Hideaki was undecided as to who he would support until the moment he rode up the mountain.

The portrait of Masanari Inaba, who was a senior vassal of Hideaki, owned by Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Cultural History (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

In fact, there is also no certain evidence where Hideaki was positioned at the beginning of Sekigahara Battle. However, another evidence suggests it. The letter of Hiroie Kikkawa, mentioned above, says an interesting matter just before the battle.

“The Western Allies moved from Ogaki Castle to Yamanaka (the west of Sekigahara) in order to rescue Yoshitsugu Otani because Hedeaki would be fighting against them.”

According to the letter, Hideaki and Yoshitsugu had already arrived early to inspect the field. In addition, a letter that Masamune Date wrote, who was reported from his relative about the Sekigahara battle, also says:

“The Western Allies moved from Ogaki Castle to support Nangusan Castle.”

Overall, historians speculate why Sekigahara became the battlefield as followed: Ieyasu at Akasaka Camp first tried to attack Nangusan Castle. Mitsunari heard about this and tried to intercept Hideaki, so he decided to leave Ogaki Castle and went to Sekigahara. Then, Hiroie Kikkawa at Nangusan Castle surrendered to Ieyasu who next ordered his troops to chase after Mitsunari. The Western Allies eventually reached Yamanaka and positioned themselves, which was not Sekigahara. This is another different point from the defacto theory.

*The portrait of Hiroie Kikkawa, owned by Historiographical Institute the University of Tokyo (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

If they are true, Hideaki declared he would join the Eastern Allies at latest the day before the battle. The battle started around 10am, where Hideaki joined it at the same time, and the Western Allies were defeated by the Eastern Allies soon. They are different from the defacto story. The theories of the starting time of the battle are also different depend on the testimonies of the participants. Historians speculates as followings. In the early morning at Sekigahara field which was covered with fog. The Otani troops went ahead from the Yamanaka area to the Sekigahara field. It first battled against the frontline of the Eastern Allies. When the sky became clear around 10am, the Kobayakawa troops attacked the Otani troops which would be destroyed. After that, the main forces of both the Eastern and Western Allies fought against each other at the Yamanaka area, but the Western Allies were also destroyed in a short time. Ieyasu wrote in his letters that Hideaki worked well in Sekigahara and his troops destroyed the Western Allies including Mitsunari in Yamanaka.

The last position of Ieyasu Tokugawa at the Sekigahara field

20.Sakura Castle Part2

If you are at JR Sakura Station, the place, where the castle ruins are located, it may looks simple at first. However, if you go there by walking up on the slopes, you will be surprised to see the spacious area on the top. Visitors coming from other places may feel the same way, too.

Features

Introduction

If you are at JR Sakura Station, the place, where the castle ruins are located, it may look simple at first. However, if you go there by walking up on the slopes, you will be surprised to see the spacious area on the top. Visitors coming from other places may feel the same way, too.

The hill area, seen from JR Sakura Station

One of the slopes from the station to the hill, called “Yakushizaka”

From Main Gate to Main Enclosure

Let us go from the ruins of the main gate to the center of the castle. Unfortunately, only a part of the earthen walls remains today.

The old photo of the gate, from the signboard at the site

There were some large enclosures inside the gate, such as Higashi-so-kuruwa. They were turned into schools, parking lots, and a square. There is also Sakura Castle Park control center in front of the square, which shows some exhibitions of the castle. The square had the main hall for the lord and another one for the retirement residence of Masayoshi Hotta at the end of the Edo Period.

You will eventually reach the center of the castle, which has been turned into Sakura Castle Park. You will first see the remaining large dry moat. It looks beautiful, covered in grass, however, it must have been deeper and more fortified in the past.

You will next reach the ruins of the third gate, which was the first gate towards the center. The third enclosure is inside of the gate, and it was the residential area for the senior vassals in the past. You will find a mini crater in the enclosure. This is the trace of another dry moat, which has been filled. If you go further, you will see the statues of Townsend Harris and Masayoshi Hotta who tried to open Japan to the rest of the world.

The ruins of the third gate, The sign board will show you how the original enclosure would have looked like the past

The old photo of the gate, from the sign board at the site, The gate on the left leads to the resident of one of the senior vassals

The statues of Townsend Harris on the left and Masayoshi Hotta on the right

Then, you will reach the ruins of the second gate, the entrance of the second enclosure. The enclosure had had the first main hall for the lord before the one outside the third enclosure was built. There were also the rice warehouses in the back of the enclosure. You can still see its stone foundations there, too.

You will eventually reach the main enclosure after going across the dry moat of the enclosure. there are the ruins of the first gate.

The ruins of the first gate behind the earthen bridge over the moat

The old photo of the gate, from the sign board at the site, Notice the people standing in front of the gate. They are the generals

Climbing down from Main Enclosure

The main enclosure is all surrounded by earthen walls, so you may feel like you are being wrapped up. This area is the western edge of the plateau. There was the other main hall inside, however, it was rarely used just for ceremonies. This was because it was considered exclusive for the shoguns.

The miniature model of the main enclosure, exhibited by the Sakura Castle Park control center

You can walk on the earthen walls around the enclosure. If you walk from the first gate ruins on the earthen walls, you will pass by the ruins of Do-yagura (the copper turret). The turret had a mysterious tradition. It says that the turret was originally built by Dokan Ota, the founder of Edo Castle, called “Shoyoken”, and moved from the castle. However, we cannot confirm whether or not the turret was moved from Edo Castle. However, if it had remained, it would have become a National Treasure of Japan.

The old photo of the turret, from the signboard at the site, as you can see, carpenters were removing the roof tiles partially

The miniature model of the turret, exhibited by the Sakura Castle Park control center

If you go further, you will eventually reach the earthen base of the main tower.
The tower was directly built on the base and its outside walls leaned on the earthen walls of the enclosure. That was why people saw the tower three-leveled from the outside but four-leveled from the inside. The tower was used as the warehouse for weapons. It was unfortunately burned down after a thief robbed it of guns and left his lantern there.

The miniature model of the tower, exhibited by the Sakura Castle Park control center

There are the other ruins of the corner turret in the enclosure. The turret also has the tradition which says it originally came from Motosakura Castle. That may have been the reason why it deteriorated sooner than the others and was renovated during the Edo Period.

Let us next get out of the enclosure through the ruins of the back gate and climb down the slopes of the plateau. The slopes are steep which made the castle fortified. You will eventually see some trails on the mid slopes, which are the belt enclosures of the castle. The enclosures were said to have originally been dry moats and were changed to the trails by being filled naturally. If you look up the main enclosure, you will realize it is protected by the natural terrain even though it doesn’t have stone walls.

The miniature model of the gate, exhibited by the Sakura Castle Park control center

Climbing down the slopes of the plateau, please be careful when climbing down because it’s very steep

You will eventually arrive at the foot of the plateau and see the southern barbican enclosure. If you go around the enclosure, you will see it is still surrounded by water moats. It looks very defensive and cool! If you enter the enclosure as well, you will see the outside which you walked around on.

*The exterior of the southern barbican enclosure*

The inside of the southern barbican enclosure

The view from the inside of the enclosure

I recommend you to go back to the belt enclosure and walk on it to the other western barbican enclosure. The enclosure still has its earthen walls and water moats in good conditions. There is the only remaining building at its entrance, called Yakui-mon gate. However, No one knows for certain its original name and position, because it was moved multiple times from the current position that it is in now.

Looking at Umadashi system and Dry Moats

If you don’t mind, it may be better to walk around the plateau to another entrance from the north to the castle. It was called Tamachi-mon which was the back gate of the castle, on Atago slope. It is now the front gate of the National Museum of Japanese History. A large enclosure of the castle, called Shinoki-kuruwa has become the museum. The enclosure was originally used as Samurai residences and was turned into barracks for the Japanese Imperial Army before the museum. It has been used effectively because it is massive.

The miniature model of Shinoki Enclosure when it was used as the barracks for the Japanese Imperial Aemy, exhibited by the National Museum of Japanese History

The floor space of the museum is about 35,000 square meters big. It exhibits the Japanese histories by classifying 5 different periods. If you want to look through all of them, you may have to spend all day long. It may be better to split up your visits to fully see everything.

The entrance of the National Museum of Japanese History

The miniature model of Taga Castle, an ancient castle in the Tohoku Region, exhibited by the National Museum of Japanese History

The miniature model of the hall of the Asakura Clan in Ichijodani Castle, exhibited by the National Museum of Japanese History

Going back to the attractions of the castle, the Umadashi system has been restored near the museum. The system was a fortified square position in front of Shinoki Gate, which was surrounded by dry moats. The long side of the square is 121m long and the short side is 40m long, same as the original. The dry moats were originally 5.6m in depth but is only 3m in depth probably for safety reasons. The system is only connected by a narrow path to the gate. It was once filled by the Japanese Imperial Army before its restoration.

The Umadashi system in front of the Shinoki Gate Ruins

The Shinoki Gate Ruins have no buildings now, and its inside is the third enclosure. So, you can visit the second and main enclosures again. However, let us go to another place by walking down from the plateau again. It is a pond, called Uba-ga-ike, which means “The Pond of a Nursing Mother”. The name comes from a sad and unfortunate story. It says that one day, a nursing mother took the daughter of a senior vassal to the pond. However, she didn’t keep her eyes on the daughter, which lead to the daughter drowning in the pond She felt very sad and guilty about it, so, she decided to throw herself into the pond as well. For the castle, this pond divided the main gate and the back gate sides to force the defenders protect the castle quickly. It also became famous for Japanese iris and croaking sounds of frogs during the peaceful Edo Period.

The Uba-ga-ike Pond, Since the pond is covered in lotus leaves, it’s hard to see how deep it truly is

You can go back from the pond to the main gate ruins by passing through a path which was another dry moat. The path has a fork which still looks like the dry moat. If you go straight, you will eventually reach the entrance of the park near the gate ruins.

The former dry moat, which is used as the path, the fork on the right, which is the dry moat today, the fork on the left which leads to the main entrance

The fork on the right remains as a dry moat

Visiting Samurai Residences and Sakura Juntendo Memorial Building

Atter visiting the castle ruins, let us go to Sakura Samurai Residences. The residence area is in Miyakoji of Sakura City, which originally had middle-class warriors’ residences. However, the current area exhibits three different residences: one of the remaining one for middle class warriors, another one form high-class warriors and finally, the other one form low-class warriors. The last two residential areas were moved from other areas, making it accessible to the public for viewing.

Sakura Samurai Residences Street, Notice the samurai residential homes on the right

These residences were owned and maintained by the Sakura Domain like official residences. They were made differently by each warrior’s class. That was because of the class system as well as the budgetary restrictions of the domain. For example, the entrance of the high-class residence looks high in quality, but the others are simpler. The walls of the high class’s one used white plasters, while the others only used brown mud walls. The high and middle class’s ones used fine Tatami mats in their rooms, however the low class can only use simple mats without the edge decorations.

The low-class residence (its roof has been replaced with a modern style)

You should also try to walk along Hiyodori-zaka Slope near the residences, which was the commuting route to the castle. The route goes down on a trail, surrounded by bamboo trees, which looks exactly same as it used to.

We will finally go to Sakura Juntendo Memorial Building. It was originally built by Taizen Sato as his Rangaku (Dutch studies) school and clinic. Part of it opens to the public as a museum. The museum is about 2km away from the main gate ruins of the castle and was at the edge of the castle town. This is probably because Taizen was not an official doctor of the domain. A guide of the museum suggested to me another speculation. Taizen’s father was an agent in lawsuits who was against the policies of Tadakuni Mizuno, the top of the government. Therefore, Taizen might have had difficulties in his work in Edo City. He might also have been accommodated by Masayoshi Hotta. If it’s true, Sakura Juntendo was also like a place of refuge.

One of the exhibitions of the museum is the miniature model of the original buildings. You can see the buildings were so large. It is said that over one thousand students were there in total.

Another interesting exhibition is the original medical board which is hung on the top of the wall. The clinic mainly offered surgeries. However, the doctors didn’t use anesthesia because it was still dangerous at that time. Therefore, patients endured the pain because they wanted to get well after that.

The original medical menu, Notice the price of each procedures on the bottom of the medical board

The clinic is the origin of Juntendo University in Tokyo, one of Taizen’s successors who founded it. However, there is still the current Sakura Juntendo Clinic next to the museum. The spirits of Sakura are alive.

The plaque of Juntendo, It’s written in Chinese Characters (Kanji)

My Impression

Honestly, at first, I thought the castle park looked like a natural park. However, the more I looked around, the more my impressions changed. Currently it’s trendy for cities to revive castles across Japan. I think Sakura City does not need to ride the boom. This is because the city has already preserved the land of the castle as the park. The city can take enough time and be patient when developing it further. The important thing is preserving it as accurate as possible. In addition, you can still enjoy the castle ruins even without its visible buildings. So I highly recmmend you visit Sakura Catle in the future!

That’s all. Thank you.

Back to “Sakura Castle Part1”

20.Sakura Castle Part1

Sakura Castle was located at the current Sakkura City of Chiba Prefecture. The castle was built as the home of the Sakura Domain during the Edo Period, which is the origin of the city. The areas around the city had many other castles until the Sengoku Period and some of which were very important.

Location and History

Sakura Castle was located at the current Sakura City of Chiba Prefecture. The castle was built as the home of the Sakura Domain during the Edo Period, which is the origin of the city. The areas around the city had many other castles until the Sengoku Period and some of which were very important. For example, there was Usui Castle in the western part of the city, where the battle of Usui Castle happened back in 1566. Kenshin Uesugi, who tried to rule the whole Kanto Region, attacked the castle but failed. There was also Motosakura Castle in the eastern part, which was the home of the Chiba Clan. Usui Castle was a branch of the clan. Cuttently, this castle is called “Motosakura” but back then, it was called “Sakura Castle”. So therefore, Sakura Castle was the former name of Motosakura Castle. This article will explain the formative years of Sakura Castle including the formation of Motosakura Castle, which should make it easier for people to better understand the history.

The ruins of Usui Castle, Notice the wooden log steps covered in soil

The ruins of Motosakura Castle, Notice the icon on the wooden shields. This is the family crest of the Chiba Clan

Formative Years of Sakura Castle

The Chiba Clan had owned Shimosa Province, which was the northern part of Chiba Prefecture, since the end of the ancient times. The most famous person of the clan would be Tsunetane Chiba who supported the launch of the Kamakura Shogunate at the end of the 12th Century. Their home, Inohana Castle, was located at the current Chiba City for a long time. However, the castle was destroyed when many battles occurred in the 15th Century during the Sengoku Period. The clan decided to rebuild their new home in another location, which would be called Motosakura Castle. The castle was on the Shimosa plateau and was surrounded by Inbanuma Lake and other waterlogged areas. Its location was much more fortified than before and more convenient for water transportation. The lake was also much larger than now, where people could easily access Kasumigaura Lake and other great rivers. The wide water area was even called Katori-no-umi, which means the Katori inland sea.

The statue of Tsunetane Chiba, exhibited by Chiba City Folk Museum

The whole map of Motosakura Castle, from the signboard at the site

The situation changed during the 16th Century. The Hojo Clan was invading the Kanto Region from the west. On the other hand, the Satomi Clan also got the power from the south (Boso peninsula). The Chiba Clan wondered what to do and they eventually allied with the Hojo Clan. That’s why Kenshin Uesugi, who would help the Satomi Clan, decided to attack Usui Castle, a branch of the Chiba Clan. The victory of the clan was partially due to the Hojo Clan’s help. As a result, the Hojo became more effective to the Chiba Clan. As for the home of the clan, Chikatane Chiba, who was the lord of the clan before the battle, originally planned to move his home from Motosakura to another. The new land for his new home later became Sakura Castle, which was called Kashima Castle then. Mysteriously, he died in 1533, which ultimately canceled his plans of moving the castle.

The location of the castle, Notice the smaller Inbanuma Lake on the left next to Usui Castle. This important river used to span much larger that what the current map is showing. It used to be part of a much larger body of water.

The portrait of Kenshin Uesugi, owned by the Uesugi Shrine (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The portrait of Chikatane Chiba, owned by the Kubo Shrine (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The Hojo Clan interfered in the internal affairs of the Chiba Clan at the end of the 16th Century. For instance, Ujimasa Hojo married his daughter to Kunitane Chiba, the lord of the clan. The Hojo Clan allowed Kunitane to resume the construction of Kashima Castle but failed to do so because the lord was killed again. Ujimasa next married his son to Kunitane’s daughter, in order to be the successor of the clan. It was said that Kashima Castle was finally finished for the new home of the couple.

The portrait of Ujimasa Hojo, owned by Odawara Castle (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

However, it is difficult to confirm whether these records are the factual, as Sakura Castle was built on the old Kashima Castle. The few discovered old dry moats at the site proved that they were at least trying to build the castle there. So, why did the Chiba and Hojo Clans want to move there again and again? One of the reasons would be that the land for the new castle was much larger than the old one. For the Hojo Clan, another possible reason may have been to protect their territories from the potential invasions by Hideyoshi Toyotomi from the west. The plateau, where the new castle was built on, had steep slopes and was surrounded by rivers towards the direction. That would have had a very defensive fort against the invasion. However, the Chiba Clan was eventually fired by Hideyoshi, after their master, the Hojo Clan was defeated at the battle of Odawara Castle in 1590.

Toshikatsu Doi builds Sakura Castle

After the Battle of Odawara Castle, several lords were assigned one after another by Ieyasu Tokugawa who was the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate. In 1610, Ieyasu ordered his retainer, Toshikatsu Doi to stay in Motosakura Castle and to build a new home at the former location of Kashima Castle, which would eventually be called, Sakura Castle. The new castle was supposed to support Edo Castle, the home of the shogunate. If Edo Castle was attacked by enemies from the west, the shogun could escape from his home to Sakura Castle towards the east. Sakura Castlewas situated in a great location that had very strong natural defense.

The portrait of Toshikatsu Doi, owned by Jojoji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Toshikatsu served three generations of the shoguns: Ieyasu, Hidetada, and Iemitsu. He was one of the most important senior vassals for them and established the system of the government. He was born in 1573 when Ieyasu was only a warlord during the Seongoku Period. There are some theories about who his father was.
The first one is that Toshimasa Doi was his father, according to the official family trees by the shogunate.
The second one claims that he was a son of Nobumoto Mizuno who was a brother of Odai, Ieyasu’s mother, according to the official history books of the shogunate. Odai originally came from the Mizuno Clan.
The last theory is the most surprising theory, it was said that Toshikatsu was an illegitimate son of Ieyasu, according to the official trees of the Doi Clan.
Each theory has substantial evidence, however only one theory can be true. Why were there different theories?

Recent studies believe the followings. Toshikatsu has a short sword where the family crest of the Mizuno Clan was engraved. It was passed down from Odai to Ieyasu who gave it to Toshikatsu. That meant Toshikatsu was Ieyasu’s son. However, it was a very know fact, which was not recorded officially. That’s why the official family trees simply say Toshikatsu was a biological son of the Doi Clan (in fact, adopted). After that, Toshimasu Doi, who was a grandson of Toshikatsu, was worried about the declining reputation of his clan. He thought that he should settle the mystery of his grandfather to gain a stable position for the clan. His decision was that he would announce that Toshikatsu was a son of the Mizuno Clan by using its family crest on the sword. The writers of the official history books probably heard about it. Finally, Toshisato Doi, the 8th lord of the clan, was asked as to who Toshikatsu’s mother was by the shogunate. Toshisato decided that he would answer by telling the truth and put it on his clan’s official trees. However, the shogunate couldn’t accept it because the matters of Ieyasu were too serious to change for them. As a result, the three theories certainly unchanged today. As for Toshikatsu himself, he became a close vassal of Hidetada, who was the successor of Ieyasu, when Toshikatsu was only 7 years old. No matter who his father was, it’s no mystery that he was a very talented person.

The portrait of Toshimasu Doi, owned by Jojoji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

When Ieyasu established the shogunate, his most influential retainers were the Honda and the Okubo Clans. However, they often had internal conflicts with each other. As a result, Masazumi Honda survived when Hidetada became the 2nd shogun. Hidetada didn’t want to let Masazumi have more power. He and his close vassals, including Toshikatsu Doi, decided to trick Masazumi. When Masazumi went on a business trip from his home, Utsunomiya Castle, to another castle where he was told about his replacement. That’s the reason Masazumi would not be able to raise a rebellion. In fact, that’s the same way Masazumi excluded the Okubo Clan earlier on. Toshikatsu must have joined the careful planning of the strategy. He continued to serve the shoguns, including the third shogun, Iemitsu, for a long time. He also contributed to the shogunate by building the group guidance system of the shogunate. The system would avoid relying on individual abilities and having internal conflicts so much like the shogunate had used to.

The portrait of Masanobu Honda, owned by Kaga-Maeda Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The portrait of Tadayo Okubo, owned by Odawara Castle (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

In reality, Toshikatsu survived these internal conflicts. Therefore, people sometimes viewed him as a Machiavellian. On the other hand, he was a well-informed and kind person whom the shoguns, his colleagues, and even foreign merchants often relied on. That may be one of the reasons for his longevity. He was also the founder of the Sakura Domain and built Sakura Castle in over 7 years, which was eventually completed in 1616.

Features of Sakura Castle

Sakura Castle, which was built on a large plateau, had several distinctive features. First, the castle wisely used the natural shapes of the plateau. The plateau was basically a natural hazard, which was about 20m above the foot of the hill and surrounded by Takasaki and Kashima Rivers. The main enclosure was built at the western edge of the plateau, and other enclosures were built around it. Large dry moats and the main gate were also constructed to the east for fortification. The Samurai residences and the castle town with Narita Road were built over the gate. Overall, the castle and town were all created on the plateau.

The illustration of Sakura Castle in Shimousa Province, exhibited by the National Diet Library

The old photo of the main gate, from the signboard at the site, Notice how small the people are. The gate was so much bigger compared to modern gates today

Secondly, the castle foundations were all made from soil, not using stone walls. When the battle of Odawara Castle happened, Hideyoshi Toyotomi built a castle made of pure stone walls, called Ishigakiyama Castle, for the first time in the Kanto Region. Since then, similar castles, such as Edo Castle, were built in the region. However, Sakura Castle kept the traditional method of the region, using only soil. Other castle used the same method, such as Kawagoe and Utsunomiya Castles. On the other hand, the castle had some of the latest defensive systems at that time. There were two defensive positions, called Umadashi, in front of the gate of the third enclosure. There were also huge enclosures outside the third enclosure, which could accommodate lots of soldiers and was used as a parade ground. Furthermore, the belt enclosures were built on the slopes of the plateau where the defenders were able to move easily. Finally, the enclosures connected to two barbican enclosures outside the plateau.

The main tower base of Sakura Castle, Notice that not one stone was used

The barbican enclosure of Sakura Castle, Notice the amount of algae covering the moat

The final feature is about the buildings of the castle. There was the main tower in the main enclosure, which was about 22m high and had three levels (four floors). It was extremely rare for that type of castle to be built at that time. (The shogunate basically didn’t allow new castle constructions after its rules were established.) The tower was said to have moved from Edo castle. Its details are unknown, however, because it was unfortunately burned down by an accidental fire during the Edo Period. Historians speculate that it was similar to that of Koga Castle, which Toshikatsu also built later on. There were also Do-yagura (Copper Turret) and Sumi-yagura (Corner Turret) in the main enclosure. The enclosure also had the main hall inside but was barely used. This was because it was once used by Ieyasu Tokugawa, so it was considered exclusive to the shoguns. Instead, the lord of the castle lived in the main hall of the second enclosure. Atter the hall deteriorated; a new hall was built outside the third enclosure.

The miniature model of the main tower, exhibited by Sakura Castle Park Information Center

Masayoshi Hotta comes up with an idea to Open the Country from Sakura Castle

After Toshikatsu Doi moved to the Koga Domain in 1633, several lord families ruled the Sakura Domain during the Edo Period. In particular, the Hotta Clan owed the domain and castle for a long time until the end of the period. I will describe Masayoshi Hotta who was one of the lords and how he devoted his life to reforming and opening the country to the rest of the world. Masayoshi was born in 1810 and became one of the core members of the central government when he was 32 years old. However, he quit the position 2 years later because he didn’t really get along with Tadakuni Mizuno, the top of the government under the shogun. However, he kept in touch with his colleagues like Masahiro Abe and Naosuke Ii.

Masayoshi Hotta (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

He also reformed the government of the Sakura Domain. He declared the reform to the retainers of the domain at the main hall in the third enclosure of Sakura Castle. One idea was to include the military system of the domain. He changed it to the western style and he allowed the soldiers to exercise in the castle. Another major change from the reform was that Masayoshi introduced the western medicine to the domain. He invited a famous doctor, Taizen Sato from Edo City, who opened a medical school, called Sakura-Juntendo. Lots of students gathered there from all around Japan, which gave Sakura the name Rangaku (Dutch studies) town similar to Nagasaki. (At that time, the western science was provided from the Netherlands, one of the few countries which had diplomatic relationship with Japan.) Masayoshi was also called “Ranpeki” which means a person who devotes oneself entirely to Dutch studies and way of life. As a result, the scenery of Sakura Castle and the town dramatically changed.

Taizen Sato (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

After the arrival of Matthew Perry’s fleet in 1853, Masahiro Abe, who was the top of the government, asked the country to vote on whether or not Japan should open the rest of the world. Despite Masayoshi’s wishes to open Japan, most people voted against it. Masayoshi was suddenly assigned the top of the government (the chief of the members of shogun’s council of elders) in 1855. However, the reason why Masayoshi was appointed the top official was still uncertain. One of his tasks was to negotiate with Townsend Harris, the council of the U.S. about the trade treaty. Masayoshi actively dealt with Harris because both of them really wanted Japan to open to the rest of the world. The treaty was still unfair, however. For example, Japan didn’t have autonomy to tariffs. On the other hand, Masayoshi decided to open Yokohama Port which would become a worldwide port even today.

The portrait of Masahiro Abe, owned by Fukuyama Seshikan High School (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Townsend Harris (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons), An older picture of Townsend Harris

Even after the deal with Harris was finalized, Masayoshi still needed to handle a more difficult task. It was to get approval of the treaty from many relative lords in the government. When Toshikatsu Doi was the top, the system was simpler than the period of Masayoshi. However, the system had completely changed. The result was that only 4 of the 18 relative lords supported it. Therefore, Masayoshi’s second option was to get approval from the emperor, which had ever not been done. It would be the most effective way to overrule the lords. He visited the imperial court in Kyoto in 1558 to persuade the emperor and the nobles but he failed. This was because the emperor Komei himself did not want to open the country to the rest of the world.

*The portrait of Naosuke Ii, owned by Hikone Castle Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

Masayoshi was unfortunately fired, and the matter of the treaty was contnued by Naosuke Ii. He went back to the hall of Sakura Castle and lived there until his retirement and until his death in 1864. After the Meiji Restoration, the castle was used as a base for the Japanese Imperial Army. The mission of the base was to guard the eastern areas of Tokyo, the new imperial capital and the former shogun’s capital. That meant the role of the castle was the same between the Edo Period and the Meiji Era. After World War II, it became Sakura Castle Park and part of the park is used as National Museum of Japanese Histories today. The location of the castle is very suitable for such a large museum.

The statue of Masayosho Hotta in the third enclosure of Sakura Castle

The miniature model of Sakura Castle when the Japanese Imperial Army used it, exhibited by the National Museum of Japanese Histories

The entrance of National Museum of Japanese Histories

To be continued in “Sakura Castle Part2”