18.Hachigata Castle Part1

Hachigata Castle was located in modern day Yorii Town in the northern part of Saitama Prefecture. The castle was prominent both when the Sengoku Period of the Kanto Region started and ended.

Location and History

Hachigata Castle was located in modern day Yorii Town in the northern part of Saitama Prefecture. The castle was prominent both when the Sengoku Period of the Kanto Region started and ended.

Beginning of Sengoku Period in Kanto Region

The location of the castle

The region ran into the unquiet Sengoku Period in 1455 when the Kyotoku War began. The Ashikaga Clan, the shogunate head for the Kanto Region and the Uesugi Clan, the shogunate deputy for the region opposed and confronted each other at the Tone River, the largest river in the region. The Uesugi Clan constructed Ikkako Encampment at the western riverside and used it for over 20 years. The clan actually consisted of two branch clans, the Yamanouchi and the Ogigayatsu Clans. Each branch clan also had a main retainer to control many warriors and matters from the Nagao Clan for the Yamanouchi and the Ota Clan for the Ogigayatsu. One of the main retainers, Kagenobu Nagao died in 1473 before his position was assigned by his boss, Akisada Yamanouchi to his little brother, Tadakage.

Around the ruins of Ikakko Encampment
The yellow area was influenced by the Uesugi Clan and the purple area was influenced by the Ashikaga Clan at that time, from the signboard at the site

Kageharu Nagao builds Castle

This was a reasonable decision, because Tadakage was considered as a senior and experienced person. However, Kagenobu’s son, Kageharu thought otherwise, as the position was inherited by his grandfather and father. Kageharu left the encampment, built Hachigata Castle in 1475, and started a rebellion in 1476. The castle was built on a high cliff at the meeting point of Arakawa River, another large river in the region, and Fukasawagawa River, a peninsula affording natural defense. Though the details of the first stage of the castle are unknown, it would have been easy for Kageharu to attack the Ikkako Encampment which had no guard on its southern side (which faced the castle). Many other retainers, who worried about their own positions in the new power hierarchy, supported Kageharu. The encampment finally collapsed in 1477.

The family crest of the Nagao Clan, called Kuyou-Tomoe (meaning the nine comma-shaped figures)

The relief map around the castle

The Arakawa River and the cliffs behind, where the castle was built
The Fukasawagawa River

What Kageharu really wanted was unclear, but he tried to get many territories with his supporters and the Ashikaga Clan with whom Kageharu took sides. Kageharu was an excellent general. However, the other main retainer for the Ogigayatsu, Dokan Ota was superior to him. Dokan, who is known for building Edo Castle, which would become the center of the government during the Edo Period , and is now the Imperial Palace, was also a great strategist and politician. Dokan captured the Kageharu supporters’ castles, such as Kozukue Castle, one by one. He also made brokered a fragile peace with the Ashikaga Clan, which drove Kageharu back to his home base, Hachigata Castle. Dokan finally attacked and captured the castle in 1478, so Kageharu was forced to flee. Dokan became the greatest lord in the Kanto Region, however, he was killed in 1485 by his master, Sadamasa Ogigayatsu who feared his power. The region became unstable again and Kageharu continued to fight against his masters, the Yamanouchi, throughout his life as a soldier of fortune. He finally settled down under Sozui Ise, the founder of the Hojo Clan, until his death in 1514.

The portrait of Dokan Ota, owned by Daijiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The ruins of Edo Castle (the current Imperial Palace)
The ruins of Kozukue Castle
The replica of the portrait of Soun Hojo, owned by Odawara Castle (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Castle becomes Hojo’s Branch

Hachigata Castle was occupied by the Yamanouchi for a while, but eventually abandoned. The power of the Uesugi Clans (Yamanouchi and Ogigayatsu) decreased while the Hojo Clan invaded the Kanto Region during the 16th Century. The Hojo Clan was based in Odawara Castle in Sagami Province (now Kanagawa Pref.) and they set several important branch castles where the Hojo’s relatives were sent to govern the region’s stability. Hachigata Castle was chosen as one of the castles as its location was at the northern edge of their territory. Ujikuni Hojo became the lord of the castle in 1568 and struggled to keep. For example, when the Hojo Clan allied with Kenshin Uesugi who was the successor of the Yamanouchi and one of the strongest warlords, Ujikuni was charged with negotiating with him. However, once the alliance was broken, Kenshin attacked Hachigata Castle, set fire to its castle town, and withdrew.

The family crest of the Hojo Clan, called Hojo-Uroko (meaning the squames of the Hojo)
Odawara Castle
The portrait of Kenshin Uesugi, owned by the Uesugi Shrine (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Ujikuni Hojo, Last Lord of Castle

To survive under these severe conditions, Ujikuni greatly improved the castle. The castle’s defenses were naturally strong, having been built on a tall cliff, sandwiched by the two rivers to the north, the east, and the west. It also had many enclosures made of soil, mainly including the Main, Second and Third Enclosures in a line from north to south. Therefore, enemies would have to attack the Third Enclosure first from the south. To prevent attack, these enclosures were divided by deep dry moats and surrounded by high, thick earthen walls. Part of the walls were supported by stone mounds looking like stone walls. The entrances of the enclosures were protected by a set of gates and the Umadashi system. The Umadashi system refers to a connected smaller enclosure in front of the gate, connected by a narrow path to the larger enclosures. The position could be used to both protect the enclosure and attack from it.

The diorama of the castle at the site, viewed from the north
The restored stone mounds
The restored Umadashi system

The history of the castle suddenly ended in 1590 when the ruler, Hideyoshi Toyotomi invaded the Kanto Region as the Hojo’s territory to complete his unification of Japan. He went there with over 200,000 soldiers and about 35,000 of which, attacked Hachigata Castle in May, led by Toshiie Maeda. Ujikuni, along with about 3,000 defenders, was besieged for a month. The attackers didn’t assaulted the castle, directly, instead, it is said that they fired large guns from Kuruma-yama Mountain, about 1 km away from the Main Gate of the castle to the south. Ujiie finally surrendered and opened the castle in June, perhaps because there was no hope for reinforcements, or due to the damage from the guns. The castle passed to the Tokugawa Clan, who now ran the region instead of the Hojo Clan, however, it was eventually abandoned at the end of the Sengoku Period.

The Portrait of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, owned by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The Kuruma-yama Mountain seen from the Outer Enclosure
The ruins of Hachigata Castle

To be continued in “Hachigata Castle Part2”

153.Kitabatake Clan Hall Part3

The enclosures on the northern ridge of Kiriyama Castle look isolated from the other mountains around, so it must have been the real final stronghold.

Features

Route to Kiriyama Castle

The route to Kiriyama Castle is much longer than that from the foot to the final castle. You have to climb ridges and valleys of the mountain for over 30 minutes. The castle was built on the northern and southern peaks of the mountain.

The map around the castle

Going on a ridge
Going on a valley
Arriving the ruins soon
The location map of the castle at the site, adding the red English letters

Bell Tower Ruins on Southern Ridge

You will eventually arrive at the southern one which is called the Bell Tower Ruins. As its name suggests, there was a bell tower, but there are no buildings now. The view of the area around is very good, so it might have had a lookout tower as well.

The aerial photo around the castle

The Bell Tower Ruins
A view from the enclosure

There are also two other ridges (in the north and southernwest, or right and left from the southern ridge from where you came). You should choose the northern or right one to reach the northern peak which were the Main Enclosures. Please don’t go to the southwestern or left one, or you will be stuck at much harder mountain areas. You can see some artificial ditches in the direction to prevent enemies from even attacking under the severe conditions.

You should choose this path to the northern ridge
You shouldn’t choose this direction (southernwest)
The ditch for preventing the enemies from the southernwest

Main Enclosures on Northern Ridge

If you go on the northern ridge, which goes up and down steeply, you will finally arrive at the Main Enclosures on the top. The enclosures are divided by ditches into the Rice-granary ruins in the southwest, the Main Enclosure in the center on the top, and the Turret ruins in the northeast. They are all still surrounded by thick earthen walls.

Arriving at the Main Enclosures
the Rice-granary Ruins
The Main Enclosure
The stone monument of the castle ruins at the Main Enclosure
The ditch between the Main Enclosure and the Turret Ruins
The Turret Ruins

The Main Enclosure, in particular, looks like a bowl probably because the walls collapsed and the ground inside was filled with soil, which made their shape becomes round. These enclosures on the northern ridge look isolated from the other mountains around, so it must have been the real final stronghold.

The Main Enclosure looks like a bowl
A view from the Main Enclosures

Later History

After the invasion by the Oda Clan, Kitabatake Clan Hall, plus the final castle and Kiriyama Castle, were abandoned. A descendant of the Kitabatake Clan built a small shrine in the hall ruins, which worshiped his ancestors during the Edo Period, which is the origin of the current shrine. After the Meiji Restoration, the situation changed as the government decided that the Southern Court has been orthodox. Since then, the warriors and lords who had supported the Southern Court were focused on, one of which was the Kitabatake Clan. The shrine was developed being named The Kitabatake Shrine, and finally designated as an Imperial Shrine of Special Status in 1928, which worships loyal vassals. Similarly, the Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruins Garden and Kiriyama Castle Ruins were designated as a National Historic Site in 1936. This was probably reflected by the contributions of the clan. After the discovery of the old stone walls of the original hall, the hall ruins were added to the National Historic Site in 2006.

The approach of Kitabatake Shrine
Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruis Garden

My Impression

When I first visited the Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruins as the current Kitabatake Shrine, I was honestly disappointed with them. This was because there were few castle-like items. I also found the introduction of Kiriyama Castle at that time, but I decided not to go there as I thought I didn’t have enough time to complete it. That’s why I tried to go to the castle ruins on another day and was satisfied. However, I can now say that if you don’t have enough time to see both ruins of Kitabatake Clan Hall and Kiriyama Castle, you can at least go to the final castle of the hall on the way to Kiriyama Castle in a short time.

The ruins of Kiriyama Castle
The ruins of the final castle

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Kitabatake Clan Hall Part1”
Back to “Kitabatake Clan Hall Part2”

153.Kitabatake Clan Hall Part2

Regarding the ruins of Kitabatake Clan Hall, visiting them starts from when you enter the Taki area. If you go on the steep Nigaki Mountain Pass to the ruins, it may give you a good understanding of how the hall was protected by this natural hazard.

How to get There

Regarding the ruins of Kitabatake Clan Hall, visiting them starts from when you enter the Taki area. The current roads to the area have been developed and paved for the convenience of transportation, but some of them are narrow and winding mountain passes. For example, if you want to visit the ruins going on National Road 368 (the former Ise Main Road) by car from the west, it is easy because the road has been developed through Kaisaka Tunnel into the mountain beside the area.

The map around the Taki area with the current 7 entrances

The Kaisaka Tunnel
The old Ise Road to the steep Kaisaka Mountain Pass goes along it

However, if you go from the east, you may find it troubling. The road still goes on the steep Nigaki Mountain Pass and becomes narrow and zigzagged. It may give you a good understanding of how the hall was protected by this natural hazard. Please be careful when passing each other. It about an hour or 40km drive away from Matsusaka IC on the Ise Expressway. The severe mountain pass area is about 5km long. If you want to go on an easier route from the IC, you can take the Mie Prefectural Road 43 from the north to the ruins.

The National Road 368 on the Nigaki Mountain Pass

If you want to use public transportation, take the Tsu City Community Bus (the Misugi-higashi or Misugi-junkan route) from Ise-Okutsu Satation and get off at the Kitabatake-jinja-mae bus stop. Be careful the buses only run on weekdays and there few of them.
From Tokyo to Ise-Okutsu Station: take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Mie rapid train or the Kintetsu Railway at Nagoya Station, and transfer to the JR Meisho Line at Matsusaka Station.

Features

Hall becomes Kitabatake Shrine

The ruins of Kitabatake Clan Hall has turned into the Kitabatake Shrine since the Edo Period. The shrine was built on where the hall had been built, so it looks like a typical shrine, not a hall or castle. The only remaining item of the hall is the Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruins Garden in the southern part of the shrine. The garden is a pond garden with a circular promenade which is said that Takakuni Hosokawa, the shogun’s deputy designed and Harutomo Hatakeyama, the seventh lord of the clan first built. It looks very beautiful and sophisticated and is considered one of the three greatest Samurai gardens and was designated as a National Place of Scenic Beauty.

The map around the hall

The entrance of the shrine
The front shrine hall
it doesn’t look like hall or castle ruins.
The Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruins Garden
Ichijodani Asakura Clan Garden, another greatest Samurai garden

Earliest Stone Walls used for Warriors’ Halls during Middle Ages

There is a signboard which shows the excavated stone walls of the original hall and says they are the earliest example of stone walls used for warriors’ halls during the Middle Ages. However, we can’t look at them directly, as they have been buried again after they were excavated. The stone walls were first built around the upper tier of the hall’s land where the Main Hall for the lord was probably built. In fact, the stone walls were buried by the Kitabatake Clan themselves to extend the tier. The Main Hall was rebuilt on the tier, which would be the final version of the hall. That means the stone walls ruins are just inside of the current shrine so that visitors usually can’t see them.

The explanation board for the stone walls
You can’t see the excavated items

Final Castle Ruins

If you want to see what looks like castle ruins, you should consider visiting the final castle of the hall and/or Kiriyama Castle. They are on the same route and the final castle is not so far from the hall. Therefore, you can choose which one or both depending on your schedule. If you walk on the path south of the shrine, you will find the starting point of the route to the ruins. There is a zigzagging trail to the mountains, so you will need to hike.

The path to the starting point
The starting point

You will first reach the ruins of the final castle, on the mountain about 80m above the shrine (the former hall). The ruins simply have the main enclosure and the belt enclosure around. You can see the top of the shrine and the area around there. You will understand the place must have been the refuge shelter for the people living in the hall. The trail goes beside the belt enclosure to Kiriyama Castle Ruins ahead over the western ditch.

Climbing the trail
You can see the roof of the shrine below on the way
A view of the area around
The ruins of the final castle
The trail goes to Kiriyama Castle Ruins

To be continued in “Kitabatake Clan Hall Part3”
Back to “Kitabatake Clan Hall Part1”