I can’t believe the stone walls of Takeda Castle have been left intact for over 400 years since the it was abandoned. Although they have been often repaired and maintained. I still can’t understand why they have been intact for so long.
Features
From Center of Castle to Southern Ridge
The western ridge from the center, called Hanayashiki or the Flower Residence Enclosure, does not usually not allow visitors to enter because of its preservation and the safety of visitors. The enclosure is built on the steeper ridge than the others, which is said to be built to protect the back route of the castle.
The map around the castle
The Flower Residence EnclosureYou can not enter the enclosure
Therefore, you will go on the route to the southern ridge which has the narrow Southern Second Enclosure and the large Minami-Senjo or the Southern 1,000 mat Enclosure, similar to the northern ridge. If you look back to the center of the castle, you can see many great stone walls covering the top of the mountain. The view of the area around the mountain is magnificent.
Going to the southern ridgeThe Southern Second EnclosureA view of the center from the Southern Second EnclosureGoing out to the Minami-senjo EnclosureThe Minami-senjo EnclosureA view from the Minami-senjo Enclosure
The return path goes from the edge of the ridge, which might have been the other entrance of the castle. You will finally return to the paved path which you have passed.
The exit from the Minami-senjo EnclosureA view of the same place above from the outsideThe return pathYou have returned to the paved path which you had passed.
Later History
Takeda Castle was abandoned and all the castle buildings were demolished in the early Edo Period. However, the stone walls of the castle were left as there were, for some reasons. In other cases of abolished castles, their stone walls were also destroyed. The remaining stone walls of Takeda Castle may have been a miracle. The castle ruins were designated as a National Historic Site in 1943. Since then the ruins were sometimes used as the locations of historical movies that feature the intact stone walls of the castle. In 2007, a photographer, posted his photo of the Takeda Castle in the Sky, which won an award. This made the castle famous and the number of the visitors skyrocketed.
Intentionally broken stone walls of Iwakuni Castle on the mountainThe stone walls of Hizen-Nagoya Castle being destroyed like a V letterThe ruins of Suzume-mon Gate of Uda-Matsuyama Castle, after its stone walls were completely destroyed
My Impression
Three things surprised me about the great stone walls of Takeda Castle three times. First, I was simply impressed to see the stone walls on the high mountain. I was wondering how and why the builders built them on such a steep place. I learned that the value of Takeda Castle for the rulers and what the builder, Masahiro Saimura did in the castle are parts of the answer. Secondly, I heard that local people make great efforts on maintaining the stone walls to preserve them and make sure visitors visit them safely. I also think the original layout of the castle even now helps visitors walk smoothly in the castle ruins. Finally, I can’t believe the stone walls have been left intact for over 400 years since the castle was abandoned. As far as I know, there is no other example of stone walls which are the same or similar to Takeda Castle. Although the stone walls have been often repaired and maintained. I still can’t understand why they have been intact for so long.
Unlike the Three castles which were abandoned in the seme period, the stone walls of Takeda Castle remain intact
How to get There
If you want to get there by car, it is about 10 minutes from Wadayama IC on the Kitakinki-Toyooka Expressway. There is a parking lot at the tourist facility halfway up the mountain. By public transportation, you can take the Tenku-bus from JR Takeda Station and get off at the final bus stop, Takeda-jo. The stop is over 1km away from the entrance of the castle ruins. Or it takes about 40 minutes on foot from the station to the entrance. From Tokyo or Osaka to Takeda Station: take the Sanyo Shinkansen super express and transfer to the Bantan Line at Himeji Station.
Masahiro Saimura, who completed Takeda Castle, only earned 22 thousand koku of rice, which meant he could not afford to build great stone walls at the castle. It is considered that the construction of castle was backed up by Hideyoshi.
Location and History
Famous for Castle in Sky
Takeda Castle was located on Torafusu-yama or the Sitting-Tiger Mountain (at 354m above the sea level) in Tajima Province which is now the northern part of Hyogo Prefecture. The ruins of Takeda Castle recently became very popular among not only history fans but also general tourists as a Castle in the Sky. The ruins don’t have any buildings but their great stone walls remain on the high mountain, which look like they are floating on a sea of clouds when there are certain weather conditions in the morning in autumn to winter. It is also called the Machu Picchu in Japan. The Castle in the Sky is an attraction in the present time and you need to go further away from the castle ruins to see it. However, the nickname also came from the castle’s history and location.
A photo of Takeda Castle in the Sky, from the signboard at the site
Yamana Clan first builds Castle
Tajima Province is not popular among the present generation because the province was small and finally merged to become Hyogo Prefecture. However, it was very important in the past because of its location. In many years of the Middle Ages, the Yamana Clan owned several provinces in the northern part of the Chugoku Region or also called the Sanin Area. Tajima Province was the eastern edge of Yamana’s territory and had borders with Harima and Tanba Provinces. That’s why the Yamana Clan first built Takeda Castle around the 15th Century as a base of offence and defense. At that time, building castles on a high mountain was popular for lords to protect themselves. These castles including Takeda Castle were all made of soil, at that time, they didn’t use stone walls.
The range of Tajima province and the location of the castle
The situation became more complex in the 16th Century during the Sengoku Period when many battles happened. The power of the Yamana Clan decreased while other lords outside Tajima Province wanted to get more territory. For example, in 1571, Suketoyo Yamana, the lord of the clan invaded Tanba Province, however, it was counterattacked and Takeda Castle was temporarily captured by Naomasa Ogino from Kuroi Castle of Tanba in 1575. Suketomo thought he would also ask for help from the strongest warlord, such as Nobunaga Oda and the Mori Clan depending on the situation to maintain his territory. However, when Nobunaga sent troops led by Hidenaga (Toyotomi) Hashiba who was the little brother of Hideyoshi Hashiba, the later ruler of Japan, to Tajima Province in 1577, Nobunaga gained control of Takeda Castle (it is uncertain if it was caused by a battle or a surrender). After Nobunaga died in 1582, when Hideyoshi became the ruler, he ordered Hidenaga to stay and improved Takeda Castle. It could be because Ikuno Silver Mine was there, which made the owner very rich, near the castle. It is thought that building the stone walls on the top started then. The improvement was followed by Masahiro Saimura, another retainer of Hideyoshi, when Hidenaga moved to Wakayama Castle in 1585.
The family crest of the Yamana Clan (licensed by Houunji 1642 via Wikimedia Commons)The illustration of Naomasa, from the signboard at the site of Kuroi Castle RuinsThe portrait of Hidenaga Toyotomi, owned by Shungakuin Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
Masahiro Saimaura completes Castle
Masahiro was originally called Hirohide Akamatsu, a local lord in Tatsuno Castle, Harima Province. He surrendered to Hideyoshi when Hideyoshi invaded Harima Province in 1577, however, Hideyoshi took away his castle so that he had to become Hideyoshi’s retainer. Masahiro worked hard for Hideyoshi to get his original territory back some day. As a result, Hideyoshi gave Masahiro a territory, not in Tatsuno, but with Takeda Castle. Masahiro’s territory only earned 22 thousand koku of rice, which meant he could not afford to build great stone walls at Takeda Castle. It is considered that the construction of castle was backed up by Hideyoshi. Masahiro continued to contribute to Hideyoshi, such as joining the invasion of Korea, ordered by Hideyoshi. It is said that some gate structures of Takeda Castle were reflected by those of Japanese Castles in Korea, built for the invasion.
The family crest of the Akamatsu Clan (licensed by KfskzsuRPkwt via Wikimedia Commons)The Portrait of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, owned by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)The great stone walls of Takeda Castle on the mountain
Takeda Castle was built on the mountain with three ridges; long ones in the north and the south, and a short one in the southwest. The Main Enclosure was on the top and had the Main Tower, but its details are unknown. Each ridge had several enclosures including a large one which could accommodate soldiers and supplies. The edge of the ridges was open to the outside, but was also protected strictly by a defensive gate. They were all surrounded by great stone walls, piled using natural or roughly processed stones in a method called Nozura-zumi. A professional stone-piling guild was called in to do this. One of the advanced things of this castle’s layout was that it included bypass routes between the three ridges. The defenders could move from one to another smoothly so that they were able to respond to enemies’ attacks flexibly.
The aerial photo around the castle
The stone wall base for the Main Tower of Takeda Castle
Abrupt ending of Masahiro and Castle
Masahiro usually lived in his Main Hall at the foot while developing the castle town. He was also interested in Chinese studies and communicated with domestic Confucians and a high-class Korean official. It is said that he also built a shrine to Confucianism in the castle on the mountain. However, the lives of he and his castle suddenly ended. In the crucial battle between the East Squad led by Ieyasu Tokugawa and the West Squad led by Mitsunari Ishida which happened in 1600, Masahiro joined the West Squad. When Masahiro heard about Mitsunari being defeated by Ieyasu at Sekigahara field, he switched to support the East Squad. He burned the castle town around Tottori Castle where another lord supporting the West Squad lived, to show his loyalty to Ieyasu. However, Ieyasu’s decision was to force Masahiro to kill himself by performing Harakiri to put the responsibility of the burning on him. This was an incomprehensible conclusion, but some historians speculate that Ieyasu and his Tokugawa Shogunate also wanted to secure Ikuno Silver Mine by removing possible rebels like Masahiro.
The ruins of Tottori CastleThe ruins of Akamatsu Hachiman Shine at Tottori, where Masahiro was worshiped
Consider visiting the western ridge as well. It has four tiered enclosures, which are also surrounded by stone walls, on the long narrow ridge. It had buildings including a warehouse. It doesn’t have a complex route like the eastern ridge, but the sides of it are artificially cut vertically to prevent enemies from attacking easily. If you look up the tiered stone walls to the Main Enclosure, they look so impressive.
The aerial photo around the castle
The western ridge seen from the Main EnclosureLooking up the Main Enclosure from the western ridge The stone walls of the Western Enclosure IThe stone foundations in the Western Enclosure II (Building ruins)The tiered stone walls
You can also climb down from the edge of it to the valley between the eastern and western ridges, called the Southern Enclosures. It is thought to be used for living quarters as the remains of cooking stoves were found there, and it seems like an obvious location because of the convenience of access.
The edge of the western ridgeThe Southern Enclosures seen from above (The Southern Enclosure II in the center)The Southern Enclosures (The Southern Enclosure III in the front)
Later History
After Akagi Castle was abandoned, many of its stone walls collapsed. This was because some of them were destroyed by the final occupants of the castle to show the castle could be no longer used, and others collapsed naturally over long periods of time. The ruins also got overgrown with trees and bushes. However, since they were designated as a National Historic Site in 1989, Kumano City researched and restored the ruins mainly by re-piling and repairing the stone walls, finishing 2004. For example, they reused the original stones as much as possible, but in the parts where that was not possible, they built new stone walls like the original, indicating with signs that this was not original structure.
The Eastern Enclosure before the restoring, form the signboard at the siteThe stone walls of the Eastern Enclosure II after the restoring
The ruins have recently become popular as they sometimes look like a Castle in the Sky above the clouds in certain weather conditions.
The image of the Castle in the Sky, form the signboard at the site
My Impression
Of the ten or so of Takatora Todo’s great works I think this is the first of them to be built. He was in an area which was still surrounded by possible enemies who were heavily armed. I also think when he built the castle, he considered how to protect himself and his soldiers during the construction even if they were attacked by guns. The layout of the castle seems to protect the center from direct gunfire. I believe one of the most important values of the castle was that Takatora achieved this combining the original conditions at the site such as natural terrain and current technologies like building stone walls.
The entrance of the Main Enclosure
How to get There
If you want to visit the castle ruins by car, it is about 40 minutes from Kumano-Odomari IC on the Kumano-Owase Road. There is a parking lot below the eastern ridge of the castle. By public transportation, it would be better to use a rental car from Kumanoshi Station or Shingu Station on the JR Kisei Line as there are few or no buses for the site from these stations. To get to these stations from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Nanki limited express at Nagoya Station.
The parking lotThe castle ruins seen from the parking lot
