23.Odawara Castle Part3

I introduced the histories and features of Odawara Castle until the Sengoku Period in the previous articles. In this article, I will talk about the histories and features of the castle starting from the Edo Period to the present time. The catchphrase of this article will be “Disaster Recoveries”.

I introduced the histories and features of Odawara Castle until the Sengoku Period in the previous articles. In this article, I will talk about the histories and features of the castle starting from the Edo Period to the present time. The catchphrase of this article will be “Disaster Recoveries”.

Location and History

Period of Okubo Clan

After the Battle of Odawara Castle in 1590, Ieyasu Tokugawa who captured the Kanto Region chose Edo, not Odawara, as his home. However, he assigned his senior vassal, Tadayo Okubo to Odawara Castle instead as the founder of the Odawara Domain. That meant the castle was still important in order to protect the region from enemies at the western edge of the region. Tadayo lived in the castle while maintaining its stone walls. He used the main hall that the Hojo Clan built, and the Main Tower the clan may have built also. This was because the style of the tower was different from those of the castle later on, but there is no certain evidence of this. Ieyasu often stayed in Odawara Castle when he went hunting or looked around his territories. Despite the close relationship, Tadayo’s successor, Tadachika Okubo was fired by Ieyasu due to a minor violation in 1614. It was actually said that it was caused by the conflicts between the Okubo Clan and the Honda Clan that was another senior vassal family.

The portrait of Tadayo Okubo, owned by Odawara Castle (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The portrait of Masanobu Honda, owned by Kaga-Maeda Museum (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The image of the first main tower, from the signboard at the site

Period of Inaba Clan

The Odawara Domain was revived in 1632 when Masakatsu Inaba, who was a close vassal of the shogun, became the lord of the castle. He was also a son of Lady Kasuga who was the foster mother of the shogun. Masakatsu was expected to guard the barrier of Hakone near Odawara, which would be the defensive line of the Kanto Region. However, in the following year, Kanei Great Earthquakes happened and it destroyed most of the castle and the castle town. The Tokugawa Shogunate, which planned the shogun’s visit to Kyoto after staying in Odawara in 1634, rapidly launched the reconstructions of the castle. That concluded the basic style of Odawara Castle during the Edo Period. For example, the main tower was rebuilt like the current one, but not the same one. The main portion of the castle was all surrounded by stone walls. The main hall in the main enclosure was built only for the shogun. Therefore, the lord of the castle stayed in his hall in the second enclosure, which was called “Oyakata”.

The portrait of Masakatsu Inaba, owned by Yogenji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The imaginary drawing of Odawara Castle during the Edo Period, from the signboard at the site
The image of the second main tower, from the signboard at the site

The castle town was also developed as a transportation hub of Tokaido Road, one of the main roads in Japan. On the other hand, the range of the castle was reduced to only on the plain land, compared to that during the Sengoku Period. There were exemptions that some of the So-gamae structure were used as borders of the domain or the town. For instance, the eastern gate of the town to Edo, called “Edoguchi-mitsuke” used the So-gamae earthen walls. In the Yamanokami Ditch on the hill, guards monitored the border of the domain at the gate which was built there.

The ruins of “Edoguchi-mitsuke”
The Yamanokami Ditch

Period of Okubo Clan again

The Okubo Clan became the lord of the Odawara Domain (Odawara Castle) after the Inaba Clan moved to the Takada Domain in 1686. Tadatomo Okubo who was the lord of the clan supported the current shogun as a member of shogun’s council of elders. Few years later, the Genroku Earthquake occurred in 1703 which destroyed the castle and its town again. Mt. Fuji also erupted four years later, which was called “Hoei Eruption”, and its volcanic ash caused serious crop failure to the farms. The castle lost all its main tower and halls, but the shogunate didn’t help the domain in this case. As a result, it took as long as 18 years to restore them except for the main hall for the shogun which was not needed any more. The reconstruction of the main tower was a third generation, which survived until the end of the Edo Period. When the costal defensive system against possible invasions was needed, three batteries were built along the remaining earthen walls of the So-gamae structure beside the sea. However, they were unfortunately demolished until now.

The image of the third main tower, from the signboard at the site

Odawara Castle until Now

After the Meiji Restoration, Odawara Castle was abandoned and most of the castle buildings were scraped. Meanwhile, the stone walls of the main portion were still used as the base of an imperial villa. However, the Great Kanto Earthquakes, which happened on the 1st of September in 1923, destroyed the villa, the stone walls and the only remaining castle building, was the one-level turret of the second enclosure. This disaster had mostly erased the scenery of the remaining castle. The villa was eventually turned into Odawara Castle Park.
People in Odawara started to restore the castle in 1934 by rebuilding the stone walls and the turret of the second enclosure. The 4th main tower and its stone wall base was rebuilt in 1960. Since then, Tokiwagi-mon Gate in 1970, Akagane-mon Gate in 1997, and Umadashi-mon Gate in 2009 were restored to recreate their scenery during the Edo Period. They could be considered one of the disaster recoveries which the castle experienced again and again.

Some of the stone walls of the main enclosure, which collapsed in the Great Kanto Earthquakes
The current fourth main tower
The current Umadashi-mon Gate

Features

From Third Enclosure to Second Enclosure

Past visitors to the castle would usually enter the castle from the main gate while current visitors would start from Ohoribata Steet beside the moat of the second enclosure. (Ohoribata means “beside the moat”) However, how about if we take another route instead? This route starts from the entrance to the ruins of Kodamon-guchi Gate beside the Odawara post office. It goes on the few remaining earthen walls of the third enclosure to the Ohoribata Street via the gate ruins. This gate had originally been the main gate of the castle during the Sengoku Period. It was said that Kenshin Uesugi attacked the gate first and followed by Shingen Takeda later on.

The ruins of the main gate in the third enclosure, which is used as a bell tower
The signboard of the gate ruins

The moat of the second enclosure was originally a pond surrounding the castle, called “Large Pond” or “Lotus Pond”. The stone walls and the single-level turret over the moat were restored after the Great Kanto Earthquakes. The original stone walls, which were destroyed by the earthquakes, were much higher than the current ones.

The moat of the second enclosure
The restored stone walls and the single-level turret in the second enclosure

If you enter the front entrance of the Odawara Castle Park, you will enter the Umadashi-mon Gate through the earthen bridge over the moat. This gate was the latest restored gate in the castle, using wooden materials. It has a square space, called Masugata, inside, which makes it tough for enemies to penetrate.

The restored Umadashi-mon Gate

If you pass the gate and walk around the moat again, you will eventually reach the Akagane-mon Gate, which is the front entrance of the second enclosure. You will need to walk across the wooden bridge to go over the moat again, which comes from the castle’s defensive layout. The gate was also restored to its original conditions with the help of old photos, records, and the results of the excavations. This Masugata System looks stronger than The Umadashi-mon Gate, which is surrounded by stone walls and mud walls.

The restored Akagane-mon Gate

The inside of the second enclosure is mostly an empty space but had the main hall for the lord (during the Edo Period) and the imperial villa (during the Meiji and Taisho Eras).

The space of the second enclosure and the main enclosure just above the hill

Arriving at Main Enclosure

We will eventually reach the main enclosure from the second enclosure through Tokiwagi-bashi Bridge. There used to be the eastern moat surrounding the main enclosure under the bridge, however, it has been converted into an iris garden which you can enjoy if you walk down to the former bottom of the moat. You can also see many hydrangeas planted on the slopes of the enclosure during the summer season.

The former bottom of the moat

After crossing the bridge, you will finally enter the last gate, called Tokiwagi-mon. It was restored using concrete instead of wood. The original gate had the Masugata system as well, however, the final restoration lacks one side of the walls probably to make it more accessible for visitors.

The Tokiwagi-mon Gate

There is the reconstructed main tower in the main enclosure. It is very large for a three-level tower which is 27.2m tall and about 39m tall (including the tower base). The tower has four floors inside. It is the seventh tallest main tower among the existing ones in Japan. It is the fourth generation of the main towers of this castle, which was built emulating the miniature model and records of the third generation. However, the fourth generation has the observation platform for visitors on top, which is different from the design of the third generation tower. For this reason, the current tower is regarded not as “restored” but rather “reconstructed”. The inside of the tower is used as a historical museum, which was renovated are reinforced with earthquake-proof technology back in 2016.

The current main tower (the fourth generation)
The inside of the tower

You can see views of Odawara in all directions from the platform, including where you’ve already visited.

A view from the tower (Odawara Station)
A view from the tower (Hachiman-yama old enclosure)
A view from the tower (the main and second enclosures)
A view from the tower facing west (including Sagami Bay)

Hopes for the Future and Lessons of the Past

If you get out of the main enclosure through the northern exit, you will reach Goyomai Enclosure. (Goyomai means “official stored rice”) Unfortunately, you can not enter it because of the excavations. Instead, you can see the panels around, which showcases what were found there so far. For example, the ruins of a stone pawed garden, including beautiful cut stones, during the Sengoku Period were discovered. The site was turned into warehouses for rice during the Edo Period, which originated the name of the enclosure. I’m looking forward to seeing this site again after it becomes more developed.

The Goyomai Enclosure
The explanation about the stone pawed garden
The explanation about the Tokugawa Shogunate roof tiles

If you go to the southern slopes of the main enclosure, you can see a lot of large stones at the foot which collapsed during the Great Kanto Earthquakes. In fact, the stones were used for the stone walls which covered the top of the enclosure. Some of the stones are still connected to each other forming a curve. That means they slid down from the top to the foot keeping the form when the earthquakes happened. It must have been caused by the enormous strength of the earthquakes. The exhibitions made me realize how important being prepared for disasters is.

The curved stone walls lie down at the foot of the enclosure
Other stone walls which collapsed during the earthquakes

Finally, It may be a good idea to visit the southern moat nearby. It is also known as “lotus moat” which uses the same name during the Sengoku Period. You may be seeing the same scenery as people at that time, which shows the castle has a long history.

The southern moat
Hakone Gate Ruins near the moat

My Impression

There are a lot of attractions about Odawara Castle from the Sengoku Period to the present time. Maybe you will need more than one day to see all of them. The lords of the castle achieved many things. For instance, they constructed one of the greatest castles and rebuilt the main towers three times. These works were passed down from one lord to the next. It may look simple, but it is difficult to maintain. I speculate that if another disaster happens in the future to Odawara, people there will survive along with Odawara Castle. They could be a role model for other people under similar situations in the future.

The current main tower

That’s all. Thank you.

Back to “Odawara Castle Part1”
Back to “Odawara Castle Part2”

21.江戸城その4~Edo Castle Part4

この城は、東京の輪郭を生み出しました。
This castle created the outline of Tokyo.

外郭の概要~Overview of Gaikaku

江戸城の外郭は、外堀に囲まれた区域であり、その外周は約16kmあり、市街地をも含んでいました。見附と呼ばれる大型の門と橋が、約50セット堀と主要街道の交差点に置かれていて、民衆と交通を監視していました。これらの施設は明治維新後にほとんど撤去されてしまいます。そのためほとんどの人たちは東京に城があったことなど気付きません。それでは、東京にある外郭の痕跡を巡ってみましょう。
The outline of Edo Castle called Gaikaku was the surrounding area from the outer moat whose perimeter was about 16 km, including even the city area. About 50 sets of large gates and bridges called Mitsuke were placed at the intersections of the moat and major roads to check people and transportation. These facilities were mostly demolished after the Meiji Restoration. So most people don’t realize there was a castle in Tokyo. Then, let me introduce the traces of Gaikaku in Tokyo.

江戸城の外郭ライン、ラインの色は以下のセクション毎に分かれています~The line of Edo Castle’s Gaikaku, the color of the line is linked to each section below

隅田川エリア~Sumida-gawa River Area

江戸時代の初め、隅田川は外堀の一部として認識されていました。そのため幕府は、日光街道上の千住大橋を除いて、この川に橋を架けることを禁じていました。1657年の明暦大火の後は、江戸の安全確保と都市化のため、他の橋も架けられるようになりました。
At the beginning of the Edo Period, Sumida-gawa River was regarded as part of the outer moats. Because of it, the Shogunate banned bridges from being built on the river excluding Senju-Ohashi Bridge on Nikko Road. After the great fire of Meireki in 1657, more bridges were built on the river for the increase of safety and urbanization of Edo City.

隅田川に架かる永代橋~Eitai-bashi Bridge over Smida-gawa River

隅田川エリアのライン~The line of Sumida-gawa River Area

永代橋~Eitai-bashi Bridge:

隅田川に架けられた4番目の橋です。現在の橋は、1923年の関東大震災の火災により失われた後、1926年に再建されたものです。すでにそれから100年近く経過しており、重要文化財に指定されています。
It is the forth bridge on Sumida-gawa River. The present bridge was rebuilt in 1926, after it was destroyed by the fire in the Great Kanto earthquake in 1923. It is nearly 100 years old, and has become an Important Cultural Property.

現在の永代橋~The present Eitai-bashi Bridge
歌川広重「東都名所」より「永代橋佃沖漁舟」、江戸時代~”Eitai-bashi Bridge and fishing boats off Tsukuda Island” from the series “Famous Places in the Eastern Capital” attributed to Hiroshige Utagawa in the Edo Period(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimeidia Commons)

新大橋~Shin-Ohashi Bridge:

こちらは3番目に架けられた橋です。先代の橋は関東大震災を生き延びました。現在の橋は1977年に架け替えられたものです。江戸時代のこの橋は、歌川広重の有名な浮世絵に描かれたことで知られています。
It is the third bridge on the river. The former bridge survived the Great Kanto earthquake. The present one replaced it in 1977. The bridge in the Edo Period is known for being drawn in a famous Ukiyoe Painting by Hiroshige Utagawa.

現在の新大橋~The present Shin-Ohashi Bridge
歌川広重「名所江戸百景」より「大橋あたけの夕立」、江戸時代~”Sudden shower over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake” from the series “100 Famous Views of Edo” attributed to Hiroshige Utagawa in the Edo Period(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimeidia Commons)

両国橋~Ryogoku-bashi Bridge:

2番目に架けられた橋です。この橋の周りは歓楽街になりました。江戸時代から夏にはこの辺で花火の催しが開かれています。近くにはまた外堀の一部である神田川の河口があります。
The second bridge on the river. The area around the bridge became a place of amusement. Fireworks displays have been also held around in the summer since the Edo Period. There is the estuary of Kanda-gawa River nearby which is another part of the outer moats.

現在の両国橋~The present Ryogoku-bashi Bridge
葛飾北斎「富嶽三十六景」より「御厩川岸より両国橋夕陽見」、江戸時代~”Sunset across Ryogoku Bridge from the Bank of Sumida River at Onmayagashi” from the series “Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji” attributed to Hokusai Katsushika in the Edo Period(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

神田川エリア~Kanda-gawa River Area

「神田川」という名前は明らかに川です。ところが、この川は完全に人口物で、堀や運河として使われました。江戸時代初期に、幕府の下で伊達氏が本郷台地を掘り進んで造りだしたのです。幕府は川に沿って必要な施設を設置していました。掘削で出た残土は、下町周辺の埋め立てに使われました。
The name “Kanda-gawa” clearly shows a river (“gawa” means river.). However, the river is completely artificial, and was used as a moat and canal. In the first Edo Period, the Date clan under the Shogunate created it to cut across Hongo plateau. The Shogunate set facilities they needed along the river. The waste soil from the digging was used to reclaim the sea around downtown.

神田川~Kanda-gawa River

神田川エリアのライン~The line of Kanda-gawa River Area

浅草橋門跡~Asakusa-bashi Gate Ruins:

この門は川と浅草を通る日光街道の交差点に築かれました。しかし明治維新後間もなく撤去されました。そのため、何らかの記念碑でもなければ、そこに何があったかはわかりません。
This gate was built at the intersection of the river and Nikko Road passing Asakusa. But it was removed soon after the Meiji Restoration, so we can’t see what was seen in the past without some kind of monument.

現在の浅草橋~The present Asakusa-bashi Bridge
記念碑のみがあります~There is just a monument
浅草橋門の古写真~The old photo of Asakusa-bashi Gate(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

仙台堀~The Sendai Moat:

「仙台」という名前は伊達氏が仙台を拠点としていたことに由来します。JR御茶ノ水駅近くの橋からは深くえぐられた川の一部を見ることができます。JR中央線はその谷に沿って走っています。
The name “Sendai” derived of the Date clan from Sendai. You can see the part of the river being cut deeply from the bridge near JR Ocha-no-Mizu Station. JR Chuo line goes along the valley.

現在の仙台堀~The present Sendai Moat

水道橋跡~The Water Bridge Ruins

かつて神田上水がこの水道橋によって川を横断していました。井の頭池を水源として江戸市街に給水していました。この周辺の街と、近くにある「水道橋」駅の名前はここから来ています。
Kanda water supply went across the river using the Water Bridge. It came from Inokashira Pond to feed Edo City. The names of the town around and the station nearby “Suido-bashi” comes from the bridge.

水道橋の記念碑~The monument of Water Bridge
記念碑周辺の風景~A view around the monument
歌川広重「東都名所」より「御茶之水之図」、江戸時代~”The picture of Ocha-no-Mizu” from the series “Famous Places in the Eastern Capital” attributed to Hiroshige Utagawa in the Edo Period(出典:国立国会図書館)

外堀の西側部分~The western part of the outer moats

この部分は1638年までに江戸城建設の総仕上げとして築かれました。自然の谷の地形を利用しています。城の中心を砲撃から守ることを意図し、堀の内側に土塁を積み上げ、外側よりも高くなるようにしています。
This part was built to finalize the construction of the Edo Castle by 1638. It used a natural valley terrain. It aimed to protect the center of the castle from a cannon attack outside by setting the inside of the moat much higher with earthen walls than the outside.

弁慶濠~Benkei-bori Moat

外堀の西側部分のライン~The line of The western part of the outer moats

牛込門跡~Ushigome-mon Gate Ruins:

門の両側の石垣が現存しています。門跡の周辺は現在JR飯田橋駅として利用されています。門跡の反対側は神楽坂になっていて、外堀は谷底に位置しているのがわかります。牛込濠と呼ばれるその堀は、門跡の西側にほぼそのまま残っており、とても広大に見えます。
The stone walls from both sides of the gate remain. The area around the ruins are now used for JR Iida-bashi Station. The opposite of the ruins is Kagura-zaka slope, so you can see the outer moat located in the bottom of the valley. The moat called “Ushigome-bori” in the west of the ruins remain like it was, and looks very spacious.

牛込門跡~Ushigome Gate Ruins
歌川広重「牛込神楽坂之図」、江戸時代~”The picture of Ushigome and Kagurazaka” attributed to Hiroshige Utagawa in the Edo Period(出典:国立国会図書館)
牛込濠~Ushigome-bori Moat

市ヶ谷門跡~Ichigaya-mon Gate Ruins:

石垣がいくらか残っており、外側から堀を渡って門に伸びる土橋も残っています。周辺はまたJR市ヶ谷駅の一部として使われています。
There are some remaining stones, and the earthen bridge from outside to the gate across the moat remains. The area around is also part of the for JR Ichigaya Station.

市ヶ谷門跡~Ichigaya-mon Gate Ruins
市ヶ谷門の古写真~The old photo of Ichigaya-mon Gate(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

四谷門跡~Yotsuya-mon Gate Ruins:

門の片側の石垣が残っていますが、周辺の堀は既に埋められています。一例として、門跡西側の以前堀だったところは上智大学のグラウンドとして使われています。広大な敷地を眺めながら、内側の土塁の上を歩くことができます。
There are some remaining stone walls on one side of the gate, but outer moats around are already filled. For example, the former moat in the west of the ruins is used as the ground for Jochi University. You can walk on the inside earthen walls and enjoy a view of the spacey area.

残っている石垣~The remaining stone walls
四谷門の古写真~The old photo of Yotsuya-mon Gate(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
上智大学のグラウンド~The ground for Jochi University

外堀が失われたエリア~The lost outer moat area

東京の都心では、いくつかの理由で外堀は既に失われています。現在では外堀通りとして自動車道になっています。過去にはどんな景観だったのか想像するのは困難です。
In the center of the Tokyo city area, the outer moat was already lost for several reasons. It is now used as the Sotobori (means onter moat) Street for automobiles. It is difficult for us to understand what can be seen in the past.

外堀通り、ビル街の谷間のようです~Sotobori Street, just like a valley among the buildings

外堀が失われたエリアのライン~The line of the lost outer moat area

赤坂門跡~Akasaka-mon Gate Ruins:

門の石垣の一部が、赤坂見附(幕府の施設であった名前と同じ)交差点の近くに残っています。「弁慶濠」と呼ばれる現存堀が門の西側にあります。そこから続く「溜池」堀は失われています。
Part of the stone walls for the gate remain near the Akasaka Mitsuke (same as the Shogunate facility’s name) Intersection. A remaining moat called “Benkei-bori” is in the west of the gate. The following moat called “Tame-ike” has lost.

赤坂門跡~Akasaka-mon Gate Ruins

「溜池」交差点~The Tame-ike Intersection:

堀の名前が交差点の名前として残っています。溜池とは貯水池の意味です。江戸時代の初期には、江戸の人々は川をせき止め、飲料水として使っていたようです。
The name of the moat remains for the intersection. Tame-ike means reservoir. At the beginning of the Edo Period, people in Edo City seemed to dam a river, and use it for drinking water.

溜池交差点~Tame-ike Intersection

呉服橋交差点~The Gofuku-bashi Intersection:

この交差点は東京駅の近くにあります。ここには外堀と「呉服橋」という橋と呉服橋門がありました。今現在、これらの痕跡は何もありません。
The intersection is near Tokyo Station. There was an outer moat, a bridge called “Gofuku-bashi” and Gofuku-bashi Gate. They have completely removed it. We can’t see any trace of them now.

呉服橋交差点~Gohuku-bashi Intersection
呉服橋門の古写真~The old photo of Gofukubashi-mon Gate(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

日本橋川エリア~Nihonbashi-gawa River area

ここは外堀の最後の、または最初の部分です。この箇所は江戸城の内堀の近くです。ここから外堀が市街の外側に向かって渦巻き状に伸びているので、堀を逆に辿っていくこともできます。日本橋川もまた人工川であり、元々あった川のルートを変えるために作られました。この川の上流は、平川という元あった川と同じようです。
It is the last part of the outer moats, or the first part. The part is near the inner moat of Edo Castle. We can see the outer moats spiral towards the outside of the city, so you can trace the moats backward. Nihonbashi-gawa River is also artificial and was built to change the routes of original rivers. The upper stream of the river might be the same as the original river called Hirakawa River.

日本橋川沿いの石垣~The stone walls along Nihonbashi-gawa River

日本橋川エリア~Nihonbashi-gawa River area

常盤橋門跡~Tokiwabashi-mon Gate Ruins:

この門の石垣がよく残っています。そのため国の史跡に指定されています。堀を渡って門に至る石橋は、明治時代に門の他の石を使って築かれたものです。近くには日本銀行旧館の建物があり、こちらは重要文化財に指定されています。
The stone walls of the gate remain well. That’s why they have been designated as a National Historic Site. The stone bridge across the moat to the gate was built using other stones from the gate in the Meiji Era. You can also see the old building for Bank of Japan nearby, designated as an Important Cultural Property.

常盤橋門跡の石橋~The stone bridge of Tokiwabashi-mon Ruins
常盤橋門の古写真~The old photo of Tokiwabashi-mon Gate(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
日本銀行旧館~The old building for Bank of Japan

一ツ橋門跡~Hitotsubashi-mon Gate Ruins:

この門と堀周辺の石垣が残っています。江戸時代後半に、将軍の一族である一橋家の屋敷がこの門内にありました。
There are some remaining stone walls for the gate and the moat around. The hall for the Shogun’s relative called Hitotsu-bashi clan was inside the gate in the late Edo Period.

現在の一ツ橋門と残っている石垣~The present Hitotsubashi-Bridge and remaining stone walls
堀周辺の現存石垣~The remaining stone walls around the moat

雉子橋門跡~Kijibashi-mon Gate Ruins:

ここが外堀の終点に当たります。ここから内堀が近くに見えます。日本橋川は更に上流から流れてきています。その上流を辿っていくと外堀の違う地点、小石川門の近くに到達します。実はこの上流の部分は一旦幕府によって埋められますが、明治時代になって水上交通の便ため、掘り返されました。
This is the edge of the outer moats. You can see the inner moat nearby. The river flows from a much upper area. You can follow that the upper stream and you’ll reach another spot of the outer moat near Koishi-kawa Gate. In fact, the upper stream was once filled by the Shogunate, but was dug again for water transportation in the Meiji Era.

現在の雉子橋~The present Kijibashi-Bridge

私の感想~My Impression

外堀の全てを辿ってくには1日では足りないでしょう。ですので、少しずつ部分的に訪れてみるのもよいでしょう。どちらにしても行ってみれば、江戸城はインフラ、文化、商業などの面で東京の中心につながっていることが実感できます。
It will need more than one day trip to trace all of the outer moats, so you can visit part of them one by one. Anyway, after visiting them, you can realize that Edo Castle has been the center of Tokyo in infrastructure, culture, business and so on.

牛込門跡と飯田橋駅~Ushigome-mon Gate Ruins and Iidabashi Station

リンク、参考情報~Links and References

江戸城外堀跡、千代田区観光協会Edo Castle outer moat trace, VISIT CHIYODA
・「江戸城の全貌/萩原さち子著」さくら舎(Japanese Book)
・「幻の江戸百年/鈴木理生著」筑摩書房(Japanese Book)
・「よみがえる日本の城2」学研(Japanese Book)

「江戸城その3」に戻ります。~Back to “Edo Castle Part3”
「江戸城その2」に戻ります。~Back to “Edo Castle Part2”
「江戸城その1」に戻ります。~Back to “Edo Castle Part1”

126.石垣山城~Ishigakiyama Castle

「一夜城」は一日にしてならず。
”The castle built in one night” was not built in a day.

石垣山城の入り口の一つ~One of the entrances of Ishigakiyama Castle

立地と歴史~Location and History

石垣山城には「一夜城」という異名があります。文字通り一夜でできた城という意味です。これは1590年に豊臣秀吉と北条氏の間で起こった小田原城包囲戦に由来します。
Ishigakiyama Castle is nicknamed as “Ichiya-jo” which means a castle built in one night. It comes from an event in Siege of Odawara Castle between Hideyoshi Toyotomi and the Hojo clan in 1590.

小田原城~Odawara Castle

小田原にいる北条の西方にある笠懸山の上にこの城が完成したとき、秀吉は配下の者に、一夜のうちに城の周りの木々を全て伐採するよう命じました。翌朝、北条は城が突然現れたと思い、驚愕しました。この話により一夜城と呼ばれるようになったというわけです。しかし、この話は後になって江戸時代の軍記物により広められたものなのです。今でも北条がいた小田原市域からは、この城跡で何か起こればはっきり見ることができます。
When this castle was completed on a mountain called Kasagakeyama, located in the west of Hojo in Odawara, Hideyoshi ordered his men to cut down all the trees around the castle in one night. Hojo was very surprised to see the castle suddenly appear the next morning. The story calls it Ichiya-jo. However, it was spread later by war chronicles in the Edo Period. Even now you can clearly see how it goes in the castle ruins area from Odawara city area where Hojo was.

城周辺の地図~The map of around the castle

小田原城址から見た石垣山城~Ishigakiyama Castle from Odawara Castle Ruins

この城にはこのような不可思議な話もありますが、訪れる価値は十分にあります。それは、東日本では初めてとなる総石垣造りの城だからです。それまでは、主に土を使った基礎による城が普通でした。秀吉は最初1590年4月6日から包囲戦のため寺院に滞在しました。そして、すぐに築城を開始し、穴太衆と呼ばれる石垣積みの専門集団も連れてきました。彼は6月26日に本陣として城に移ったので、3ヶ月弱で完成したことになります。当時の正規の城を作る期間としては驚異的でした。
Though the castle has such an unclear story, it is still worth the visit, because it is the first castle made up entirely of stone walls in eastern Japan. Until then, it was common to build castle foundation mainly from soil in the area. Hideyoshi first stayed at a temple for the siege from April 6 in 1590, then started to build the castle right away, bringing the specialists of piling stone walls called Anoushu. He moved to the castle as his stronghold on June 26. That means the castle was built in less than three months. It can be seen as a surprisingly short term to build a formal castle at that time.

豊臣秀吉肖像画、加納光信筆、高台寺蔵~The Portrait of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, owned by Kodaiji Temple(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

歴史家の多くは、この城は秀吉の権威を北条や味方に対して見せつけるものだったと言います。一方、この城はもっと長期の包囲戦に備えたものだったと指摘する人もいます。事実としては、北条は7月5日に降伏してしまいますが、それまではわかりませんでした。古文書には、秀吉側の兵隊は厭戦気味で、兵糧も尽きてきていたとあります。また、包囲戦の後も、工事がまだ続いていたこともわかっています。北条の後に入った徳川氏はしばらく城を使い続けていたようです。包囲戦よりも新しい日付のある天守瓦が発掘されています。その後はいつしか廃城となったようです。
Many historians and writers say the castle demonstrated Hideyoshi’s authority to Hojo and his supporters. Some point out that the castle would be for a longer term siege. The fact was that Hojo surrendered on July 5, but it was uncertain before then. Old documents say Hideyoshi’s soldiers got bored and supplies were getting less. There is another evidence that the construction was going on after the siege. The Tokugawa clan, following Hojo, seemed to use the castle for a while. Roof tiles for the Tenshu keep with newer dates than the siege were found by excavation. After that it seemed to be abandoned for sometime.

城周辺の航空写真~The aerial photo of around the castle

特徴~Features

今でも、この城跡にこんなにも巨石があるのに驚かれるかもしれません。その当時の人たちにとっては尚更だったでしょう。観光客の人たちは大体駐車場から、南曲輪を通り過ぎて二の丸に登っていきます。道すがら半分崩れた石垣が目に入ってきます。粗野ながら威風堂々としています。
Even now, you may be surprised to see there are the castle ruins with such large stones, to say nothing of the people at that time. Visitors usually go up from the parking area to the Ninomaru enclosure through the South enclosure. You can see a lot of half collapsing stone walls alongside. They look rough but regal.

南曲輪の石垣~The stone walls of South enclosure
崩れかけた石垣~The half collapsing stone walls
二の丸~Ninomaru enclosure

井戸があったことに由来する井戸曲輪は是非見ていただきたいです。井戸の円錐の形に沿って自然石を全面的に積み上げてあります。その様はとても美しく、穴太衆の高度な技術が見て取れます。
Don’t miss to see Ido enclosure which was used for the well. It is totally covered with piled natural stones along the corn shape of the well. It is very beautiful and shows the high level technique of Anoushu.

井戸曲輪~Ido enclosure(licensed by Tak1701d via Wikimedia Commons)

二の丸の方に戻れば、本丸の北門跡の方に入っていけます。本丸には秀吉の御殿があり、その周辺では茶会が開かれていたそうです。ここからは、小田原城を含む小田原市域一帯を見渡せます。秀吉の本陣として相応しい場所でした。
You can enter the North Gate Ruins of the Honmaru enclosure if you turn back to Ninomaru. There was Hideyoshi’s palace where he is said to hold a tea ceremony around. You can see the whole view of Odawara City including Odawara Castle. It served as Hideyoshi’s stronghold.

北門跡から見た本丸石垣~The stone walls of Honmaru enclosure from North Gate Ruins
本丸~Honmaru enclosure
本丸からの眺め~A view from Honmaru

天守跡は本丸のとなりにありますが、現在はあまりそのように見えません。その石垣は、関東大震災のときに崩れてしまったようです。最後は大手門跡を通って、東口にたどり着きます。
The Tenshu ruins are next to Honmaru, but they don’t look so now. Their stone walls seemed to collapse due to Great Kanto Earthquakes. Lastly you can go down through the Main Gate Ruins and reach the East Entrance.

天守跡~The Tenshu ruins
大手門跡~The Main Gate Ruins
大手門跡から見た南曲輪~South enclosure from Main Gate Ruins

その後~Later Life

江戸時代の18世紀初期、小田原藩の有浦氏が城跡を調査し、遺跡の図面を残しました。この図面によれば、石垣はまだ良好に残っていました。しかし、残念ながら1923年の関東大震災で多くが破壊されました。城跡は1959年に国の史跡に指定されました。
In the first 18th century in the Edo Period, the Ariura clan of the Odawara Domain investigated the castle ruins and left the drawings of the ruins. According to the drawings, the stone walls still kept well. But unfortunately Great Kanto Earthquakes in 1923 broke many of them. They were designated as a National Historic Site in 1959.

本丸の石垣~The stone walls of Honmaru enclosure

私の感想~My Impression

私が思うに、この城の素晴らしいことの一つは、その「石垣山」という名前です。単に石垣の城という意味ですが、その当時の人たちがどんなに驚いたかがわかります。この城は相当な衝撃を与えたのでしょう。それで山の名前が笠懸山から石垣山に変わったのです。この新しい名前は遅くとも江戸中期には一般に広まりました。恐らく一夜城伝説と組み合わされて定着したのでしょう。
I think one of the greatest things of the castle is its name “Ishigakiyama”. It just means a stone walls castle. It shows how surprisingly people at that time felt. The castle must have had a big impact on them. That’s why the name of the mountain was changed from Kasagakeyama to Ishigakiyama. The new name spread to the public at the latest in the mid Edo Period. It was probably combined with the Ichiya-jo story, and have fixed.

本丸からの眺めをもう一枚~Another view from Honmaru

ここに行くには~How to get There

石垣山城跡に行くには車が便利です。西湘バイパスの小田原ICか小田原厚木道路西小田原ICから数キロの範囲です。電車を使う場合は、JR早川駅から歩いて約40~50分かかります。急坂を登っていく必要がありますが、それも面白いかもしれません。
東京から早川駅まで:東海道新幹線に乗って小田原まで行き、東海道線に乗り換えてください。
It is useful to access Ishigakiyama Castle Ruins by car. It is several kilometers from the Odawara IC on Seishou Bypass or the Odawara-Nishi IC on Odawara-Atsugi Road. When using train, it takes about 40~50 minutes on foot from JR Hayakawa Station. It needs to climb up a steep slope, but it may be interesting.
From Tokyo to Hayakawa Station: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express to Odawara, then transfer to Tokaido local line.

早川駅からの坂道~The slope from Hayakawa Station
坂道から見た小田原城~Odawara Castle from the slope

リンク、参考情報~Links and References

石垣山一夜城、小田原市オフィシャルサイト~Odawara City Official Website
石垣山一夜城、小田原城街歩きガイド(Only Japanese)
・「関東の名城を歩く 南関東編/峰岸純夫、齋藤慎一編」吉川弘文館(Japanese Book)
・「よみがえる日本の城2」学研(Japanese Book)