great stone walls

81.Matsuyama Castle Part3

You can enjoy both of real buildings and stone walls.

Features

Main Compound and Main Tower on it

The highlight of the castle is the Main Compound including the Main Tower in the back of the Main Enclosure. It looks so great as it was by mixing the remaining and restored buildings.

The map around the Main Compound

To reach the tower, you need to pass the zigzagging inner route again through the remaining First, Second and Third Gates. There are also remaining mud walls with loop holes on the way. You can see other visitors though the holes.

The remaining East Wall of Sujigane Gate

You can see other visitors though a loop hole

Then, you will eventually arrive at the inner court of the Main Tower. Its style is called the Tower Grouping, so the court is surrounded by the Large and Small Towers and other turrets. Enemies would be destroyed if they could pass through that complex route earlier on.

Sujigane Gate, the entrance to the buildings of the tower grouping

Visitors today first enter the Cellar, basement of the Large Tower, and walk around the other buildings like a corridor, seeing the exhibitions about the castle. In fact, the buildings there except for the Large Tower were all restored after the arson in 1933. They were built the same as the original one, so you may think they were not restored.

Visitors first walk around the other buildings of the tower grouping

The stairs to the top of the restored Small Main Tower

The second floor of the Small Main Tower

A view of the inner court from the Small Main Tower

After walking around, you will eventually enter the remaining Large Tower again. You can climb up the steep wooden steps to the top third floor. The floor is open and you can enjoy an even more great view there.

The second floor of the Large Main Tower

A view from the western side of the Large Main Tower (the buildings of the tower grouping in front, the city area and the Seto Inland Sea in back)

A view from the southern side of the Large Main Tower (the Main Enclosure in front, the city area in back)

If you have time. I recommend seeing the back side of the Main Enclosure, as there are also several remaining or restored buildings. For example, Nohara Turret is said to be one of the oldest buildings in the castle, which is the only remaining example of a two-tier Lookout Tower style turret.

The map around the Main Enclosure

The back side of the Main Compound (the Northern Corner Turret on the left and the Southern Corner Turret on the right)

If you also get out of the restored Inui-mon or Northwest Gate, which is the back gate, and go back to the Main Gate Ruins, you can see the long, great, high stone walls of the Main Enclosure along the way. They look very beautiful having vertical curves like a folding fan and horizontal lines like a folding screen. However, they were originally built to attack enemies efficiently.

The stone walls of the northwestern side of the Main Enclosure, Nohara Turret is over there

The stone walls of the northeastern side of the Main Enclosure, one of the oldest in the castle

The stone walls the Main Enclosure near the Main Compound, you can see the building of the Second Gate

The great stone walls of the Southeast Turret

Finally, I recommend you using the Kencho-ura Route when you return to the foot, because the route is well developed and you can see the remaining Southern Climbing Stone Walls close by. Though the Northern Climbing Stone Walls were unfortunately mostly destroyed, the southern stone walls were still intact, which is over 230m long covering the slope. It is said to have the best condition among the other remaining climbing stone walls such as in Sumoto, Hikone and Yonago Castles.

The Sothern Climbing Stone Walls along the route

The Climbing Stone Walls of Hikone Castle

My Impression

Matsuyama Castle has become one of the most famous symbols of Matsuyama City. If you walk around the city area, you can see the castle buildings on the mountain from almost anywhere. In addition, if you visit and see them, you can still find and re-experience how to build and use the castle like people in the past used to do. This is because the city made great efforts not only for maintaining the original items but also for restoring many buildings like the original ones. I learned a lot from the castle and recommend you visiting and seeing it.

The Main Tower with the Main Compound of Matsuyama Castle

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about 30 minutes from Matsuyama IC on the Matsuyama Expressway. There is a parking lot in the park.
By public transportation, you can take the city tram bound for Dogo-Onsen from JR Matsuyama Station or Matsuyama-shi Station on the Iyo Railway and get off at the Okaido stop. It takes about 5 minutes on foot from the stop to get to the park.
From Tokyo or Osaka to Matsuyama City: I recommend traveling by plane and you can take the bus or rent a car to get there.

That’s all. Thank you.
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81.Matsuyama Castle Part2

The long way to the Main Tower

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, The buildings at the foot of the mountain were demolished or burned by accidental fires. The Japanese Army used the area including the Second and Third Enclosures at the foot. After the World War II, the area was used as public facilities such as the civic hall, an NHK broadband station, a museum, a library, a hospital, a school, and playgrounds. The Second Enclosure was finally developed as Ninomaru Historical Garden in 1992 after the hospital and school moving to others. It looks like the original Main Hall with repaired stone walls and restored walls when you look it from the outside. The Third Enclosure has been developing as a public park with a large square which can be used for events. Excavation has also been done to find out the castle’s history after the playgrounds had been moved.

The aerial photo around the castle in the 1970’s

The perimeter of the restored Second Enclosure

The inside of the Second Enclosure has become a garden

The former site of a playground at the Third Enclosure

On the other hand, many buildings on the mountain including the Main Tower remained. There were 44 buildings in the beginning of 1933. However, they were reduced by an arson in the same year to 35, by an air raid in 1945 to 24, and finally by another arson in 1949 to 21. Matsuyama City designated the 21 buildings as Important Cultural Properties in 1950 and started to restore other buildings in 1958. So far, 31 buildings were restored by 1992 in the original method, mostly using wooden materials. That means the number of the buildings became larger than 1933. In addition, the whole range of the castle, called the Shiroyama Park, has been designated as a National Historic Site since 1952.

The remaining or restored buildings of Matsuyama Castle on the mountain

Features

Going on Kuromon Route to Top

Today, visitors can choose four routes to visit Matsuyama Castle on the mountain. The most popular one is the Shinonome Route where visitors can use a cable car or lift and get around the top easily. However, if you are a history fan, I recommend visiting it by walking on the Kuromon Route which was the Main Route to the castle.

The location map of the mountain, from the signboard at the site, adding the red English letters

The route starts from the back of the Third Enclosure and passes by the Second Enclosure where the Main Hall was. There are no buildings remaining on the route, but it is still surrounded by great stone walls. First of all, you need to turn five times to go through the three gate ruins of Kuromon or The Black Gate, Tsuga-mon or the Hemlock Gate, and Keyaki-mon or the Zelkova Gate. Then you will enter the zigzagging trail partly with original stone steps to the top.

The map around the Kuromon RouteBlack Gate

The ruins of the Black Gate, the starting point of the route

The route goes by the Second Enclosure on the right

Strong Defense system around Main Gate

You will eventually reach the Main Gate Ruins near the top. You will also see the great high stone walls surrounding the Main Enclosure and many other visitors who used a cable car or lift. This is the meeting point with the Shinonome Route.

The map around the Main Enclosure

The high stone walls of the Main Enclosure

Next, you will go on the path towards the direction where you can see the Main Tower, but it is a dead end and a trap for enemies, you have to turn at 180 degrees to enter the Main Enclosure (the dead end is not allowed to enter). Next comes the remaining Tonashi-mon or the Doorless Gate, which was probably built to lure enemies. Enemies would be confused around there.

The path towards the tower is a dead end

You have to turn at 180 degrees to the next

Then, you will see the restored Tsutui-mon Gate which looks like a single gate. In fact, there is also the remaining Kakure-mon or the Hidden Gate next to it, so the defenders would counterattack the enemies from the gate.

The back side of Tsutui-mon Gate (on the right) and the Hidden Gate (on the left)

Great views from Main Enclosure

After that, you will finally arrive at the Main Enclosure going through the restored Taiko-mon or the Drum Gate. The center of the enclosure looks a square, and there are the restored well, Tatsumi-Yagura or the Southeast Turret and Bagu-Yagura or the Harness Turret around. This is definitely a good view spot for the Main Tower and the area around including Matsuyama City and Seto Inland Sea.

A view of Matsuyama city area from the Main Enclosure

To be continued in “Matsuyama Castle Part3”
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48.Matsusaka Castle Part3

The Main Tower Base even uses a stone sarcophagus.

Features

Main Enclosure, Center of Castle

The lower tier had many turrets as the pivot for defense. Though there are no buildings now, you can look down on the routes below the stone walls of the tier clearly.

The map around the castle

The ruins of Kane-no-yagura Turret at the lower tier of the Main Enclosure

A view of Matsusaka City Museum of History and Folklore from the ruins of Kane-no-maru Turret

The ruins of Tsukimi Turret at the lower tier of the Main Enclosure

A view of the Second Enclosure from the ruins of Tsukimi Turret

The upper tier had turrets, residences, and the Main Tower. The stone wall base for the tower remains in its original condition from when Ujisato Gamo first built the castle. It looks very old and you can see part of it is made using a stone sarcophagus. This shows the stones for the castle construction were collected rapidly. You can also see a nice city view with mountains behind, as this is the highest point of the castle.

The entrance of *the upper tier of the Main Enclosure*

The inside of the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

The stone sarcophagus used for the stone walls (in the front)

A view from the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Matsusaka Castle was abandoned and the castle buildings were demolished or burned. The main portion of the castle was turned into Matsusaka Park in 1881, while the other has become a city area. Matsusaka City, the former castle town, renovated the stone walls of the castle for as long as 16 years between 1988 and 2003. The city has also been researching the ruins as well. They were finally designated as a National Historic Site in 2011.

My Impression

Before my visit to Matsusaka Castle Ruins, I didn’t know much about Ujisato Gamo and the castle. In fact, I was still wondering why the local city has castle ruins with such great stone walls while visiting. However, after learning about who he was and the history of the castle, I understood the reason. I hope that Matsusaka City will maintain the castle ruins and the memory of Ujisato forever because the city would not be there without hin.

The stone walls of the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

How to get There

If you want to visit the ruins by car, it is about a 15-minute drive away from Matsusaka IC on the Ise Expressway. There is a parking lot for visitors beside the park.
If you want to use public transportation, It takes about 15 minutes on foot from Matsusaka Station to get there.
To get to Matsusaka Station from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the JR Mie rapid train or the Kintetsu-Nagoya Line on Kintetsu Railway at Nagoya Station.

That’s all. Thank you.
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