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

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

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

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.

The stone monument of the castle ruins at the Main Enclosure

The ditch between the Main Enclosure and 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.

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.

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.

That’s all. Thank you.
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Location and History

Southern Court Noble family becomes Warlord

Kitabatake Clan Hall was the home base of the Kitabatake Clan which governed Ise Province which is the modern day Mie Prefecture between the 14th and the 16th Centuries. The clan was a unique lord’s family who was originally a noble but finally became a warlord until they were taken over by Nobunaga Oda. Kitabatake Clan Hall was also uniquely located in the Taki area which was inconvenient but defensive so that clan was able to survive for a long time.

The range of Ise Province and the location of the castle

In the Period of Northern and Southern Courts during the 14th Century, Emperor Godaigo of the Southern Court sent his trusted vassal, Chikafusa Kitabatake to eastern Japan to govern the region. Chikafusa and his son, Akiie fought against the lords of the Northern Court, as a general. As a result, their relatives in the Tohoku Region remained as a noble birth lord family, called Namioka Palace, which lived in Namioka Castle until the late 16th Century. Similarly, Akiie’s little brother, Akiyoshi was sent to Ise Province and he was assigned as its Governor in 1338. Ise Province consisted of the eastern part facing the sea and having Ise Grand Shrine, one of the most important shrines for the Imperial family, and the western part of mountain areas having the routes to Yoshino in Yamato Province (now Nara Pref.), the home of the Southern Court.

The portrait of Emperor Godaigo, owned by Shojokoji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The statue of Akiie Kitabatake in Kitabatake Shrine

The Kitabatake Clan in Ise Province also battled the Northern Court and eventually chose their home at a place in the defensive western part, which would be the Taki area. The area was on the way to the Ise Main Road connecting Ise Grand Shrine and Yamato Province, which was considered important. However, it was a small basin along the Yatemata River, surrounded by mountains. There were 7 entrances to the area, which were all on steep mountain passes or deep valleys. That meant the area itself was very defensive.

The relief map of the Taki area with its 7 entrances

The sitting statue of Akiyoshi Kitabatake, exhibited by Misugi Home Museum *(licensed via Wikimedia Commons)*

Unfortunately, the Southern Court eventually declined and the Ashikaga Shogunate supporting the Northern Court was established. The Kitabatake Clan somehow managed to survive, however, they sometimes opposed the shogunate about how to treat the descendants of the Southern Court. The clan first built their hall in a land surrounded by the Yatemata and the other two rivers in three directions and mountains in the west. The land was leveled to three tiers, the upper one was about 3m above the middle one and surrounded by long stone walls, so it seemed that the Main Hall was built on the upper tier. These stone walls are thought as one of the earliest ones built for warriors’ halls or residences. They were piled vertically using natural oval-shaped river stones, unlike typical stone walls for castles later, piled with a slant, using processed stones.

The excavated stone walls of the upper tier

Castles are built to protest Hall

The shogunate troops sometimes attacked the territory of the Kitabatake Clan from the west. As a result, the clan started to build new castles in that direction to protect their hall. They first built the final castle for emergencies on a mountain about 80m above the hall. It had a simple main enclosure on the top and belt enclosures around with passes. The western edge of the mountain was cut by a deep ditch where only the narrow earthen bridge could be used.

The relief map around the castle

The layout of the final castle, from the signboard at the site, adding the red English letter

The clan also built a larger castle over the pass towards the west, called Kiriyama Castle. The castle was located on another mountain about 160m above the final castle, which was much harder to access for enemies as well as defenders. Therefore, the castle seemed to be used as a lookout usually and for being besieged in cases of emergency. As a result, the clan was able to prevent the enemies from invading the Kitabatake’s territory.

Prosperity and Destruction of Kitabatake Clan

After that, the clan and the shogunate made peace with each other, which made the government of the clan in Ise Province stable. Their several branch clans, such as the Kozukuri Clan, were sent to various places of the province and the lord of the Kitabatake Clan reigned at the clan’s hall, called the Taki Palace. The hall was also expanded to have a great Japanese garden which still remains. The group eventually became a great warlord clan in the early 16th Century and its influence reached the peak in the middle of the century when the 7th lord, Tomonori Kitabatake was the lord.

The remaining Kitabatake Clan Hall Ruins Garden

The portrait of Tomonori Kitabatake, owned by Iseyoshida Library (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

However, a new threat came from Owari Province, north of Ise. Nobunaga Oda, who would later be the ruler of Japan, started to invade Ise Province in 1568. Moreover, the relative Kozukuri Clan turned supporting Nobunaga. Tomonori had to move to his home from the hall to Okochi Castle near the battle fields. The Kitabatake and Oda Clans made peace in 1569 under the terms of Nobunaga’s son, Nobukatsu being adopted as the Kitabatake Clan’s successor. This was actually the starting point of taking the Kitabatake Clan over by the Oda Clan. Tomonori was finally killed by Nobukatsu in 1576. The castles in Ise Province, including Kitabatake Clan Hall, were captured by the Oda’s troops at the same time.

The portrait of Nobunaga Oda, attributed to Soshu Kano, owned by Chokoji Temple, in the late 16th century (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The portrait of Nobukatsu Oda, owned by Sokenji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

To be continued in “Kitabatake Clan Hall Part2”

タグ: Kiriyama castle

153.Kitabatake Clan Hall Part3