main enclosure – ページ 26 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

143.Mino-Kaneyama Castle Part3

The ruins were preserved as a public forest.

Features

Arriving at Main Enclosure

You will finally reach the Main Enclosure on the top. The enclosure is also partly surrounded by stone walls. The southwestern corner stone walls are said to be part of the base for the Main Tower. However, it is still uncertain if the castle had the tower.

Leaflet, © OpenStreetMap contributors

The map around the castle

The imaginary drawing of the Southwestern corner Turret (or Main Tower?) in the past, from the signboard at the site

The present stone walls at the southwestern corner

The remaining stone walls around the Main Enclosure

The inside of the enclosure is a square now, but stone foundations and roof tiles for some buildings were discovered by researchers.

The imaginary drawing of the Main Enclosure in the past, from the signboard at the site

You can see some remaining stone foundations

The ruins of the original Main Enclosure entrance

From there, you can see great views of the Kiso-gawa River in the north and the Nobi Plain in the west, like the lord of the castle did in the past. You will also realize the castle had a good location.

A view of the Kiso-gawa River from the Main Enclosure in the north

A view of the Nobi Plain River from the Main Enclosure in the west

Later History

After Mino-Kaneyama Castle was abandoned, many of its stone walls were destroyed and its buildings were demolished as waste materials. In the Edo Period, the Owari Domain which owned the mountain including the ruins banned people from entering it. After the Meiji Restoration, the mountain was preserved as an Imperial Forest or a government-owned forest. Even after the castle was abandoned, it was still difficult for people to enter it many years later. The mountain was sold to the local government which is now Kani City. The city researched the ruins between 2006 and 2010 and found that they still have the features of a Shokuho style castle. The castle ruins were designated as a National Historic Site in 2013.

The monument for the mountain being sold to the local government

My Impression

When I visited the ruins of Mino-Kaneyama Castle, I pictured Tsuyama Castle which Tadamasa Mori finally built after he became the founder of the Tsuyama Domain in Mimasaka Province. Tsuyama Castle was built on a mountain with three tiers all surrounded by high stone walls. The castle was often considered impenetrable. I think Tsuyama Castle resembles Mino-Kaneyama Castle in the way that the stone walls were built. I also speculate that Tadamasa might have tried to build the strongest castle based on his experience of Mino -Kaneyama Castle.

How to get There

I recommend using a car when you visit the castle ruins.
It is about a 15-minute drive away from Kani-Mitake IC on the Tokai-kanjo Expressway. There are several parking lots including the Barbican Enclosure around the ruins
If you want to use public transportation, you can take the YAO Bus from Akechi Station on Meitetsu-Hiromi Line and get off at the Moto-Keneyamacho-yakuba-mae bus stop. It takes about 15 minutes on foot from the bus stop to get there.
To get to Akechi Station from Tokyo or Osaka: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Meitetsu-Inuyama Line at Nagoya Station and transfer to the Meitetsu-Hiromi Line at Inuyama Station or Shin-Kani Station.

The parking lot at the Barbican Enclosure

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Mino-Kaneyama Castle Part1”
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144.Ogaki Castle Part2

The Main Tower remained, but was burned down, then restored.

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Ogaki Castle was abandoned and almost all the buildings of the castle were demolished. A lot of moats were also reclaimed except the Outer Moat called Suimon-gawa River. They were turned into the city area.

Suimon-gawa River, the former Outer Moat

Only the Main Tower and two turrets at the Main Enclosure remained. Especially, the external design of the Main Tower was used when the Main Tower of Gujo-Hachiman Castle was rebuilt in 1933.

The old photo of the original Main Tower, from the signboard at the site

The rebuilt Main Tower of Gujo-Hachiman Castle

However, those of Ogaki Castle were unfortunately burned down by the Ogaki Air Raid in 1945. After World War II, they were externally restored in 1967 using the design of the original ones and Gujo-Hachiman Castle instead.

The externally restored Main Tower of Ogaki Castle

Features

Around Main Tower as Ogaki Park

Leaflet, © OpenStreetMap contributors

The map around the castle

Today, only around the Main and Second Enclosures remained as the Ogaki Park. Part around the Second Enclosure is a normal park and the Main Enclosure has a historical atmosphere. No moats unfortunately remained around the enclosure while the roads around it are probably the former moats.

It has two gates, the Western Gate was built in the present time, and the Eastern Gate is the original, but was moved from another place which was once called Yanagikuchi-mon Gate. There are also the externally restored Inui and Ushitorra Turrets alongside the gates.

The Western Gate built in the present time

The Eastern Gate, moved from the Yanagikuchi-mon Gate

The restored four-level Main Tower is inside the enclosure, which is actually a modern building and used as a historical museum.

The remaining stone walls of the Main Enclosure

To be continued in “Ogaki Castle Part3”
Back to “Ogaki Castle Part1”

38.Iwamura Castle Part3

Be careful choosing your parking spot.

Features

Going to Main Enclosure, Center of Castle

The map around the Main Enclosure

From the Eastern Enclosure, you can enter the Main Enclosure by passing through two gate ruins and the Nagatsubone Enclosure between them.

The past Eastern Enclosure (front) and Nagatsubone Enclosure (back), *drawn in the signboard at the site*

The Nagatsubone-uzumi-mon Gate Ruins, the entrance of the Nagatsubone Enclosure

The long and narrow Nagatsubone Enclosure

The Front Gate Ruins of the Main Enclosure, the exit of the Nagatsubone Enclosure

The Front Gate Ruins seen from the inside of the Main Enclosure

The inside of the Main Enclosure is a square now. You can see from there views of the city area far away and the castle area around such as the Demaru Enclosure which also protected the Main Enclosure, but it is now used as a parking lot.

The past Main Enclosure, drawn in the signboard at the site

The past Demaru Enclosure, drawn in the signboard at the site

A view of the Demaru Enclosure seen from the Main Enclosure

You can also see the Uzumi-mon Gate Ruins which is the entrance from the Second Enclosure. It is interesting to see the stones on the steps are all cut in the shape of a triangle.

The past Uzumi-mon Gate, drawn in the signboard at the site

The stones on the steps cut in the shape of a triangle

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Iwamura Castle was abandoned and all the buildings of the castle excluding the Main Hall at the foot were demolished. The hall was also burned by a fire in 1881. Iwamura History Museum opened in 1972 at the site of the former hall and part of the hall was also restored in 1990. On the mountain side, Ena City, which owns the ruins, recently excavated and researched them to develop and preserve them. The city aims to someday make the ruins designated as a National Historic Site.

The partly restored Main Hall (taken by HiC from photoAC)

My Impression

When I visited the ruins of Iwamura Castle, I made a mistake choosing my parking spot. I wanted to walk around the ruins from the foot to the top. However, my car navigation system led me to the parking lot near the top automatically. Therefore, I had to climb down to the foot first, then I returned back to the top. For visitors who want to see the entire ruins should park at the foot. If you want to see only the great stone walls on the top, you can park at the Demaru Enclosure, which is few minutes on foot from the Main Enclosure on the top.

How to get There

I recommend using a car when you visit the castle ruins.
It is about a 20-minute drive away from Ena IC on the Chuo Expressway. There are two parking lots near the top and at the foot of the ruins
If you want to use public transportation, It takes about 30 minutes on foot from Iwamura Station on the Akechi Railway to arrive at the foot.
To get to Iwamura Station from Tokyo or Osaka: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Chuo Line at Nagoya Station and transfer to the Akechi Railway at Ena Station.

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Iwamura Castle Part1”
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