main enclosure – ページ 7 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

111.Mukai-Haguroyama Castle Patr3

The trail to the Main Enclosure turns left or right, and then, a horizontal moat goes along it on the left. The other right side are vertical cliffs. That means the enemies were able to attack the enclosure only on this trail and the defenders would be able to focus on the spot.

Features

Main Enclosure is protected by Moats and Cliffs

Going back to the forest road, you can also climb to the Main Enclosure on the top of Iwasaki Mountain. If you walk straight up on the trail, you will see a huge scale of vertical moat designed to avoid enemies from moving freely parallel to the right.

The map around the castle

The trail on the left and the vertical moat on the right

The trail turns left or right, and then, a horizontal moat goes along it on the left. The other right side are vertical cliffs. That means the enemies were able to attack the enclosure only on this trail and the defenders would be able to focus on the spot.

The layout of the Main Enclosure, the white part is the trail, the yellow part shows enclosures or bottoms of the moats, and the orange part is cliffs, exhibited by the Mukai-Haguro Gallery

Final place of Final Castle

The trail goes in a zigzagged pattern and reaches the Main Enclosure. It is also protected by other alternating gate, earthen walls and dry moats like the Second Enclosure, but smaller and had steeper terrain, so it can be seen as the final place of the final castle.

The entrance ruins of the Main Enclosure

The Main Enclosure is surrounded by dry moats and earthen walls as well

Later History

The mountain, where Mukai-Haguroyama Castle was built, was first designated as a natural park in 1953 and the forest road was developed on the mountain in 1964. As for the castle ruins, they were first designated as a historic site of Hongo Town (at that time) in 1974. The excavations of the ruins have been done since 1982. As a result, they were finally designated as a National Historic Site in 2001.

There is a huge rock on the Main Enclosure, which was partially cut to provide stone materials

My Impression

I visited the ruins of Mukai-Haguroyama Castle twice. During my first visit, I just found the castle ruins simply becoming the natural park. However, in my second visit, I was advised at the Mukai-Haguro Gallery in advance, so that I was able to see the major spots of the castle easily. In my experiences, I would like Aizu-Misato Town, the current owner of the ruins to install a streamline path for walking from the foot to the top which would make visitors better understand what the castle looked like.

there are many paths in the Third Enclosure, like a maze

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about a 15-minute drive away from Nitsuru smart IC or a 20-minute drive away from Aizuwakamatsu IC on the Banetsu Expressway. There are several parking lots for each spot of the ruins.
By public transportation, it takes about 20 minutes on foot to get the northern entrance of the park from JR Aizu-Hongo Station.
From Tokyo to the station: take the Tohoku Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Banetsu-sai Line at Koriyama Station, and transfer to the Tadami Line at Aizuwakamatsu Station.

The parking lot beside the Second Enclosure

That’s all. Thank you.
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56.Takeda Castle Part2

The current tourist route is very similar to the bypass route the castle originally had. Hence, the route for the defenders of the castle in the past makes it possible for current visitors of the ruins to move smoothly as well.

Features

Well-developed Castle Ruins

Today, the ruins of Takeda Castle have been well developed to maintain them and control many visitors. If you want to drive to the ruins, you need to park at a tourist facility called “Yamajiro-no-sato” (or “the Village of the Mountain Castle”) and get to the ruins by a taxi, a bus, or walking. Even if you use a taxi, you will still need to walk the last kilometer from where you are dropped off to the ticket office, the entrance of the ruins. The path to the entrance is paved, but the terrain of the mountain is steep and rough when you walk along this path. You may wonder why and how the builders built a castle with great stone walls on such a mountain.

The map around the castle

You can see very steep and rough slopes beside the path

In the ruins, the tour routes are set one way and the range for visitors to walk around is also limited by poles and ropes. The stone walls and the foundations of the castle look well maintained. This is done by officials closing the ruins for a certain period of time to repair them every year. These activities contribute to keep the ruins in a good condition as well as securing the safety of visitors. For instance, visitors first enter the entrance of Kita-Senjo (meaning Northern 1,000 mat Enclosure in Japanese) at the edge of the northern ridge, then, walk on the ridge, pass the side of the stone wall base for the Main Tower at the Main Enclosure, walk on the southern ridge, and finally get out from the edge of it. This route is very similar to the bypass route the castle originally had. Hence, the route for the defenders of the castle in the past makes it possible for current visitors of the ruins to move smoothly as well.

The map around the castle

You can’t access the edge of an enclosure at the site

Entrances and routes are strictly protected

To get back to the entrance at the edge of the northern ridge, it has a defensive square space surrounded by high stone walls, called “Masugata”. It also had gate buildings on it, where the defenders would attack enemies outside by using guns and arrows. If the enemies reached the gate, they would be locked in the Masugata system.

The Masugata system at the edge of the northern ridge (called the Main Gate at the site)

The Masugata system seen from the inside

Inside the entrance, there is the extensive Kita-Senjo Enclosure, where as the name suggests, could accommodate lots of soldiers and supplies in the past, or tourist groups and events in the present.

The Third Enclosure seen from the Kita-senjo Enclosure

If you want to go to the center of the ruins, you will pass another Masugata system to the Third Enclosure and an altered gate built with stone walls to the Second Enclosure through the zigzagging path.

The Masugata system in front of the Third Enclosure

You will next walk on a narrow northern ridge through the Third and Second Enclosures, looking at the center of the castle with lots of stone walls and a view of the area around below. The route is guided by the official instructions to walk around safely in the narrow area.

The tourist routes are guided by the official instructions

The lots of stone walls in the center, seen from the Second Enclosure

Main Enclosure with remaining Stone Wall Base for Main Tower

You will eventually reach the center, the Main Enclosure with the stone wall base for the Main Tower. The route goes beside the base on wooden steps and there are other wooden steps to the base. The base was built using natural or roughly processed stones in the Nozura-zumi method, which look really great. Some historians speculate that a three-level Main Tower might have been built on the base, according to the size of the base.

The route goes on the wooden steps beside the base

To be continued in “Takeda Castle Part3”
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158.Fukuchiyama Castle Part3

As long as looking at the stone wall base for the Main Tower of Fukuchiyama Castle, Mitsuhide Akechi seems to have followed a policy of Nobunaga Oda’s castle constructions. That means Mitsuhide was a follower of Nobunaga.

Features

Views from Restored Main Tower

The current Main Tower is actually a restored modern building which is used as a historical museum and an observation platform, where you can learn about Mitsuhide Akechi and the history of the castle. You can also enjoy a view of the city area around the castle from the top floor. For instance, you can see the Third Enclosure which is used as the City Hall on the right and the Hoki-maru Enclosure which has become a park on the left, over the residential area of the former Second Enclosure in the west.

The map around the castle

The Third Enclosure has become the City Hall

In the northern direction, you can see the Yuragawa River and the bank along it that Mitsuhide built, and it’s called Akechi-yabu or Akechi-bush. Mitsuhide planted bamboos along the river bank to make it durable.

Only remaining building of Castle

Akagane-mon Bansho or the Guardhouse for the Bronze Gate, which is located in the Main Enclosure, is the only remaining part of the building and is one of its attractions. It had been originally built in the Second Enclosure, but was moved to the current position because the said Second enclosure was removed. In addition, the building of the Bronze Gate was moved to Shogenji Temple in the city and is used as its front gate.

The map around the castle

The Guardhouse for the Bronze Gate in the Main Enclosure

The front gate of Shogenji Temple, quoted from the Fukuchiyama City Website

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Fukuchiyama Castle was abandoned and most of the castle buildings including the Main Tower were demolished or moved. It is said that the 20th Infantry Regiment of the Imperial Japanese Army destroyed the Second Enclosure for the convenient of the transit between their station and maneuvering ground. On the other hand, people in Fukuchiyama wanted to restore the Main Tower as a symbol of the city for a long time. The restoration launched since 1968 when the illustration of the castle in the Edo Period was found. It is once faced with a budget problem, but it was completed in 1986 with lot of donation from the citizens, which was more than a half of the final budget.

The Second Enclosure was removed and became the city area

My Impression

One of the popular assumptions of the reason for Mitsuhide’s rebellion has been the difference of Nobunaga and Mitsuhide’s characters. It is said that Nobunaga was radical while Mitsuhide was traditional. However, as long as looking at the stone wall base for the Main Tower of Fukuchiyama Castle, Mitsuhide seems to have followed a policy of Nobunaga’s castle constructions. It refers to using anything including Buddhism items to build their castles immediately. I honestly say that the stone walls using the tomb stones looks little strange. There is no telling how people at that time felt. I think Mitsuhide was definitely a follower of Nobunaga. A new assumption recently came that Mitsuhide’s position became weak during the discussion about how Nobunaga would invade the Shikoku Region. Mitsuhide’s opinion about it was rejected and his rival, Hideyoshi’s one was taken by Nobunaga. The Honnoji Incident occurred just before the invasion would be done. I’m wondering if the real reason for Mitsuhide’s decision will be uncovered.

The joint of the newer stones on the left and the older ones on the right for the stone wall base of Fukuchiyama Castle’s Main Tower

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 Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, owned by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about 3 kms away from Fukuchiyama IC on the Maizuru-Wakasa Expressway. There is a parking lot beside the castle hill.
By public transportation, it takes about 15 minutes on foot to get there from JR Fukuchiyama Station.
From Tokyo to Fukuchiyama Station: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express and transfer to the Sanin Line at Kyoto Station.

The parking lot of the Fukuchiyama Castle Park

That’s all. Thank you.
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