167.Shingu Castle Part2

Castle ruins with a mysterious atmosphere

Features

Developed as Tankaku Castle Park

Today, the ruins of Shingu Castle have been developed by Shingu City as the Tankaku Castle Park. The park actually has a mysterious atmosphere because it consists of the castle ruins, the ruins of an amusement facility developed in the Showa Era, and the modern park facilities. It has two entrances but they were not originally for the castle. If you enter it from the main entrance on the western side, you will walk up the stairs to the hill for a while.

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Main Entrance
Leaflet, © OpenStreetMap contributors
The map around the castle

The main entrance of the park
Walking up the stairs from the main entrance
The eastern entrance of the park

Then, you will eventually walk on the original Main Route which comes from another side and meets at some point. You can see the rest of the original route goes down, but you can not to go there directly over the poles and ropes.

The meeting point with the original Main Route
Looking down the original Main Route

If you want to go there, you need to go around the residential area which surrounds the route.

The remaining sone walls among the residential area
The original Main Route below the hill

Enclosures surrounded by Precise Stone Walls

There are four enclosures on the hill, which are the Matsunomaru, Kanenomaru, Main, and Barbican from the west to the east, with only the stone walls remaining. The Matsunomaru Enclosure is the first one from the Main Route, whose entrance is a defensive square space surrounded by stone walls, called Masugata. This enclosure also has the route to the Water Supply Enclosure beside the river, it should have been the pivot point for defense.

The entrance of the Matsunomaru Enclosure
The defensive square space
The inside of the Matsunomaru Enclosure
The route to the Water Supply Enclosure

The next is the Kanenomaru enclosure which has another Masugata entrance. Its stone walls were well processed and piled with precision, in a method called Kirikomi-Hagi. It had had the Main Hall for the lord in Asano’s period, but the hall was moved to the Second Enclosure at the foot during Mizuno’s period. It now has a square and a Japanese Garden which was probably built when it was used as a Ryokan or a traditional Japanese style hotel in the Showa Era.

The entrance of the Kanenomaru Enclosure
The defensive square space
The inside of the Kanenomaru Enclosure
The stone walls of the Kanenomaru Enclosure seen from the foot of the hill

Main Enclosure with complex design

You will next reach the Main Enclosure, which has a more complex design. Basically, it has many different kinds of great remaining stone walls. First, it has doubled front gate ruins, especially, the second one is surrounded by stone walls piled with the most precision in the castle, using a method called Kikko-zumi or Piling like Tortoise Shell.

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Second Front Gate
Leaflet, © OpenStreetMap contributors
The map around the Main Enclosure

From the first gate ruins to the second gate ruins
The stone walls of the second gate ruins, built using a method called Piling like Tortoise Shell

Second, the stone walls of its Back Gate Ruins show an excellent surface treatment.

The stone walls of the Back Gate Ruins

Finally, the stone walls surrounding the enclosure are curved elaborately like a folding screen called Byobu-ore which made it possible for the defenders to counterattack to the enemies’ side.

The stone walls of the Main Enclosure, like a folding screen
The top of the folding screen stone walls

These stone walls have two tiers with the upper one being newer which was built by the Mizuno Clan, contrasted by the older lower tier which was built by the Asano Clan. The enclosure looks like a museum for stone walls.

The stone walls of the Main Enclosure have two tiers, but the lower one is covered with grass
The stone walls of the Main Enclosure, seen from the Matsunomaru Enclosure

Unfortunately, the stone wall base for the Main Tower had mostly collapsed due to a typhoon in 1952. Only one side of it remains.

The few remaining stone wall base for the Main Tower

On the other hand, the enclosure was also heavily modified by several stairs and paths which could have been built using the collapsing stone walls. The added structures are supposed to have been built for the amusement facility during the Showa Era. Visitors may be confused to see these structures made of stones because there are not enough explanations for it.

The stone steps which were added in a later period
The enclosure is mixed with the original structures and added ones later

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

155.Akagi Castle Part2

A mountain castle with a strategical defense system

Features

Well maintained Castle Ruins

Today, the ruins of Akagi Castle have been developed and maintained as a historical site by Kumano City. The city is also known for its wooden materials such as Kumano Cedar. The area around the castle produced metals like gold, silver, bronze, and iron in the past. The castle could control the roads which were used to carry these materials. People who visit the ruins by car usually start their walk from the parking lot below the eastern ridge. The ruins don’t have any standing buildings but its stone walls remain in good condition.

Around the parking lot below the eastern ridge
The starting point to the eastern ridge

Eastern ridge as Front of Castle

The ridge is thought to be the front of the castle because it had the most strategical defense system in the castle. You can even now see how it was protected. If you climb the path through the Metalsmith Residences Ruins, it turns left and gets steep between the two enclosures surrounded by stone walls on the ridge.

The route from the eastern ridge to the Main Enclosure (the red arrow), using the signboard at the site
The Metalsmith Residences Ruins
The path turns left

This is a defensive point where the first gate was built to protect the castle.

The ruins of the first gate
The stone walls of the Eastern Enclosures
The gate ruins seen from above the stone walls

Then, the path turns right to climb the ridge, it turns right again to enter the entrance of the Main Enclosure on its stone walls. However, visitors had to use the ladder to enter it, whereas now you can enter it using the wooden steps added in recent times.

Climbing the ridge
The wooden steps towards the Main Enclosure
The wooden steps seen from above

You will also need to turn three times to finally reach the square defensive gate of the enclosure, called Masugata. This uses the highest and greatest stone walls as the final gate of the castle.

The stone walls in front of the Main Enclosure could be an obstruction
The stone walls of the Main Enclosure Entrance
The entrance seen from behinde

Elaborately built Stone Walls surround Main Enclosure

The inside of the Main Enclosure is only a square now, but it had the largest buildings in the castle based on the stone foundations found by the excavation. You can see a view of the surrounding settlements just as the castle lord used to do.

The inside of the Main Enclosure
A view from the Main Enclosure

You can also walk around the outside of the enclosure. You will see how its stone walls were curved elaborately to allow the defenders to make a counter-attacks to the side.

The stone walls of the Main Enclosure
part of the stone walls was curved elaborately

The single enclosure on the northern ridge, directly connected to the Main Enclosure, only partly used stone walls by because it was the back of the castle. However, it was protected by a ditch in front of it.

The Northern Enclosure seen from the Mian Enclosure

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Parking lot
Leaflet|国土地理院
The aerial photo around the castle

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

155.Akagi Castle Part1

The starting point of Takatora Todo as a castle construction master

Location and History

Takatora was seeking his Ideal Master

Akagi Castle was located in the mountain part of Kii Province what is now Wakayama Prefecture. The castle was built around 1589 by Takatora Todo who would be a well-known master of castle construction later. The castle was one of his earliest castles, so it can be seen as the starting point of his castle construction. Takatora came from Omi Province near Kyoto during the Sengoku Period when so many warlords divided the country and often battled with each other. He was well built and distinguished himself in many wars, however, his masters didn’t always survive. As a result, he changed his masters as many as seven times like an excellent business person changes one’s job several times now. In 1576, he found his fourth master, Hidenaga Toyotomi, the little brother of Hideyoshi Toyotomi who would become the ruler of Japan later.

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Akagi Castle
Leaflet, © OpenStreetMap contributors
The range of Kii Province and the location of the castle

The portrait of Takatora Todo, private owned (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Hedenaga was a nicely balanced leader joining his brother’s unification of Japan. Takatora was promoted by Hidenaga to one of his senior vassals and also learned many elements of the enterprise, one of which was how to build castles. He must have experienced it through many battles under Hidenaga. In 1585, Hideyoshi had conquered Kii Provence which was given to Hidenaga. Hidenaga also gave part of the province to be governed to Takatora. However, it was not easy because many local lords still didn’t want to be ruled by others, who also had guns which were popular weapons in the province at that time. One of Takatora’s answers to the question was to build his new castle called Akagi Castle.

The portrait of Hidenaga Toyotomi, owned by Shungakuin Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
Matchlock guns which were popular weapons at that time

Mountain Castle with Advanced System

Akagi Castle was a simple mountain castle with its Main Enclosure on a hill and its other enclosures on the three ridges in the north, east, and west. They are similar to many other castles built at that time so far. Takatora added advanced systems with his own ideas and experiences using the current technology. First, the Main Enclosure was basically square shaped and surrounded by high stone walls. The line of the walls was also bended elaborately to make a side attack to enemies. Its entrance was guarded by a small square space called Masugata. These features can be seen in other castles Takatora built later such as Imabari and Tsu Castles. Other enclosures were also surrounded by stone walls and placed wisely. For example, if visitors or enemies wanted to go the Main Enclosure by passing the enclosures on the eastern ridge, they had to go through three alternated entrances called Koguchi.

The layout of Akagi Castle, from the signboard at the site, adding the red letters for the Enclosures’ names
The stone walls of the Main Enclosure at Akagi Castle Ruins
The ruins of Tsu Castle
Imabari Castle

Takatora succeeded in governing the area around the castle. The castle probably provided relief from dangerous battles and Takatora’s authority to the local people. However, his stable governance was not done by only the castle, but also by his strict policy. He executed 160 rebels including local warriors and farmers, called Kitayama Uprising, at Tabirako Mountain Pass near the castle just after the completion of the castle. The reason for the uprising is said that they were against Hideyoshi’s nationwide land survey because the government before Hideyoshi did not recognize how much field people had. People had to pay more tax after the government survey. That was one of the realities in the Sengoku Period.

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Akagi Castle
Leaflet|国土地理院
The relief map around the castle

Castle is followed by Asano Clan before abandoned by One Castle per Province Law

In the first 17th Century, the Asano Clan governed Kii Province. They were based in Wakayama Castle, but also used Akagi Castle as the Kitayama Uprising people rebelled again. The clan executed more people than Takatora. Akagi Castle was finally abandoned due to the Law of One Castle per Province by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1615.

Wakayama Castle

To be continued in “Akagi Castle Part2”