After Motosakura Castle was abandoned, the political center of this area was moved to Sakura Castle, about 5km west of Motosakura Castle. The ruins of Motosakura Castle have been focused on recently. They were designated as a National Historic Site in 1998. Shisui Town which partly owns the ruins has been studying them since 2005 to develop them as a historical park.
The entrance of the Settei-yama EnclosureOverlooking the other dry moat around the Settei-yama EnclosureThe bottom of the other dry moat around the Settei-yama Enclosure
My Impression
I didn’t notice there were the castle ruins along the Keisei Line until I visited them even though I sometimes went Narita Airport using the line. My visit to the ruins was like a small adventure. I guess that Japan has many of these kinds of castle ruins. I will enjoy them more, while making safety a priority.
The starting point for the Higashi-yama EnclosureThe top of the Higashi-yama EnclosureA view when you overlook from the Higashi-yama Enclosure
How to get There
It takes about 15 minutes from Osakura Station on the Keisei line. To reach the ruins, go straight on the road along the southern side of the train line. The road goes into a small settlement and divides into two branches; then turn left. Next, turn right at the next intersection in accordance with the guide sign. After that, turn left at the other guide sign. You will eventually reach the northern side of the ruins.
Osakura StationGo straight on the road along the southern side of the train lineTurn leftGo through a settlementGo on the road along the train line againTurn right at the next intersectionTurn left at the other guide signYou will eventually reach the ruins
If you want to visit there by car: It is about 10 minutes away from Shisui IC on Higashi-Kanto Expressway. The ruins offer a parking lot.
Now, the ruins of Motosakura Castle look like just a hilly area, but certainly exist with earthen foundation. For instance, if you go to Narita Airport on the Keisei line, you will see the castle ruins on the right about 10km short of the airport. If you visit the ruins by train, you have to get off the train at Osakura Station.
The aerial photo around the castle
Entering Main Enclosure through Higashi-yama
The castle ruins have some tiers. The front low tier is the Tokoji-byo Enclosure which faced the lakeside. That means the spacious rice field in front of it was a lake or waterlogged area in the past. Going to the east, you can enter the Inner Compounds of the castle through the Higashi-yama Entrance. The entrance is narrowly sandwiched by the Higashi-yama Enclosure and another one. The Higashi-yama Enclosure still stands like a wall, and you can walk up to the top easily and see a good view of a rice field on the north. The behind of the enclosure is a flat area which was used as a riding ground and is now used as a parking lot.
The Tokoji-byo EnclosureThe rice field was a lake in the pastThe entrance sandwiched by the Higashi-yama EnclosureThe Higashi-yama EnclosureA view from the Higashi-yama EnclosureThe parking lot behind the Higashi-yama Enclosure
Main Enclosure with Best Location
You can also walk up on the trail from there to the Main Enclosure, seeing the many imitation shields. The trail goes between the Main Enclosure and the Okuno-yama Enclosure, where a bridge was built above. Then the trail is divided into two branches for both enclosures. The branch to the Main Enclosure is windy and steep, which was for defense. The inside of the enclosure is empty, but it was found by the excavation that many buildings including the Main Hall and a turret were built in the past. You can overlook the plain area below and the Higashi-yama Enclosure on the opposite side from the enclosure. This means the lord of the castle could see visitors or enemies coming to the castle easily.
The imitation shieldsThe point where the wooden bridge was built aboveThe two branches (to the Main Enclosure on the left, to the Okuno-yama Enclosure on the right)The trail to the Main EnclosureThe Main Enclosure (the point where the Shuden building was built)A view from the Main Enclosure
Going to Dry Moat of Settei-yama Enclosure
You can also look around the Okuno-yama and Kura-ato Enclosures. After that, I recommend seeing the dry moat around the Settei-yama Enclosure. If you go out to the south of the Inner Compounds, go to the west for a while, you will find the edge of the dry moat. The moat is at maximum 16m deep, now covered with a bamboo forest. You will finally go back to the first position at the northern part of the castle, so the mort may have been used as a road. You can also enter the Settai-yama Enclosure and see the other dry moat of the opposite side from there.
The Okuno-yama EnclosureThe Kura-ato EnclosureThe southern side of the Inner CompoundsThe dry moat around the Settei-yama EnclosureGoing back to the first positionthe inside of the Settei-yama Enclosure
The castle of the Chiba Clan, an illustrious clan in Kanto Region
Location and History
Chiba Clan built it in 15th Century
Motosakura Castle was a large castle which was located in Shimosa Province (what is now the northern part of Chiba Prefecture). A warlord, Suketane from the Chiba Clan, first built the castle at latest in 1484 on a hilly area called Masakado-yama. The area was surrounded by Inba-numa Lake, and only open to the Shimosa Road on flat land in the southern direction. This meant the area was defensive and convenient for water and land transport.
The map around the castle in the early Meiji Era, Inba-numa Lake was still near the castle
The Chiba Clan’s family crest, Gessei or Moon and Star (licensed by Los688 via Wikimedia Commons)
Central portion, Inner Compounds.
When the castle was first built, the warlords in the Kanto Region were split into two groups, the western group and the eastern group. The western group was led by the shogunal deputy for the Kanto Region, the Uesugi Clan, and the eastern group was led by the head of the Kanto government in Koga, the Ashikaga Clan. The Chiba Clan was included in the eastern group and the Motosakura Castle was also an important site which connected Koga in Shimosa Province to the other provinces in Boso Peninsula inside the group. The clan built several enclosures in the central portion of the castle called the Inner Compounds.
The location of the castle
The Main Enclosure called Shiro-yama had the Main Hall for the lord of the castle. The hall had a set of two formal buildings called Shuden and Kaisho, because the clan was the governor of the province. The Okuno-yama enclosure, which had the Myoken Shrine where the clan went for worship, is next to the main enclosure on the west. The Okuno-yama enclosure was connected to the Main Enclosure by a wooden bridge . The next one is the Kura-ato Enclosure which had warehouses. The westmost one is the Settei-yama Enclosure which was used for guesthouses. In addition to these enclosures, the Higashi-yama Enclosure was set to protect them, and the Tokoji-byo Enclosure, which had temples, faced Inba-numa Lake.
The enclosures of the Inner Compound (from the signboard at the site)
Outer Compounds were built against Satomi Clan
In the middle of the 16th Century, the situation of the Kanto Region changed. The Hojo Clan captured most of the region, then the Chiba Clan decided to support Hojo by adopting a son from them. However, the Satomi Clan in Boso Peninsula (the south of Honsakura Castle) was against Hojo. As a result, the Chiba Clan had to reinforce the defense of the castle on the south.
The location of Motosakura Castle and the home base of the Satomi Clan
The clan built large enclosures outside the Inner Compounds, called the Outer Compounds such as Araue, Negoya, and Mukai-Negoya. They were surrounded by thick earthen walls and had the sticking out defensive positions called Umadashi, which were built using Hojo’s techniques. In addition, the Settai-yama Enclosure became the pivot of the defense because it was the connecting point between the Inner Compounds and the Outer Compounds. The range of the castle finally reached 39,000 square meters.
The whole image of the castle including the Outer Compound (from the signboard at the site)
However, The Chiba Clan was fired by the ruler Hieyoshi Toyotomi in 1590, as their master Hojo Clan was also defeated by Hideyoshi. After that, Motosakura Castle was sometimes used by several clans. The castle was finally abandoned in 1615.
The Portrait of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, attributed to Mitsunobu Kano, ownd by Kodaiji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
