Nagoya castle – ページ 2 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

152.Tsu Castle Part1

The final home base of Takatora Todo

Location and History

Field of Anotsu Castle Battle

Tsu Castle is located in what is now Tsu City, the capital of Mie Prefecture which was called Ise Province in the past. Tsu City calls itself the city with the shortest name in the world. Tsu just means port. Originally, the area was called Anotsu, which means the port of Ano. Anotsu was one of the three greatest ports in Japan in the Middle Ages. However, the port declined due to the Meio earthquake followed by a great tsunami in 1498.

The range of Ise Province and the location of the castle

There was also been Anotsu Castle in the plains land around the area, which was the former Tsu Castle. In 1600 before the famous Battle of Sekigahara, a preliminary skirmish happened at the castle, called the Battle of Anotsu Castle. Large troops from the West Squad attacked the castle with few defenders of Nobutaka Tomita belonging to the East Squad. The defenders had to surrender, as a result, the castle went to ruin. The Tokugawa Shogunate, which led the East Squad finally won the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, thought they need a stronger lord and castle around the area. This was because they were still against the Toyotomi Clan which lived in Osaka Castle, not so far from Ise Province in the west.

the Ukiyo-e painting of Nobutaka Tomita rescued by his wife, from an episode in the Battle of Anotsu Castle, attributed to Yoshitoshi Tsukioka, published in 1885 *(licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

Takatora Todo improves Castle as his home base during peacetime

In 1608, the shogunate replaced Nobutaka Tomita with Takatora Todo as the lord of Anotsu Castle. Takatora was not a hereditary feudal lord, which meant he didn’t work under Ieyasu Tokugawa for a long time, who was the founder of the shogunate. He was a well-known master of castle construction through building Uwajima, Ozu and Imabari Castles. He also helped the shogunate build famous castles such as Edo, Nagoya, and Nijo in Kyoto. That’s why he was trusted by the shogunate. They expected Takatora to build a strong castle to stand against the Toyotomi Clan in Osaka Castle in the west. Takatora accomplished this by renovating Anotsu Castle, which was renamed Tsu Castle sometime around the period.

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

He also owned Iga-Ueno Castle in Iga Province, which was west of Ise Province and closer to Osaka. He said that Tsu Castle would be his home base during peacetime while Iga-Ueno Castle would be the other one for wartime. However, Tsu Castle was adequately defensive even if it was his peacetime home base in the plains. The castle also reflected Takatora’s concepts of building castles.

Takatora’s concepts of building castles

The Main Enclosure was simply square shaped, which was easy to construct and accommodate large troops. While it may be weak for defense, the enclosure was surrounded by the wide Inner Moat, high stone walls, and many turrets on the walls. The gates of the enclosure were strongly guarded with a square defensive space called Masugata. Moreover, to enter the gates, visitors had to pass other small enclosures called Demaru or the Barbicans in the Inner Moat. The Second Enclosure and the Outer Moat were also built concentrically. Such structures can be seen in other castles which Takatora was involved in, such as Imabari, Nagoya, Nijo, and Sasayama.

The stone walls of the Main Enclosure of Tsu Castle

Tsu Castle in the last stage of the Eco Period, from the signboard at the site

The drawing of Nagoya Castle in Owari Province (exhibited by the National Diet Library)

After the shogunate beat the Toyotomi Clan in 1615, Tsu Castle became the home base of the Tsu Domain which the Todo Clan governed, throughout the Edo Period. The castle town of Tsu Castle prospered as well as being on the Ise-Gingu Shrine pilgrimage road.

To be continued in “Tsu Castle Part2”

47.Iga-Ueno Castle Part1

The castle for protecting and attacking Osaka

Location and History

From Home of Ninja to Site for protecting Osaka

Iga-Ueno Castle was located in Iga Province which is now the western part of Mie Prefecture. Iga is probably more well known for being the home of Ninja than for the castle. Actually, before the castle was built in 1585, the province was divided among many small local lords. They gained special knowledge and techniques so that they could protect themselves. They were also often hired by larger warlords in other provinces as spies or Special Forces we now call Ninja. Unfortunately, they were conquered by Nobunaga Oda in 1581. When Nobunaga’s successor, Hideyoshi Toyotomi was organizing his unification of Japan, he sent Sadatsugu Tsutsui to the province as the lord.

The range of Iga Province and the location of the castle

The portrait of Sadatsugu Tsutsui, from a collection of Japanese poems called Giretsu-Hyakuninisshu, owned by National Institute of Japanese Literature (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Hideyoshi was based in Osaka Castle, so Iga Province was on the direct route from Osaka to eastern Japan. That’s why he sent Sadatsugu who first built Iga-Ueno Castle in 1585. Therefore, the castle was supposed to prevent enemies from attacking from the east. The three-level Main Tower of the castle was also built in the eastern part of it. Sadatsugu somehow survived when Ieyasu Tokugawa became the final ruler at the beginning of the 17th Century after Hideyoshi died. However, he was fired by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1608 due to a claim of misgovernment from his retainers. Historians speculate that the shogunate, in fact, wanted to remove Sadatsugu who was doubly loyal to both the shogunate and the Toyotomi Clan still at Osaka Castle.

Toyotomi’s Main Tower of Osaka Castle, from “The summer campaign of the siege of Osaka folding screens”, owned by Osaka Castle Museum (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)

Takatora Todo renovated Castle for attacking Osaka

Instead, the shogunate transferred Takatora Todo from Imabari Castle in Shikoku Island to Iga province. Takatora was not a hereditary feudal lord, which meant he didn’t work under Ieyasu Tokugawa, who was the founder of the shogunate, for a long time. However, he was a well-known master of castle construction through having build Uwajima, Ozu and Imabari Castles. He also helped the shogunate build its famous castles such as Edo, Nagoya, and Nijo in Kyoto. That’s why he was trusted by the shogunate. They expected Takatora to build a strong castle to stand against the Toyotomi Clan at Osaka Castle in the west. Takatora accomplished this by renovating Iga-Ueno Castle. He thought that if the shogunate were to be beaten at Osaka Castle, he could accommodate Ieyasu in Iga-Ueno Castle.

Takatora extended the Main Enclosure, the center of the castle on a hill to the west, towards Osaka Castle. He invited a guild of craftsmen called Ano-shu to build the highest stone walls (at that time) at the western side of the enclosure. It was completed- Takatora’s biography praises him, saying the stone walls were greater then those of Osaka Castle. Takatora also started to build the five-level Main Tower behind the stone walls, however, the tower collapsed due to a windstorm in 1612. The Second Enclosure was built beside the hill in the south, which was used as warriors’ housing. It had two large Main Gates in its western and eastern parts. The construction was ongoing when the battles between the shogunate and the Toyotomi Clan happened in 1614. however, it halted after the shogunate beat the Toyotomi Clan in 1615.

*The illustration of Hachimanyama Castle and Town*, private owned (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

The old photo of the Western Main Gate (*licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)*

Homebase for Wartime

Takatora gave his younger brother Iga-Ueno Castle as his branch castle, and set Tsu Castle as his home base. Tsu Castle was located in a plains area near the sea in Ise Province which was another territory of his. He said that Tsu Castle would be his home base for peacetime while Iga-Ueno Castle would be the other one for wartime. After that, the senior vassals of the Todo Clan governed the castle and Iga Province in the peacetime of the Edo Period. They lived in the official residence where Sadatsugu Tsutsui originally lived. The first Main Tower, which Sadatsugu built, also remained for a while, but it is thought to have collapsed due to another windstorm in 1633 as well.

The ruins of the official residence of Iga-Ueno Castle

The official residence area drawn in the Kanei Era of the Edo Period, exhibited by Iga-Ueno Castle

To be continued in “Iga-Ueno Castle Part2”

82.Ozu Castle Part3

People in Ozu struggled to restore the Main Tower.

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Ozu Castle was abandoned and once used as a government office. However, the castle land was eventually sold and the castle buildings were demolished. Four turrets lastly remain as Owata Turret in the Second Enclosure, the Southern Corner Turret in the Third Enclosure, and the two ones in the Main Enclosure. People in Ozu were afraid to lose the castle ruins, so they turned them into a park with peach trees in the Meiji Era.

The remaining Owata Turret in the Second Enclosure

the remaining Southern Corner Turret in the Third Enclosure

The old photo of the Main Enclosure after being planted with peach trees, exhibited in the castle

After World War II, people in Ozu had been thinking about restoring the Main Tower in the original way, while many other Main Towers in Japan were restored in a modern way like Nagoya Castle. This was because many materials for the restoration remained, such as drawings, the frame model of the tower made when it was repaired, and several clear photos taken before it was scraped, which was a very rare case in Japan.

The Main Tower of Nagoya Castle, restored in a modern way

the frame model of the Main Tower of Ozu Castle, used for the restoration, from the signboard at the site

However, there was a big problem with the law. Japan’s Building Standard Act has very strict rules on wooden buildings which are over 13m tall. The original Main Tower of Ozu Castle was over 19m, which meant it couldn’t be restored. The good news came in the 1990’s, the wooden towers in the other castles of Shirakawa-Komine, Kakegawa and Shiroishi were allowed to be restored. Ozu Castle’s Main Tower is the tallest among other towers, but after a long negotiation with the officials, the tower’s restoration was completed in 2004.

The restored wooden three-leveled turret of Shirakawa-Komine Castle

The restored *wooden* Main Tower of Kakegawa Castle

The restored *wooden* Main Tower of Shirakawa-Komine Castle

The restored wooden Main Tower of Ozu Castle

My Impression

I think the Main Tower of Ozu Castle is the best one out of the restored Main Towers in Japan. This is because the tower and two remaining turrets both sides are in perfect harmony. In addition, I recommend seeing the castle from the riverside. River traffic was one of the main means of transportation, so the castle’s design was done considering the view from the riverside. You can see a beautiful completely restored appearance of the Main Tower and the collaboration with the turrets.

A view of Hijikawa River from the Main Enclosure

A view of the Main Tower and the Handrail Turret from around the river

How to get There

If you want to visit the castle by car, it is about 10 minutes away from Minami-Ozu IC on the Matsuyama Expressway. There is a parking lot for visitors in the city area near the castle.
By public transportation, it takes about 25 minutes on foot from the JR Iyo-Ozu Station.
If you go there from Tokyo or Osaka, I recommend traveling by plane or using an express bus.

That’s all. Thank you.
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