National historic site – ページ 14 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

48.Matsusaka Castle Part3

The Main Tower Base even uses a stone sarcophagus.

Features

Main Enclosure, Center of Castle

The lower tier had many turrets as the pivot for defense. Though there are no buildings now, you can look down on the routes below the stone walls of the tier clearly.

The map around the castle

The ruins of Kane-no-yagura Turret at the lower tier of the Main Enclosure

A view of Matsusaka City Museum of History and Folklore from the ruins of Kane-no-maru Turret

The ruins of Tsukimi Turret at the lower tier of the Main Enclosure

A view of the Second Enclosure from the ruins of Tsukimi Turret

The upper tier had turrets, residences, and the Main Tower. The stone wall base for the tower remains in its original condition from when Ujisato Gamo first built the castle. It looks very old and you can see part of it is made using a stone sarcophagus. This shows the stones for the castle construction were collected rapidly. You can also see a nice city view with mountains behind, as this is the highest point of the castle.

The entrance of *the upper tier of the Main Enclosure*

The inside of the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

The stone sarcophagus used for the stone walls (in the front)

A view from the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Matsusaka Castle was abandoned and the castle buildings were demolished or burned. The main portion of the castle was turned into Matsusaka Park in 1881, while the other has become a city area. Matsusaka City, the former castle town, renovated the stone walls of the castle for as long as 16 years between 1988 and 2003. The city has also been researching the ruins as well. They were finally designated as a National Historic Site in 2011.

My Impression

Before my visit to Matsusaka Castle Ruins, I didn’t know much about Ujisato Gamo and the castle. In fact, I was still wondering why the local city has castle ruins with such great stone walls while visiting. However, after learning about who he was and the history of the castle, I understood the reason. I hope that Matsusaka City will maintain the castle ruins and the memory of Ujisato forever because the city would not be there without hin.

The stone walls of the upper tier of the Main Enclosure

How to get There

If you want to visit the ruins by car, it is about a 15-minute drive away from Matsusaka IC on the Ise Expressway. There is a parking lot for visitors beside the park.
If you want to use public transportation, It takes about 15 minutes on foot from Matsusaka Station to get there.
To get to Matsusaka Station from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the JR Mie rapid train or the Kintetsu-Nagoya Line on Kintetsu Railway at Nagoya Station.

That’s all. Thank you.
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49.Odani Castle Part3

You should also check out the back part of the castle.

Features

After passing Nakanomaru Enclosure, you will see Kyogoku-maru Enclosure where Nobunaga’s retainer, Hideyoshi, first captured in the castle. Komaru Enclosure where Nagamasa’s father, Hisamasa, lived as a retreat is close behind the Kyogoku-maru Enclosure. That’s probably why he was defeated soon in the battle.

The map around the castle

Finally, Sanno-maru Enclosure is at the highest point of the ridge. You can see the largest and greatest remaining stone walls in the castle at the eastern side of the enclosure. It has four tiers, two more than the Main Enclosure. Some historians speculate that it is the actual Main Enclosure as those of other castles were usually the strongest and highest. In fact, almost all the names of the enclosures were defined after the actual period.

The imaginary of the Sanno-maru Enclosure, from the signboard at the site

Later History

After Odani Castle fell in 1573, Hideyoshi was given this castle by Nobunaga and lived there for a while. However, Hideyoshi built Nagahama Castle beside Biwa Lake in 1575 using some materials of Odani Castle. After he moved to the new castle, Odani Castle was eventually abandoned. The mountain the castle was built on became publicly owned until it was sold to local governments and private section in 1915. Then, local people started to preserve the castle ruins. As a result, the ruins were designated as a National Historic Site in 1937. Nagahama City, which now owns the ruins, is considering how to preserve them as well as letting people enjoy them.

The present Nagahama Castle (licensed by 663highland via Wikimedia Commons)

The stone walls of Odani Castle which have collapsed

My Impression

In fact, the ruins of Odani Castle cover a much larger than I visited. The site also has many other attractions such as the branch Ozuku Castle, some ruins of another ridge of the mountain, and the hall ruins on the valley called Shimizudani sandwiched by the ridges. It would take a whole day to see all of them. I am looking forward to doing this someday.

The restored map of the whole ruins, from the signboard at the site

How to get There

If you want to visit the castle by car, it is about 5 minutes away from Odanijo Smart IC on the Hokuriku Expressway. There are parking lots at the foot or the mid slope of the mountain.
By public transportation, it takes about 30 minutes on foot from the JR Kawake Station.
To get to Kawake Station from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express and transfer to the Hokuriku Line at Maibara Station.

That’s all. Thank you.
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47.Iga-Ueno Castle Part3

The castle came back in the Showa Era.

Features

Looking up High Stone Walls

You can also look up these great stone walls by walking the street along the Western Inner Moat, outside the park. The length of the stone walls is nearly 250m.

The map around the castle

The high stone walls are coming into view.

The line of them is bent elaborately in several points so that defenders could make a side counterattack against enemies if they attack the castle.

The line of the stone walls is bent elaborately.

The corners of the walls are piled using processed rectangular stones alternated in a method called Sangi-zumi. Overall, these stone walls look durable and beautiful.

The corner piled in the Sangi-zumi method looks great.

Later History

After the Meiji Restoration, Iga-Ueno Castle was abandoned and the castle buildings were demolished. The center of the castle was turned into a park. In 1935, a native politician, Katsu Kawasaki donated the third wooden Main Tower on the stone wall base for the second Main Tower which Takatora Todo tried to build. Since then, people still call this site Iga-Ueno Castle probably because the Main Tower is intact. As for the original castle ruins, they were designated as a National Historic Site in 1967.

A picture of Katsu Kawasaki (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

My Impression

I was surprised to see many castles Takatora built or gave design advice on in western Japan, including the rebuilt Osaka Castle. He was involved in the creation of the No.1 and No.2 highest. The stone walls of Iga-Ueno Castle are still some of the highest ones in Japan and a great place to see. However, let me say again that you must be careful not to step off of the top of the high stone walls.

How to get There

If you want to visit the castle by car, it is about a 10-minute drive away from Nakase IC or Ueno IC on the Meihan Expressway. There is a parking lot for visitors in the park.
If you want to use public transportation, It takes about 10 minutes on foot from Ueno-shi Station on Iga Railway to get there. The station nicknames itself Ninja City Station and you can get the unique painted train called the Ninja Train.
To get to Ueno-shi Station from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Kintetsu-Nagoya Line on Kintetsu Railway at Nagoya Station, transfer to the Kintetsu-Osaka Line at Ise-Nakagawa Station, and transfer to the Iga Line on Iga Railway at Iga-Kanbe Station.

Links and References

・Iga Ueno Castle, Iga Cultural Industry Association

That’s all. Thank you.
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