タグ: Nihonmatsu city

11.Nihonmatsu Castle Part3

Ruins with the view of beautiful flowers

Later History

After the Boshin War during the Meiji Restoration, Nihonmatsu Castle was abandoned and the few remaining buildings of the castle were all demolished. A silk mill was established in the Third Enclosure at the foot of the mountain and it was operational between 1873 and 1925. After World War II, the castle ruins became what is known today as Kasumigajo Park as a natural park while some buildings of the castle were rebuilt. The investigation and study for the castle have been done since 1990. The stone walls of the Main Enclosure were restored in 1995. The ruins were finally designated as a National Historic Site in 2006. Nihonmatsu City is now considering restoring the Main Hall in the Third Enclosure on the foot of the mountain.

The foot of the mountain at the castle ruins site
A view from the top of the mountain
The Third Enclosure

My Impression

Nihonmatsu City is known for the Chrysanthemum Figures which means “dolls clothed with chrysanthemum flowers and leaves”. The Chrysanthemum Show is held every autumn at Kasumigajo Park. The park itself is also famous for cherry blossoms, so the mountain of the park is covered with them in spring. In fact, if you look down from the top you will be surprised to see a carpet of flowers. Therefore I highly recommend you visit this castle in Spring and Autumn if possible.

The cherry blossoms like a carpet that can be seen from the top
Chrysanthemum figures exhibited at the Chrysanthemum Show (taken by happy.mom from photoAC)

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car:
It is about 10 minutes away from Nihonmatsu IC on the Tohoku Expressway.
The park offers plenty of paking spaces.
By train, it is about 20 minutes away from JR Nihonmatsu Station on foot.
To get to Nihonmatsu Station from Tokyo: Take the Tohoku Shinkansen super express and transfer at Koriyama Station to the Tohoku Line.

If you visit the ruins of Nihonmatsu Castle by train, you have to walk long from Nihonmatsu Station. The Old Oshu Road goes near the station, so turn right at the Nihonmatsu Station Ent. Intersection and go along the street. Then, turn left at the Kubochozaka Ent. Intersection. It’s an easy walk, but it’s on an incline called Kubochozaka on a hill to reach the ruins. This is one of the structures for the castle’s defense system. You will also see the remaining stone walls for the Main Gate on the way. When you go over the top of the hill, you will finally see the mountain where the castle was built.

The route from Nihonmatsu Station to the castle ruins

Nihonmatsu Station (licensed by D700master via Wikimedia Commons)
The stone walls for the Main Gate (quoted from the Nihonmatsu Castle Official Site)
You can see the castle ruins after going over the hill

Links and References

・Nihonmatsu Castle Official Site

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Nihonmatsu Castle Part1”
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11.Nihonmatsu Castle Part1

An important castle that many lords wanted to rule

Location and History

After Nihonmatsu Clan built, Date and other Clans owned it.

Nihonmatsu Castle was a castle with a long history which was located in what is now Nihonmatsu City in Fukushima Prefecture. The castle was built along the Oshu Road, an important route in Tohoku Region, and also connected to other important inland areas such as Aizu District. When the Ashikaga Shogunate was established in the first 14th Century, the shogunate sent their relative Hatakeyama Clan to the Tohoku Region to govern the region. The clan settled in the region and built Nihonmatsu Castle in the first 15th Century. It started as a simple mountain castle but later on transformed to another type of castle.

The location of the castle

The clan later called themselves the Nihonmatsu Clan which governed the castle and the area around for a long time. In the late 16th Century during the Sengoku Period, one of the greatest warlord, Masamune Date attacked Nihonmatsu Castle and the Nihonmatsu Clan finally surrendered in 1586. Since then, the castle became a branch castle of Wakamatsu Castle in Aizu District, which was the Date Clan’s home base. The lords of Wakamatsu Castle were changed to the Gamo, Uesugi, and Kato Clans, They also improved Nihonmatsu Castle by building stone walls.

伊達政宗像、仙台市博物館蔵（licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
Wakamatsu Castle

Niwa Clan mostly Governed Castle in Edo Period

In 1643 during the Edo Period, The Niwa Clan was transferred to the lord of the castle as the government building of the Nihonmatsu Domain by the Tokugawa Shogunate. The clan renovated the castle as well. They built the stone wall base for the Main Tower on the top of the mountain, but it is unknown if the tower was built at all. They also built the Main Hall for the lord with many other buildings for governing at the foot of the mountain. They also improved the defense system of the castle. The Oshu Road was moved beyond a hill from near the castle and visitors from the road had to pass through the Main Gate on the hill. The area around the castle called Kakunai or the Inner Compounds was protected by five gates including the Main Gate. The Niwa Clan peacefully governed the castle until the end of the Edo Period.

The portrait of Mitsushige Niwa, the founder of the Nihonmatsu Domain, owned by Dairinji Temple （licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons）
Part of the illustration of Nihonmatsu Castle in Mutsu Province, exhibited by the National Archives of Japan

Castle falls in one day in Boshin war

However, the castle got involved in the Boshin war in 1868 during the Meiji Restoration. The New Government Army attacked the Nihonmatsu Domain which still supported the Tokugawa Shogunate. Many of the warriors of the domain were sent to Shirakawa-Komine Castle, located in the south of Nihonmatsu Castle, to reinforce the allies at the moment. They had to protect the castle with only a few defenders including the drafted child soldiers between the age of 12 and 17. They were confused by the sudden attack and the castle was captured in just one day. Some warriors such as senior vassals of the domain committed suicide while most of the castle building being burned down. Many of the child soldiers were also killed, and they have been called Nihonmatsu Shonentai, symbolizing the tragedy of the war.

Shirakawa-Komine Castle
Nihonmatsu Castle and the statues of the Nihonmatsu child soldiers

To be continued in “Nihonmatus Castle Part2”