タグ: Rodrigo de Vivero

122.Otaki Castle Part2

Was there the Main Tower in the castle?

Features

Main Tower as Museum

The map around the castle

Today, there are a few remaining items of the original Otaki Castle. However, Chiba Prefecture rebuilt a historical museum that looks like the Main Tower called Otaki Castle on the Main Enclosure.

Otaki Castle Museum
The entrance of the museum

Going to Main Enclosure along Isumi-gawa River

If you want to visit the current Otaki Castle, there are two main routes you can take to visit from Otaki Station. One is for drivers, which starts from the front of the station to the south through the Imitation Main Gate. The route turns right to the west along the Isumi-gawa River. This part is named Mexico Street from the relationship with the country, which was derived from the episode of Rodrigo de Vivero.

The Imitation Main Gate near the station
The Mexico Street

You can see the route was built on the mid slope of the steep cliff with the hill on the right and the river on the left, which were a natural hazard for the castle. The parking lot is located under the Main Enclosure.

The steep cliff of the hill where the castle was built
Looking down the Isumi-gawa River
Looking down the Mexico Street from the Main Enclosure

Going to Main Enclosure through Second Enclosure

The other route is for people on foot, which starts from the back of the station. The ruins of the real Main Gate is nearby. However, there is only one signpost because the area around has become a residential area. After going along the route, you will reach the second enclosure which is now used as a high school. The route goes up on the earthen walls to the enclosure where the Main Hall for the lord was built in the past.

The route going to the Second Enclosure
The Second Enclosure

There are two remaining items of the castle. One of them is the Back Gate of the hall, which was once sold, but later restored at its present location. The other is the Large Well which has a perimeter of 17meters. you can see the Main Tower at the highest point on the Main Enclosure from there.

The former Back Gate of the Main Hall called Yakui-mon
The Large Well
The Large Well seen from the Main Enclosure
The Main Tower on the Main Enclosure seen from the Second Enclosure

Old castle traces and New Imitation Main Tower on the Main Enclosure

You can climb up to the Main Enclosure from the front (the Second Enclosure) or the back (the parking lot). On the way to the enclosure, you can see old earthen walls, dry moats, and artificial steep cliffs which probably originated from the first stage of the castle. Indeed, the traces of the castle being called Odaki Castle were discovered during the excavation.

The route to the Main Enclosure from the Second Enclosure
The remaining earthen walls at the Main Enclosure
The route to the Main Enclosure from the parking lot
A dry moat can be seen on the way
The artificial steep cliff of an enclosure in the back of the Main Enclosure

However, those of the original Main Tower or its stone wall base have not been found at all. The present Main Tower and its stone wall base were built in the present time, based on a drawing of the original three-level Main Tower which was found at an old merchant house in the castle town. However, since the only item can not be seen as real evidence. It can only be called the Imitation Main Tower.

The Imitation Tower on the Main Enclosure
The stone wall base for the Main Tower, built in the present time

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

122.Otaki Castle Part1

The unclear castle Tadakatsu Honda developed

Location and History

Castle in Kazusa Province, Debatable ground

In the past, Chiba Prefecture was divided into three provinces, the Awa (the southern region), the Kazusa (the mid region) and the Shimosa (the northern region) from the south to the north on Boso Peninsula. In the 15th Century during the Sengoku Period, the Satomi Clan and the Hojo Clan battled each other many times to rule over the peninsula. The Satomi Clan was based in the Awa Province in the south, while the Hojo Clan first invaded Shimosa Province in the north. The central Kazusa Province naturally became the battlefield by both clans. There were many local lords such as the Takeda Clan and the Masaki Clan in the province. They were either independent, or supported the Hojo Clan, and or the Satomi Clan, depending on the situation.

The range of kazusa Province and the location of the castle

The former Otaki Castle, called Odaki Castle, was said to have been built by the Takeda Clan in the first 15th Century followed by the Masaki Clan in the middle of the 15th Century. The castle was built on a hill facing Isumi-gawa River in the south and deep valleys in the west. Therefore, the clans built several enclosures with dry moats in the east and branch forts in the north to protect the castle. The castle was made of soil using natural terrain, a typical method for building castles at that time.

The relief map around the castle

Tadakatsu Honda renovates Castle

The Satomi Clan finally managed to capture Kazusa Province including Odaki castle before the unification of Japan by Hideyoshi Toyotomi in 1590. However, Hedeyoshi took the province away the Satomi Clan and gave it to Ieyasu Tokugawa, the new owner of the Kanto Region following the Hojo Clan. One of the Four Generals Serving Ieyasu at that time, was Tadakatsu Honda who was assigned as the lord of Otaki Castle, which was later renamed from Odaki Castle, in 1591. Tadakatsu renovated the castle and developed the castle town in order to protect it against the Satomi Clan which was still located in the Awa Province. However, it is unclear how Tadakatsu renovated. Some historians speculate that the three-level Main Tower was built in the Main Enclosure on the top.

The portrait of Tadakatsu Honda, owned by Ryogenji Temple (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)
The miniature model of Otaki Castle, exhibited by Otaki Castle Museum

The only evidence of the early stage of Otaki Castle was a record written by Rodrigo de Vivero, a Spanish politician who accidentally visited the castle when he drifted to Japan on his way to Mexico in 1609. He wrote that the first gate made of iron was on a 15-meter high wall, which was most likely the Main Gate, which also had a draw bridge that had a moat.

The Main Gate part of the miniature model

Furthermore, he wrote that the second gate was surrounded by stone walls or stone mounds and there was a deluxe Main Hall made for the lord of the castle, which was decorated with gold and silver inside (probably in the Second Enclosure). However, he didn’t mention the Main Enclosure and whether or not it included the Main Tower.

The Second Enclosure part of the miniature model

Tadakatsu had been transferred to Kuwana Castle in 1601, so his son, Tadatomo Honda met with Rodrigo de Vivero instead at the hall. Eventually, the Honda Clan was transferred from Otaki Castle in 1617.

Tadatomo Honda, drawn in the Battle of Sekigahara folding screen (licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Lords of Castle changes many times

After the lords of the castle left, the ruler of the castle constantly changed between the Aoyama and the Abe Clans in short successions. In the case, the Inagaki Clan in 1702 only managed to rule the castle in as little as 21 days. As a result, the castle was neglected and nobody was there to take care or maintain it. Only when the Matsudaira Clan took over the castle in 1703 did the castle become more stable. According to the Matsudaira Clan’s records, the Main Hall existed only in the Second Enclosure. The Matsudaira Clan’s reign continued until the end of the Edo Period. It was said that the Main Tower was burned down in 1844, however, this information is debatable considering more information has recently come out managing this situation. It’s more plausible to assume, that the Matsudaira Clan continued to maintain and govern the castle until its ultimate demise at the end of the Edo Period. On the other hand, it’s also possible to assume that the town around the castle prospered which is where it is today, in the Boso Peninsula.

Did the castle have a Main Tower or not ?

To be continued in “Otaki Castle Part2”