Taiko turret – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

13.Shirakawa-Komine Castle Part3

Go along the former Oshu Road to the north until you get near Abukuma River, and look back to the left, you will see another great scenery. It is 180m long stone walls on a hill along the river, called Komine Castle Eastern Stone Walls.

Features

Walking around Main Enclosure

If you want to see other attractions of the castle, you can get out of the main enclosure through the ruins of Sakura-no-mon (meaning the cherry gate) to walk around the stone walls of the enclosure on the belt enclosure, the lower tier of the main portion. The ruins of Tsukimi-Yagura (meaning the moon viewing turret) are in front of the gate ruins of the enclosure, which look very strong with their remaining stone wall base.

The map around the main enclosure

The ruins of Tsukimi Turret seen from the second enclosure below

The belt enclosure surrounds the western and northern sides of the main enclosure. You can feel relaxed by walking on the belt enclosure, while enjoying looking at the great, long and high stone walls of the main enclosure. These stone walls look well-maintained. However, they collapsed heavily during Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 and were repaired by Shirakawa City for the following eight years (completed in 2019).

The great stone walls of the main enclosure

The explanation board of the stone walls being destroyed by the earthquake and repaired later on

You will eventually reach the other gate ruins of the belt enclosure, called Ya (arrow)-no-mon. You can see a great view of the three-level turret at the northeastern edge of the main enclosure on the right. However, if you were an enemy, the defenders would attack you through the turret’s machicolations and loopholes facing you.

Going to Outside of Castle

Another recommendation for you is to visit the former third enclosure, which is the east of the main portion. It has turned into the city area mainly including public facilities. There is only one remaining castle building among the area, the Taiko-Yagura Turret, which was originally used beside the Taiko-mon Gate in the second enclosure. It was moved to a private sector, converted to a tea room, and finally moved to the current position where it has been since 1930.

The map around the castle

If you go further to the east until the National Route 294 (the former Oshu Road), go along the road to the north until you get near Abukuma River, and look back to the left, you will see another great scenery. It is 180m long stone walls on a hill along the river, called Komine Castle Eastern Stone Walls. In fact, they were recently discovered when the pine trees on the hill were cut down for the bypass road constructions. They must have been built to protect the castle from the threats from the north. These stone walls connect to the back gate of the castle, which opens to the north, but you can’t go directly to the gate due to the construction site between them.

Looking the stone walls from the bridge over the Abukuma River

No entry is allowed around the stone walls due to the constructions

My Impression

While visiting the well-remaining structures and restored buildings of Shirakawa-Komine Castle, I felt the strong intentions of Nagashige Niwa, the builder of them, to protect the castle from possible enemies from the north. He must have been one of the few lords to do it properly and quickly. I also think that the history during the Boshin War lets us to know that such a strong castle had a weak point and could not survive without enough soldiers and proper instructions

The three-level turret seen from Abukuma River, north of the castle

How to get There

If you want to visit there by car, it is about a 10-minute drive away from Shirakawa-Chuo Smart IC on the Tohoku Expressway.
There is a parking lot in the park.
By public transportation, the castle is very near the JR Shirakawa station. You can even see the nice view of the three-level turret from the platform.
From Tokyo to the station: Get the Tohoku Shinkansen super express and transfer to the Tohoku Line at Shin-Shirakawa Station. The destination will be the next station.

The castle ruins seen from the platform of the station

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Shirakawa-Komine Castle Part1”
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48.Matsusaka Castle Part2

This castle was protected by high stone walls using large stones and an elaborate defense system

Features

High Stone Walls still surround Castle Ruins

Today, the ruins of Matsusaka Castle have been developed into Matsusaka Park, which was the main portion of the castle on the hill. If you walk around the outside of the park, you may be surprised to see the high stone walls surrounding the park remain in good condition. The walls are piled using round natural stones which are large and uncountable. It is surprising that they were collected and piled so elaborately in a short time during the construction. In addition, the stone walls of the southeastern corner of the park were repaired using processed rectangular stones in the later stage of the castle’s history.

The stone walls seen outside of the park

The stone walls of the lower tier of the Main Enclosure, which use large stones

The repaired stone walls at the southeastern corner of the park

The aerial photo around the castle

Layout of Enclosures

The ruins have only the foundation with the stone walls without any buildings. However, you can still understand how the castle was protected by seeing these stone walls along the routes in the park. There are two entrances of the park, one is the Front Gate Ruins at the eastern side and the other one is the Back Gate Ruins at the southern side. Either of them lead to the Second Enclosure first. Towards the center of the castle, the lower tier of the Main Enclosure is higher than the Second Enclosure. The upper tier of the Main Enclosure is the highest. In addition, the Kitai and Inkyo Enclosures are at the lower part on the opposite side of the Second Enclosure.

The diorama of the castle’s enclosures with stone walls, exhibited by Matsusaka City Museum of History and Folklore

Going to Second Enclosure from Front Gate Ruins

If you enter the Second Enclosure from the Front Gate Ruins surrounded by alternating stone walls, you will see the high stone walls of the lower tier of the Main Enclosure in front of you. To go to the center of the Second Enclosure, you have to turn left and pass one more ruined gate beside the Tsukimi Turret Ruins on the stone walls. If you were an enemy, you would be attacked from two directions. That means the routes inside the castle were made very defensive.

The stone walls of the Main Enclosure lower tier stand in front of you

The high stone walls of the Tsukimi Turret Ruins

The route to the Second Enclosure from the Front Gate (the red arrow) and the counterattack from the castle (the blue arrows)

Going to Main Enclosure from Front Second Enclosure

The Second Enclosure had the Encampment of the Tokugawa Clan. It is now a square with a wisteria trellis where you can see a city view.

The signpost of the ruins of Tokugawa Clan’s encampment

If you want to go inside further, you need to pass the Nakagomon Gate Ruins. This route is also surrounded by alternating stone walls and the ruins of a turret called Taiko-Yagura. After passing it, the lower tier is on the right and the upper tier is on the left of the Main Enclosure.

Looking down The Nakagomon Gate Ruins from the Taiko Turret Ruins

The route to the Main Enclosure from the Second Enclosure (the red arrows) and the counterattack from the castle (the blue arrows)

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

183.Kurume Castle Part2

The stone walls of the castle are still intact.

Features

Great Stone Walls of Main Enclosure

Today, only the Main Enclosure remains as the ruins of Kurume Castle. The ruins have no castle buildings, but its stone walls are still mostly intact. The scale of the enclosure is not so large, about 150m from north to south and about 100m from east to west. It is surprising to imagine there were seven three-story turrets all connected by two-story row-style turrets in such a limited space. There is the Sasayama Shrine which worships the Arima Clan in the enclosure.

The map around the castle

The ruins of Kurume Castle now have only the Main Enclosure

Newer Stone Walls of Southern side

The front side of the enclosure is facing the south, which is also the entrance of the shrine. The only remaining water moat is located on that side. You can see the great high stone walls with a height of 15m. The stone walls of this side are constituted of piled, aligned square cut stones, in a method called Nuno-zumi. This method is newer than the one used in the rest of the castle, so it is thought that they were built by the Arima Clan.

The high stone walls of the southern side

The three three-story turrets; Tatsumi(Southeast), Taiko(Drum) and Hitsujisaru(Southwest) Turrets used to stand on the stone walls. In particular, the Tatsumi Turret was the largest, which meant it was the symbol and the substitute of the Main Tower of the castle.

The stone walls under the Tatsumi Turret Ruins

Inside of Main Enclosure

You can enter the enclosure through the ruins of the Kabuki-gomon Gate, on the paved route turning left. The route used to pass by a defensive square space called Masugata, but it is not visible clearly since the route was paved.

In the enclosure, there is the Arima Memorial Museum which exhibits the legacy of the Arima Clan, which the Sasayama Shrine isn’t a part of. The museum is on the ruins of the Hitsujisatu and Nishishita(West) Turrets. On or beside the ruins of the other turrets, there are several monuments about the local history. For example, there is the monument for remembering the sufferers of the incident in 1871 on the ruins of the Taiko Turret, where you can see its great stone walls close nearby.

the monument for remembering the sufferers of the incident on the Taiko Turret Ruins, on the right of the picture (licensed by そらみみ via Wikimedia Commons)

A view of the high stone walls from the Taiko Turret Ruins

There is also the monument for the 56th Infantry Regiment of the Japanese Army beside the ruins of the Ushitora(Northeast) Turret, where you can see the Chikugo River.

The Older Stone Walls of Eastern side

You can also enjoy a great view of the stone walls at the eastern side of the enclosure. The surface of the stone walls is made of piled roughly processed stones with small stones filling the gaps. This method is called Uchikomi-hagi. On the other hand, their corners are made of piled processed rectangular stones alternately, following the method called Sangi-zumi. These methods are older than the one used at the southern side, so these stone walls might have been built by the Mori or Tanaka Clans.

The stone walls at a corner, made of piled processed rectangular stones alternately

There is another entrance with stone steps on this side, beside the ruins of the Tsukimi(Moon watching) Turret. It might had also been the front gate as this side had originally been the front side of the enclosure. You can see the Kurume University playground from the turret ruins, which was once a water moat of the castle.

The entrance of the eastern side beside the Tsukimi Turret Ruins

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