was a
Kamakura
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939.
Kamak ...
to
Nanboku-cho period ''yamashiro''-style
Japanese castle
are fortresses constructed primarily of wood and stone. They evolved from the wooden stockades of earlier centuries, and came into their best-known form in the 16th century. Castles in Japan were built to guard important or strategic sites, such ...
located in what is now part of the city of
Tsuruga
is a city located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 66,123 in 28,604 households and the population density of 260 persons per km2. The total area of the city was .
Geography
Tsuruga is located in central ...
,
Fukui Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 778,943 (1 June 2017) and has a geographic area of 4,190 km2 (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the north, Gi ...
in the
Hokuriku region of
Honshu
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. It was also known as Tsuruga Castle. The ruins have been protected by the central government as a
National Historic Site since 1934.
Background
Kanegasaki Castle is located on a small hill with an elevation of 86 meters above sea level in the northeastern part of the city of Tsuruga. A fortification was first constructed here by Taira no Michimori (1153-1184) while fighting against
Kiso Yoshinaka
, , or Lord Kiso was a general from the late Heian period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira clans. Yoshinaka was born in Musas ...
in the
Genpei War
The was a national civil war between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the downfall of the Taira and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo, who appointed himself ...
. All that remains at present are the remnants of stone and earthen
enclosures
Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...
, dry moats and the foundations of the central building and gate. A
Shinto shrine
A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion.
Overview
Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings.
The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...
, the
Kanegasaki-gu was built near the base of the hill during the
Meiji period
The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912.
The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...
.
History
During the
Siege of Kanegasaki, forces loyal to
Nitta Yoshisada
was a samurai lord of the Nanboku-chō period Japan. He was the head of the Nitta clan in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period. He famously marched on Kamakura, besieging ...
was trapped for three months at Kanegasaki Castle by
Ashikaga Takauji
was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Muromac ...
. Nitta's ally
Uryū Tamotsu was forced back to the
Somayama Castle
was a Kamakura period ''yamashiro''-style Japanese castle located in the town of Nanjō (now part of the town of Minamiechizen), Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Honshu, Japan. The ruins have been protected as a National Historic Sit ...
in March 1337, and Nitta Yoshisada joined him soon afterwards. A failed counter-attack from Somayama Castle failed to lift the siege against Kanegasaki,
whose defenders were reduced to eating horseflesh to survive, and almost resorted to cannibalism before surrendering.
Nitta Yoshiaki (died 1337), son of Nitta Yoshisada, fought for Emperor Go-Daigo, against the Ashikaga at the end of the Kamakura period. He was one of the chief generals at the fortress of Kanagasaki, which fell to the Ashikaga; Yoshiaki was killed, and Prince T ...
, (the son of Nitta Yoshisada)
Prince Takanaga
was the second son of Emperor Go-Daigo of Japan. He fought for his father in the Nanboku-chō Wars. Since the characters used to write "Takanaga" can also be read as "Takayoshi", the prince is sometimes known by that name as well.
Appointed ''Se ...
, and some 300 partisans of the Southern Court were killed or committed suicide when the castle fell.
[
Another battle was the ]Siege of Kanegasaki (1570)
The 1570 occurred during Oda Nobunaga's struggle against the Asakura clan_in_Echizen_province.html" ;"title="DF 7 of 80/nowiki>">DF 7 of 80">"Asa ... in Echizen province">DF 7 of 80/nowiki>">DF 7 of 80">"Asa ... in Echizen province, which was a ...
when the Oda Nobunaga
was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan.
Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...
led a failed attack against the forces of the Asakura clan
The is a Japanese kin group. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003).html" ;"title="DF 7 of 80">"Asakura", ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 3 DF_7_of_80">"Asa_...
._Toyotomi_Hideyoshi.html" ;"title="DF 7 of 80/nowiki>">DF 7 of 80">"Asa ...
. Toyotomi Hideyoshi">DF 7 of 80/nowiki>">DF 7 of 80">"Asa ...