is the name for the earthly remains of a castle structure in

Mihara, Hiroshima is a Cities of Japan, city located in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on November 15, 1936. As of July 31, 2016, the city has an estimated population of 97,324 and a population density of 206.62 persons per km2. The total area i ...

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 ...

.　Located on a 197.6 meter mountain. The site was designated a National Historic Site.

History

Niitakayama Castle and Takayama Castle, enkei

Niitakayama Castle was built in 1552 by

Kobayakawa Takakage was a samurai and daimyō (feudal lord) during the Sengoku period and Azuchi–Momoyama period. He was the third son of Mōri Motonari who was adopted by the Kobayakawa clan and became its 14th clan head. He merged the two branches of the Koba ...

. Takakage moved Numata

Kobayakawa clan The was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Taira clan. Their holdings were in the Chūgoku region. They were a powerful clan during the Sengoku period but were disbanded during the Edo period after the Battle of Sekigahara. Ho ...

's main base from Takayama Castle which located on the mountain across the numata river. In 1561,

Mōri Motonari was a prominent ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in the western Chūgoku region of Japan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto (大江広元), an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. Motonari w ...

visited the castle and spent 10 days. In 1596, Takakage moved to

Mihara Castle , also known as Ukishiro Castle, is a ''hirashiro'' (castle on a plain) located in Mihara, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. History Mihara Castle was constructed in 1582 by Kobayakawa Takakage, who built this castle to protect the Mōri clan's coas ...

, stones and materials were transferred to Mihara castle at that time. The castle was listed as one of the

Continued 100 Fine Castles of Japan The is a list of 100 castles, intended as a sequel of 100 Fine Castles of Japan. The castles were chosen for their significance in culture, history, and in their regions by the in 2017. Hokkaidō region Tōhoku region Kantō region Kōs ...

in 2017. The castle is now only ruins, with some stone walls, moats and wells.

References

{{Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles Castles in Hiroshima Prefecture Historic Sites of Japan Former castles in Japan Ruined castles in Japan Mōri clan 1550s establishments in Japan

History

See also

References