was an

Muromachi The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

to early

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

''hirajiro''-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 the city of Shibushi,

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

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 ...

. Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 2005.

Overview

The origins of Shibushi Castle are uncertain. At the start of the

Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Y ...

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent (''shikken'') after his ...

assigned the provinces of

Satsuma Satsuma may refer to: * Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit * ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails Places Japan * Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town * Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture * Satsuma Domain, a sou ...

, Ōsumi and

Hyūga Province was an old province of Japan on the east coast of Kyūshū, corresponding to the modern Miyazaki Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hyūga''" in . It was sometimes called or . Hyūga bordered on Bungo, Higo, Ōsumi, and Sats ...

to his retainer

Shimazu Tadahisa was the founder of the Shimazu samurai clan. According to a record of his life, he was reportedly born in Sumiyoshi Taisha in Osaka. He was initially but after being given the position of ''jitō'' (land steward) of the Shimazu Estate by Mina ...

, who established the vast Shimazu ''shōen'' landed estate. The bay at Shibushi was the main port of that domain and was assigned to the Niiro clan, who built fortifications on all of the hills surrounding the port settlement, which can collectively be called "Shibushi Castle". The Niiro clan continued to hold Shibushi until the beginning of 16th century, when they became involved in an internal conflict of the

Shimazu clan The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan. The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in contrast ...

between Shimazu Takahisa (1514-1571) and Shimazu Sanehisa (1512-1553) and were dispossessed in 1538. The Shimazu ruled Shibushi directly for a short period, but in 1562, taking advantage of the weakened and disordered state of the Shimazu clan, the castle was seized by the neighboring Kimotsuki clan. The Shimazu recovered the castle in 1577. The castle continued to be used as a local stronghold until it was demolished due to the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

's "one country, one castle" rule in 1615 . However, the Shimazu destroyed only the buildings, leaving much of the stone walls intact. Shibushi Castle consist of four separated strongholds which surround the urban center and port of Shibushi. The main castle is called as "Uchijyo" and spreads over a rectangular-shaped hill 300 by 600 meters at an elevation of 50 meters on the mountain behind Shibushi Elementary School. Matsuo Castle on the mountain to the west of it, and the Taka Castle and Shin Castle are front of Shibushi Junior High School. The inner castle has four lines of

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 ...

separated by dry moats with two line of straight dry moat guarding both side of the hill. The main gate was at southwestern edge of the castle, and back gate was on its east side. While the castle appears to have a flat on ordered arrangement on a plan, each of the enclosures is on a different level, separated by sheer walls and steep slopes. Most of the castle ruins are undeveloped and difficult to enter. Explanatory panels have been installed in some of the enclosures, such as the main enclosure, and pamphlets are placed at the main entrance. The castle site is a 20-minute walk from

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan and the JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait ...

Shibushi Station is a terminal train station of JR Kyushu Nichinan Line in Shibushi, Kagoshima, Japan. Lines * Kyushu Railway Company **Nichinan Line The is a railway line in south-eastern Kyushu, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). It ...

. The castle was listed as one of the

Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles The is a list of 100 Japanese castle, 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 Kant ...

in 2017.

Literature

* * *

References

{{Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles Castles in Kagoshima Prefecture Historic Sites of Japan Former castles in Japan Shimazu clan Ruined castles in Japan Shibushi, Kagoshima Hyūga Province

Overview

See also

Literature

References