, also known as Makino Castle, was a

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

Japanese castle located in what is now part of the town of Ranzan,

Hiki District, Saitama is a district in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the district has an estimated population of 145,235 and a population density of 515.31 persons per square kilometer. The total area is 281.84 km2. Towns * Hatoyama * Kawajima * Namegaw ...

, in the

Kantō region The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba and Kanagawa. Slight ...

of Japan. The site was designated a National Historic Site. Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site, since 2008.

Background

Sugiyama Castle in located on a hill in the town of Ranzan, near the center of Saitama Prefecture at the border of the Kantō Plain and the Chichibu Mountains. It is also located on the highway connecting

Hachigata Castle was a Sengoku period Japanese castle, located in the town of Yorii, Saitama Prefecture, in the Kantō region of Japan. Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 1932. Overview Hachigata Castle was located on a peninsula su ...

in northwestern Saitama with Musashi-Matsuyama Castle. The early history of the castle has been lost and it is known when it was first constructed, or by whom. It has a typical layout for a Sengoku-period mountain castle. Situated on a long and narrow ridge, to consists of a series of enclosures built on different levels, separated by clay ramparts and dry moats, and connected by narrow, winding paths with many dead ends to confuse attackers and to permit defenders to fire back from many angles from above. Due to its design, it was originally though that the castle was the work of the Later Hōjō clan, although arguments have been raised by historians that Hōjō castles tend to have much larger defensive engineering works, and the

Uesugi clan The is a Japanese samurai clan which was at its peak one of the most powerful during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries). Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its height, the clan had three main branch ...

has been advanced as another likely candidate. The date of construction is from the late 15th century to early 16th century, a period of time in which both clans contested this region. The castle was abandoned at some point in the middle of 16th century. The castle site is a 30 minute walk from Musashi-Ranzan Station on the

Tōbu Tōjō Line The is a 75.0 km suburban railway line in Japan which runs from Ikebukuro Station in Toshima, Tokyo to Yorii Station in Yorii, Saitama, operated by the private railway operator Tobu Railway. Its official name is the , but it is referred to ...

. In 2008, the site received protection as one of the four "Hiki Fortified Residence Sites" in Saitama, including the , , and The castle was listed as one of the Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles in 2017.

References

External links

official site
{{Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles Castles in Saitama Prefecture Ranzan, Saitama Historic Sites of Japan Ruined castles in Japan Musashi Province

Background

See also

References

External links