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 ...

''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 the Kamihijikata and Shimohijikata neighborhoods of the city of

Kakegawa is a city in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 117,925 in 45,519 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Kakegawa is in the coastal plains of southwest Shizuoka Prefecture. It is border ...

Shizuoka prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,637,998 and has a geographic area of . Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the northea ...

. The ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 1975, with the area under protection extended in 2007.

Overview

Takatenjin Castle is located in southeast part of the center of modern Kakegawa on the road towards the eastern seaside area of

Tōtōmi province was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today western Shizuoka Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Tōtōmi''" in . Tōtōmi bordered on Mikawa, Suruga and Shinano Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . The or ...

. Located on Mount Kakuo, a 200-meter mountain with sheer cliffs accessible only by a narrow pathway, the castle was traditionally held to be the "key" to securing Tōtōmi Province and the Tōkaidō highway, which is eleven kilometers to the south. The layout of the castle is that of a letter "Z" consisting of the eastern and western peaks of a mountain with the saddle in between. the eastern peak was the original fortification, containing the

inner bailey The inner bailey or inner ward of a castle is the strongly fortified enclosure at the heart of a medieval castle.Friar, Stephen (2003). ''The Sutton Companion to Castles'', Sutton Publishing, Stroud, 2003, p. 22. It is protected by the outer w ...

and both peaks are protected by terraces with dry moats and earthen ramparts. The western peak was added at a later time when the castle was under the control of the

Takeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...

. The connecting saddle area is 50 meters long, but only 10 meters wide. The total length of the castle was 400 meters by 200 meters wide. Although the castle did not have stone walls, the mountain has very steep slopes and the castle was considered almost impregnable.

History

The origins of Takatenjin Castle are obscure. It may have been built at some point in the 15th century by the Kushima clan, a minor local clan who were retainers of the

Imagawa clan was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Origins Ashikaga Kuniuji, grandson of Ashikaga Yoshiuji, established himself in the ...

. Kushima Masashige (1492-1521) led the Imagawa army during a failed invasion of Kai province, reaching the approaches to

Kōfu is the capital city of Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 187,985 in 90,924 households, and a population density of 880 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Overview Toponymy Kōfu's name means "c ...

before being defeated by the

under

Takeda Nobutora was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) who controlled the Province of Kai, and fought in a number of battles of the Sengoku period. He was the father of the famous Takeda Shingen. Biography Nobutora’s son was Harunobu, later known as Take ...

. The clan was later suppressed during the reign of

Imagawa Yoshimoto was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in the Sengoku period Japan. Based in Suruga Province, he was known as . he was one of the three ''daimyōs'' that dominated the Tōkaidō region. He died in 1560 while marching to Kyoto to become ...

for siding with his enemies during an internal power struggle. Imagawa Yoshimoto gave the castle to the

Ogasawara clan The was a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Seiwa Genji.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' – Ogasawara, pp. 44–45 Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon.'' (in Fren ...

. Although the Imagawa were defeated by a coalition between

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 ...

and

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...

and the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty that was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of this clan r ...

gained control of the castle, Ieyasu left Ogasawara Nagatada as castellan at the time of the

Battle of Anegawa The Sengoku period (30 July 1570) occurred near Lake Biwa in Ōmi Province, 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 border ...

in 1570. In 1571,

Takeda Shingen , of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period. Shingen was a warlord of great ...

laid siege to Takatenjin Castle with 20,000 men. Although he captured most of Tōtōmi Province, he was unsuccessful in taking this castle. However, during the

Siege of Takatenjin (1574) The first siege of Takatenjin occurred in 1574, when it was attacked by the forces of Takeda Katsuyori. The garrison was commanded by Ogasawara Nagatada, who held the fortress for Tokugawa Ieyasu. Nagatada surrendered to the Takeda clan, and b ...

Takatenjin fell to the forces of

Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son in law of Hojo Ujiyasu. Early life He was the son of Shingen by the daughter ...

. Katsuyori gained great prestige in the capture of a castle where his famous father had failed. However, this glory was short-lived, as the following year the Takeda clan suffered severe losses against the Oda-Tokugawa alliance and found it impossible to keep the supply lines to Takatenjin Castle open. Nevertheless, the defenders of Tatatenjin continued to put up a stubborn resistance, and by 1580, Ieyasu had given up on attempts to capture the castle by assault, but instead built six bases around the castle to keep it isolated. When the defenders ran out of supplies by March 1581, the castellan Okabe Motonobu led his remaining 700 men on a charge against the Oda lines in an attempt to break the siege

Siege of Takatenjin (1581) The second siege of Takatenjin came only six years after Takeda Katsuyori took the fortress. This second siege lasted from 1580 until 22 March 1581, the siege ended within four months and ended with the deaths of 680 of Okabe Motonobu/Naganori ...

, but all were killed. The castle was abandoned soon afterwards. 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. The city of Kakegawa maintains the ruins and several hiking courses on the mountain. On the summit is 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 ...

and monuments to the war dead from the

Satsuma Rebellion The Satsuma Rebellion, also known as the was a revolt of disaffected samurai against the new imperial government, nine years into the Meiji Era. Its name comes from the Satsuma Domain, which had been influential in the Restoration and beca ...

and

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the po ...

. A faux ''

tenshu is an architectural typology found in Japanese castle complexes. They are easily identifiable as the highest tower within the castle. Common translations of ''tenshu'' include keep, main keep, or ''donjon''. ''Tenshu'' are characterized as ty ...

'' was constructed on the summit before World War II, but was subsequently destroyed by lightning and only a concrete base remains.

References

External links

Kakegawa city homepage]
Takatenjin Castle
at Jcastle Guide {{Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles Castles in Shizuoka Prefecture Ruined castles in Japan History of Shizuoka Prefecture 15th-century establishments in Japan Kakegawa, Shizuoka Historic Sites of Japan Tōtōmi Province Takeda clan Imagawa clan Tokugawa clan

Overview

History

See also

References

External links