was a

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

''yamajiro''-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 a ...

located in the Tonokōri neighborhood of the city of Saito,

Miyazaki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Miyazaki Prefecture has a population of 1,028,215 as of 1 January 2025 and has a geographic area of 7,735 Square kilometre, km2 (2,986 sq mi). Miyazaki Prefectur ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It was also known as . Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 2000.

Overview

Tonokōri Castle is located on a plateau at an elevation of approximately 100 meters on the right bank of the Sanzai River, a tributary of the Hitotsuse River, in the southern part of the city. Surrounded by steep cliffs, the river acts as an outer moat to the west and north. The castle consisted of five

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 traditional rights of access and usage. Agreements to enc ...

, each surrounded by earthen ramparts and separated by a deep moat. The total length of the moats exceeded four kilometers, and the castle defenses were supplement by five outlying forts on neighboring hills. The castle was built by Itō Sukemochi in 1335 or 1337, after he was awarded estates in the area from

Ashikaga Takauji also known as Minamoto no Takauji was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. ...

. The

Itō clan The are a Japanese clan of ''gōzoku'' that claimed descent from the Fujiwara clan through Fujiwara Korekimi (727–789) and Kudō Ietsugu. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papi ...

controlled central

Hyūga Province was a province of Japan in the area of southeastern Kyūshū, corresponding to modern Miyazaki Prefecture Hyūga bordered on Ōsumi to the south, Higo to the west, and Bungo to the north. Its abbreviated form name was , although it was als ...

from the

Nanboku-chō period The , also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period, was a period in Japanese history between 1336-1392 CE, during the formative years of the Ashikaga shogunate, Muromachi (Ashikaga) shogunate. Ideologically, the two courts fought for 50 ...

to the Sengoku period, and under Sukemochi's son Itō Sukeshige this castle became the clan's main stronghold. It was the center of network of 48 fortifications constructed at various locations in the Itō domains, which gradually expanded to cover most of Hyūga Province. The castle is known to have suffered four fires due to battles and accidents, but in the great fire that occurred on March 5, 1504, the conflagration that started inside the castle spread to the ''

jōkamachi The were centres of the domains of the feudal lords in medieval Japan. The ''jōkamachi'' represented the new, concentrated military power of the daimyo in which the formerly decentralized defence resources were concentrated around a single, cent ...

'', destroying many buildings. The Itō were challenged by the aggressive

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 contr ...

to the south. After many conflicts, the Itō suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of

Shimazu Yoshihisa was a powerful ''daimyō'' and the 16th Chief of Shimazu clan of Satsuma Province, the eldest son of Shimazu Takahisa. He was renowned as a great general, who managed to subjugate Kyushu through the deft maneuvering of his three brothers. Eventu ...

in 1577 at the

Battle of Kizaki The Battle of Kizaki (木崎原の戦い) occurred on the 4th day of the fifth month of Genki 3 (June 14, 1572) when the forces of Shimazu Yoshihiro defeated the larger army of Itō Yoshisuke. The battle, also known as " The Okehazama of Kyushu" ...

and were forced to flee Hyūga with the assistance of

Ōtomo Sōrin , also known as Fujiwara no Yoshishige (藤原義鎮) or Ōtomo Yoshishige (大友義鎮), was a Japanese feudal lord (''daimyō'') of the Ōtomo clan, one of the few to have converted to Catholicism. The eldest son of , he inherited the Funa ...

. Tonokōri Castle was occupied by the Shimazu. After the establishment of the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

Tokugawa Shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

, the castle came within the borders of Sadowara Domain, which was ruled by a cadet branch of the Shimazu clan. It was destroyed in 1615 in accordance with the shogunate's "one castle per domain" laws. The site is now in completely overgrown ruins.

Archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

s have found many postholes in the enclosures, indicating that many structures were rebuilt multiple times during the 200-odd years of the Itō clan's control. Fragments of imported ceramics from the 15th and 16th centuries have also been unearthed. The site is approximately 35 minutes by car from Sadowara Station on the

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. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

Nippō Main Line The is a railway line in Kyushu, in southern Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). Also known as the Fukuhoku Nippo Line, The line connects Kokura Station in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, K ...

Literature

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External links

Saito city tourist association

References

{{reflist Castles in Miyazaki Prefecture Historic Sites of Japan Former castles in Japan Shimazu clan Ruined castles in Japan Hyūga Province Saito, Miyazaki

Overview

See also

Literature

External links

References