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 ...

''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 a ...

located in the Negoya neighborhood of the city of

Numazu is a city located in eastern Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 189,486 in 91,986 households, and a population density of 1,014 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Numazu is at the n ...

Shizuoka prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,555,818 and has a geographic area of . Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Pref ...

. The ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 1975.

Overview

Kōkukuji Castle is located on a ridge in the Ashitaka Mountains southwest of the center of modern Numazu city center. It consists of several ''

kuruwa is a Japanese term for the walls of a Japanese castle, and the regions bounded by the arrangement of those walls. The term may also be written as 郭, and the term is also used for castles built after the Edo period. The kuruwa serves as a de ...

'' terraces protected by stone walls and a deep dry moat. These enclosures extend in a line from north to south, covering an area roughly 60 meters east-to-west by 50 meters north-to-south at an elevation of 36 meters. The highest part of the fortification is the Honmaru, or main enclosure, which may have held the ''

tenshu is an architectural typology found in Japanese castle, 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 cha ...

'', and to the east of the main enclosure is a stone platform which once held a cannon. The moat between the main enclosure and the neighboring ''kuruwa'' is 18 meters in depth.

History

Kōkokuji Castle was originally built by 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 ...

to protect the eastern border of

Suruga Province was an Provinces of Japan, old province in the area that is today the central part of Shizuoka Prefecture. Suruga bordered on Izu Province, Izu, Kai Province, Kai, Sagami Province, Sagami, Shinano Province, Shinano, and Tōtōmi Province, Tōtōm ...

in the 15th century, but the exact date is unknown. The site of the castle was formerly occupied by the Buddhist temple of Kōkokuji, and the castle retained this name. Around 1487, it came under the control of

Hōjō Sōun , also known as , was a Japanese ''daimyo'' and the first head of the Later Hōjō clan, one of the major powers in Japan's Sengoku period. Although he only belonged to a side branch of the more prestigious Ise family, he fought his way up, gainin ...

, founder of the

late Hōjō clan Late or LATE may refer to: Everyday usage * Tardy, or late, not being on time * Late (or the late) may refer to a person who is dead Music * ''Late'' (The 77s album), 2000 * Late (Alvin Batiste album), 1993 * Late!, a pseudonym used by Dave Groh ...

. Hōjō Sōun's sister, Kitagawa-dono was married to

Imagawa Yoshitada was the father of the famed Imagawa Ujichika and the 9th head of the Imagawa clan. Yoshitada spent most of his time invading Tōtōmi Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today western Shizuoka ...

, and Hōjō Sōun became a retainer of the Imagawa clan. Yoshitada fell in battle in 1476 and as his son

Imagawa Ujichika was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period. He was the 10th head of the Imagawa clan of Suruga Province. Ujichika was the son of Imagawa Yoshitada. He was the husband of Jukei-ni. Biography In 1476, Ujichika father, Yoshitada, invaded ...

was still a minor, Ojika Norimitsu was appointed regent. However, Norimitsu later refused to turn over power as agreed, so Hōjō Sōun and his henchmen had him killed in order for the succession to go to his nephew Imagawa Ujichika. In return, Ujichika appointed Hōjō Sōun castellan of Kōkokuji Castle. In 1491, Hōjō Sōun intervened in the conflict between the Ashikaga shogunate and the Ashikaga of the Horigoe Gosho and seized control of

Izu Province was a province of Japan in the area now part of Shizuoka Prefecture and Tokyo. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Izu''" in . Izu bordered on Sagami and Suruga Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . The mainland portion of Izu Prov ...

. He then relocated to Niirayama Castle in central Izu, returning Kōkokuji Castle back to the Imagawa. The castle later changed hands between 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 ...

and the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

after the fall of the Imagawa. After the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was an important battle in Japan which occurred on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu Prefecture, ...

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

assigned the castle to

Amano Yasukage was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period and early Edo period. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Amano Yasukage"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 26. Who served the Tokugawa clan. He served as one of Ieyasu's "three magistrates" (san-bugyō). ...

, one of his old retainers. Amano was later disposed after an uprising in his territory and the castle was abolished in 1607. Kōkokuji Castle is now only ruins with some stone wall, earthen walls and dry moat. 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. It is located a 30-minute walk from Hara Station on the

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...

Tōkaidō Main Line The Tōkaidō Main Line () is one of the most important railway corridors in Japan, connecting the major cities of Tokyo and Kobe via Shizuoka (city), Shizuoka, Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka. The line, with termini at Tokyo Station, Tokyo and Kōbe St ...

Gallery

Koukokuji-castle2.jpg, Tenshu Koukokuji-castle3.jpg, Honmaru compound from Tenshu Koukokuji-castle4.jpg, Earthen wall Koukokuji-castle6.jpg, Large dry moat Koukokujijou001.jpg, Large dry moat2

References

External links

Numazu city homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kokokuji Castle Castles in Shizuoka Prefecture Ruined castles in Japan History of Shizuoka Prefecture 15th-century establishments in Japan Numazu, Shizuoka Historic Sites of Japan Suruga Province Go-Hōjō clan Imagawa clan

Overview

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links