Minowa Castle
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was a "hirayama"-style
castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
located in the Misato neighborhood of the city of
Takasaki is a Cities of Japan, city located in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 372,369 in 167,345 households, and a population density of 810 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Takasaki is famous as th ...
,
Gunma Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of . Gunma Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture and Fuk ...
,
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 ...
. The ruins have been protected by the central government as a National Historic Site since 1987.


Background

Minowa Castle is located on a 30-meter high hill at the end of long ridge which extends from
Mount Haruna is a dormant stratovolcano in Gunma Prefecture, in the Kantō region of eastern Honshū, Japan. Outline Mount Haruna started to form more than 300,000 years ago and the last known eruption was 550 AD. The volcano has a summit caldera contai ...
southwest towards former Misato town in the northwestern part of Takasaki. This area was located on the
Nakasendō The , also called the ,Richard Lane, ''Images from the Floating World'' (1978) Chartwell, Secaucus ; pg. 285 was one of the centrally administered Edo Five Routes, five routes of the Edo period, and one of the two that connected the ''de facto'' ...
highway towards
Shinano Province or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Shinano bordered Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...
to the west and also on the Mikuni Kaidō towards
Echigo Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen Province, Uzen, Iwashiro Province, Iwashiro, Kōzuke Province, Kōzuke, Shinano Province, Shinano, and Etchū Province, ...
to the north. The castle, protected on one side by a deep valley created by the Shirakawa River and on its long, narrow hill, commanded both strategic roads. The castle extends over an area 1200 meters long by 400 meters wide orientated north and southward, having two small ridges at its south end. Roughly the castle consists of three concentric layers 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 traditional rights of access and usage. Agreements to enc ...
. The main gate of the castle originally existed at southwestern edge of the hill, but later a huge ''masugata''-style gate was built next to the river.


History

During the
Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...
, this area was governed by the Nagano clan, who claimed descent from
Ariwara no Narihira was a Japanese courtier and '' waka'' poet of the early Heian period. He was named one of both the Six Poetic Geniuses and the Thirty-Six Poetic Geniuses, and one of his poems was included in the '' Ogura Hyakunin Isshu'' collection. He ...
, the famed
Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...
nobleman and poet. By the Muromachi period, the Nagano clan were minor warlords controlling western
Kōzuke Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today Gunma Prefecture. Kōzuke bordered Echigo Province, Echigo, Shinano Province, Shinano, Musashi Province, Musashi and Shimotsuke Province, Shimotsuke Provinces. Its abb ...
and built Minowa castle as their residence in 1512. In 1545,
Uesugi Norimasa was a ''daimyō'' of feudal Japan from Yamanouchi branch Uesugi clan and held the post of Kantō Kanrei, the ''shōgun''s deputy in the Kantō region. He was the adoptive father of Uesugi Kenshin, one of the most famous warlords in Japanese his ...
, the ''Kantō Kanrei'' and nominal overlord of the Nagano clan, was severely defeated by the forces of
Hōjō Ujiyasu was a ''daimyō'' (warlord) and third head of the Odawara Hōjō clan. Known as the "Lion of Sagami", he was revered as a fearsome samurai and a cunning man. He is famous for his strategies of breaking the siege from Takeda Shingen and Uesugi ...
at the 1546
Battle of Kawagoe The 1545–1546 was part of a failed attempt by the Uesugi clan to regain Kawagoe Castle from the Later Hōjō clan in the Sengoku period of Japan. Uesugi Tomosada of the Ogigayatsu branch of the Uesugi clan attacking Kawagoe castle, he wa ...
. His forces were also defeated by
Takeda Shingen was daimyō, daimyo of Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. Known as "the Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and credited with exceptional military prestige. Shingen was based in a p ...
the following year. With the weakening of the Uesugi, Nagano Narimasa (1491–1561) switched allegiance to the Hōjō. In 1560, the
Uesugi clan The is a Japanese samurai clan which was at its peak one of the most powerful during the Muromachi period, Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries).Georges Appert, Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its heigh ...
under the leadership of
Uesugi Kenshin , later known as , was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (magnate). He was born in Nagao clan, and after adoption into the Uesugi clan, ruled Echigo Province in the Sengoku period of Japan. He was one of the most powerful ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period ...
attempted to re-take Kōzuke and the Nagano clan switched allegiance back to the Uesugi. Takeda Shingen then attacked the Uesugi in support of the Hōjō, and the Nagano at Minowa Castle were their primary targets. When Nagano Narimasa died in 1561, he stated in his will that his son Nagano Narimori should continue the fight against Takeda Shingen to the last man if necessary. Narimori continued to resist the Takeda for the next five years, but gradually lost the support of his surrounding neighbors and allies. Finally, in 1566, during the
Siege of Minowa The 1566 siege of Minowa was one of several battles fought by the Takeda clan in their campaigns to seize the lands of the Uesugi clan, during Japan's Sengoku period. It is part of a larger power struggle between Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin. ...
by 20,000 Takeda soldiers a sortie out of the castle was led by
Kamiizumi Nobutsuna Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, (上泉 信綱), born Kamiizumi Ise-no-Kami Fujiwara-no-Hidetsuna, (c.1508 – 1572/1577) was a samurai in Japan's Sengoku period famous for creating the Shinkage-ryū school of combat. He is also well known as Kamiizumi Ise ...
, this, however, resulted in a successful counter assault by the Shingen forces. The entire castle fell, and after desperate fight Nagano Narimori killed himself in the inner Bailey of Minowa Castle. A small portion was still held by Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, which so impressed by Nobutsuna that he let Nobutsuna leave unharmed, even asking Nobutsuna to join him (Nobutsuna declined). Takeda Shingen used Minowa Castle has his regional headquarters in Kōzuke, and at various times appointed generals such as
Sanada Yukitaka was a Japanese samurai warrior of the Sengoku period. He is known as one of the "Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen". He was the father of Sanada Nobutsuna and Sanada Masayuki and grandfather of the legendary samurai warrior Sanada Yukim ...
and
Naitō Masatoyo also known as (1522 – June 29, 1575) was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period. He was known as one of the "Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen". Masatoyo was the second son of Takeda Nobutora's senior retainer, Kudō Toratoyo. He ...
as castellans. Under the Takeda, the castle was expanded by the construction of a redoubt called the "Maru Umadashi" (a half rounded buffer area with a crescent shaped dry moat in front of the gate) to protect the castle's vulnerable northeastern edge. After the annihilation of the Takeda clan by
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
in 1582, the castle was awarded to Takigawa Kazumasa. However, only three months later, Nobunaga was assassinated in the
Honnō-ji Incident The was the assassination of Japanese daimyo Oda Nobunaga at Honnō-ji, a temple in Kyoto, on 21 June 1582 (2nd day of the sixth month, Tenshō 10). Nobunaga was on the verge of unifying the country, but died in the unexpected rebellion of ...
. On hearing of Nobunaga's death, the Hōjō clan immediately seized Minowa Castle, recognizing its strategic importance. The Hōjō also modified the defenses of the castle in line with contemporary fortification technology. In 1590, when
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...
began his campaign against the Hōjō, he sent a large army along the Nakasendō against Minowa Castle. However, the garrison at the castle surrendered without a fight. Subsequently, the
Kantō region The is a geography, geographical region of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures of Japan, prefectures: Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, Gunma Prefe ...
was awarded to
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 ...
, who assigned
Ii Naomasa was a general under the Sengoku period ''daimyō'', and later ''shōgun'', Tokugawa Ieyasu.Takasaki Castle is a Japanese castle located in Takasaki, southern Gunma Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Tatebayashi Castle was home to a branch of the Matsudaira clan, ''daimyō'' of Takasaki Domain, but the castle was ruled by a large number ...
and relocated his seat there. Minowa Castle was abandoned and allowed to fall into ruin.日本吉 - Nippon-Kichi
/ref>


Current situation

All that remains of Minowa Castle currently are the ruins of the stone walls, earthworks, and moats. The site is unusual due to its large size, as it occupies , making it one of the largest castle sites in Gunma Prefecture. Minowa Castle was listed as one of
Japan's Top 100 Castles The Japanese castle, castles in were chosen based on their significance in culture, history, and in their regions by the in 2006. In 2017, the Japanese Castle Association created an additional finest 100 castles list as Continued Top 100 Japane ...
by the Japan Castle Foundation in 2006.Japan Castle Foundation
/ref>


See also

* List of Historic Sites of Japan (Gunma)


Literature

* * * * *


References

{{100 Fine Castles of Japan Castles in Gunma Prefecture Kōzuke Province Ruined castles in Japan Takeda clan 100 Fine Castles of Japan Historic Sites of Japan Takasaki, Gunma