Samizu Castle

History

For more information see Koraku Castle.

Visit Notes

Samizujō, 'Castle of Three Waters', is twinned with Korakujō, being located above it on the same mountain. Some sites call the castle Misuijō, an alternative reading, but Ranmaru-sensei calls it Samizujō and he's a local so I'm going with that. Samizujō's most prominent feature is a series of horikiri (trenches) one after the other along the ridge to the rear. The forward horikiri and dorui (earthen rampart) complex before the shukuruwa (main bailey) I also judged to be very impressive, though it was especially intimidating for me because this area of the castle ruin was covered in snow which made climbing it, even with the assistance of a handy rope, quite tricky. Dorui and koshikuruwa (sub-baileys) are also found around the shukuruwa.

Gallery

Horikiri / Trench

Castle Profile
English Name	Samizu Castle
Japanese Name	三水城
Alternate Names	Misuijō
Founder	Murakami Clan
Year Founded	Sengoku Period
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Designations	Local Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Artifacts	Horikiri, Kuruwa
Features	trenches
Visitor Information
Access	Tekuno-Sakaki Station on the Shinano Railway; 35 minute walk to trailhead
Visitor Information	24/7 free; mountain
Time Required	40 minutes
Location	Sakaki, Nagano Prefecture
Coordinates	36° 26' 1.07" N, 138° 10' 9.91" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2022
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed
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