Arato Castle

History

Arato Castle was built by the Yamada clan as retainers for the Murakami around 1524. It became the focal point of the battles between Takeda Shingen and Murakami Yoshikiyo. In 1548, Yamada Kunimasa, the lord of Arato Castle was killed in a battle at Toishi Castle. His son, Kunitsugu, also perished in the battle at Katsurao Castle in 1553. With the fall of Katsurao Castle, the Yamada clan were destroyed and Takeda Shingen chose his retainer Yashiro Masakuni as the lord of Arato Castle. From 1553-1564, Arato Castle was involved in several skirmishes during the Battles of Kawanakajima. After the destruction of the Takeda clan in 1582, Arato Castle and it lord, Yashiro Hidemasa, came under the control of Uesugi Kagekatsu. In 1584, Yashiro turned on the Uesugi and made a secret pact with Tokugawa Ieyasu. Yashiro fled to Arato Castle but was attacked and destroyed by the Uesugi forces. After this the castle was decommissioned and no longer used.

Visit Notes

This is a castle I've wanted to visit for a long time. It splendidly recreates the feeling of a Sengoku Period mountaintop castle. It was also used as the location for filming several scenes from the NHK drama Furin Kazan.

Gallery

yaguramon
yaguramon gate
seiroyagura
kabukimon gate
baileys and barracks
ninokak and gate
honkaku residence and barracks
view
view from the top
map

Castle Profile
English Name	Arato Castle
Japanese Name	荒砥城
Founder	Yamada clan
Year Founded	1524
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	No main keep but other buildings
Designations	Top 100 Mountaintop Castles, Local Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Togura Sta. (Shinano Tetsudo); 1700 yen taxi
Visitor Information
Time Required
Website	http://www.chikuma-bunka.jp/joyama/gaiyou.html
Location	Chikuma, Nagano Prefecture
Coordinates	36° 28' 47.53" N, 138° 8' 12.34" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2008
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2008
Admin Visits	October 16, 2008

3.29

(7 votes)

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FurinkazanDaimyo

84 months ago

Score 0

I revisited this site today. Since i was still in Nagano prefecture, i dicided to go back to this wonderful reconstruction. It's easy to get to Togura station from Nagano. It's a 410¥ ride on the Shinano tetsudo line. This time the weather was outstanding. Not too warm this morning to walk from the station. In the barracks are 2 videos. The long one of 20 min talks about the activities one could do in Chikuma city and the traditions in the region. The short video of 8 min talks about the history of the castle and it's structures.(in japanese : Aratojô monogatari)

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Jcastle.oldHatamoto

124 months ago

Score 0

There are several reasons that led to the building of monster castles like Matsumoto, but when comparing it to Arato, basically no one built castles like Matsumoto at that time. The warfare, economics and political climate all contributed to the rise of the big Edo Period castles.

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Anonymous user #1

143 months ago

Score 0

Hey, have you seen the movie, The Hidden Fortress by Akira Kurosawa, i think this is the castle in which they made one of the last scenes, im no sure, i just wanted to say it

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FurinkazanDaimyo

144 months ago

Score 0

I bought the 2011 NHK Taiga Dorama 'Go-hime'(princess Go). It arrived today and i saw the first episode. Some scenes representing Odani-castle of the Azai were filmed at Arato-jô. Nice to see that it is still used like this.

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Jcastle.oldHatamoto

157 months ago

Score 0

John, have a look at Ne Castle, Shiwa Castle, Taga Castle, and Kikuchi castle on this site for some other good examples. Also Hotta Saku in Akita is another good one but I haven't been there yet.

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Anonymous user #1

161 months ago

Score 0

arato castle beloned to the takeda clan such a castle is a shame to be lost when the takeda lost the battle of nagashino in 1575 when the takeda clan got ripped out of the pges of history

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FurinkazanDaimyo

168 months ago

Score 0

The location of this little yamashiro and the buildings reconstructed are very nice, but don't expect a castle like Himeji or Matsumoto.

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FurinkazanDaimyo

179 months ago

Score 0

I went there during last april. The day was very cloudy, but i decided to walk to the castle. It is 4km from Togurastation. I have to tell that the last km is an almost 17% steep climb to the castle. I could figure out that attacking a castle like this, in full armor and with defenders shooting and hurling stones at you, would'nt be an easy task. The reconstructed parts are very interesting and surely worth the 3 stars.

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