Awaji Castle (Chikuma)
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History
Chikuma-Awajijō was built by Kasuga Awaji in 1614 as his fortified residence. It was abandoned only a few years later in 1617. Kasuga was a vassal of Ogasawara Hidemasa who had risen through the ranks (he was on 1,300 koku). He fought at the Summer Campaign at Osaka Castle where Hidemasa was killed. Kasuga and his son were relocated along with Ogasawara Tadamasa to Harima in 1617, but were very shortly after recorded as having committed suicide (生害滅す), which is mysterious and may have been linked to the ongoing persecution of adherents of Christianity during that time.
Visit Notes
I stopped by here after visiting Kushikijō. There really is nothing to see. I tried to find a moat remnant which is said to remain to the east of the marker which identifies the site. I found nothing to write home about but there was a cutting in the hillside which could've been a climbing moat. Nagano-based castle-blogger Ranmaru says that moat remnants are said to exist to the east nad west, but even he couldn't identify them, so I obviously had little hope. You have to wonder sometimes if some castle experts at such and such a time used forked sticks to identify castle sites, or consulted long dead castle lords via séance, and then began interpreting suggestive shapes however their fancy deemed. Is that the trace of a medieval fort's moat, or is it just a phantom of the explorer's desire? You know that's how people find bigfoot, right? They simply want it enough. But perhaps the remains here were more obvious during the four centuries since the site was abandoned, and have subsequently been obscured by time and redevelopment. Anyway, I gave up on this one and descended a mud path down the cliffside into a park area with a canal and waterwheel, which was nice.
| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Awaji Castle (Chikuma) |
| Japanese Name | 筑摩淡路城 |
| Founder | Awaji Clan |
| Year Founded | 1613 |
| Castle Type | Fortified Manor |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Historical Period | Edo Period |
| Features | trenches |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Endou Station on the Kamikouchi Line; walk 10 minutes |
| Visitor Information | 24/7 free |
| Time Required | 10 minutes |
| Location | Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 36° 11' 44.59" N, 137° 50' 58.70" E |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2020 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Ranmaru | |
| Travel Shingen | |
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