Imori Castle (Suwa)

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SuwaImorijou (1).JPG

History

Imori Castle was perhaps founded by the Suwa Clan in the 13th century. Below Imorijō was a large flattened area which formerly would’ve hosted the castellan’s main residence. It is partially farmland and otherwise overgrown with tall grasses today. To the south of Imorijō across a small stream valley was the Gakiyama Signal Tower, which was also fortified by carving terraced baileys from out of the mountain, but with a much narrower profile than the castle proper.


Visit Notes

The ruins of Imorijō were quite impressive owing to the ten or so obikuruwa (ring baileys) terracing the mountain on the way up to the shukuruwa (main bailey), the only integral bailey of the castle. The extensive terracing reminded me of some tremendous tumulus, but of course the castle was carved out of an existing mountain. Climbing it, and perhaps one can see from these pictures, is like ascending a gigantic staircase. The shukuruwa is now overgrown with trees, as is the rest of the site. Although fairly interesting “in person”, it was hard to catch the sense of scale with my camera.




Gallery


Castle Profile
English Name Suwa Imori Castle
Japanese Name 諏訪井森城
Founder Suwa Clan
Year Founded 13th century
Castle Type Mountaintop
Castle Condition Ruins only
Historical Period Pre Edo Period
Artifacts Kuruwa, Koshikuruwa, Hori, Daikan, Noroshidai
Features trenches
Visitor Information
Access Kami-Suwa Station on the Chuo Line; 25 minute walk
Visitor Information 24/7 free; mountain
Time Required 50 minutes
Location Suwa, Nagano Prefecture
Coordinates 36° 1' 59.88" N, 138° 7' 42.46" E
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Added to Jcastle
Contributor ART
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