Inuyama Castle

History

The castle as it stands today was established in 1537 by Nobunaga's grandfather Oda Nobuyasu.

According to a Heian period book called "Enkishiki," at the site where Inuyama castle now stands, there was a shrine called Harigane Shrine (Harigane Jinja). This temple was later moved to Shirayamadaira to make way for the castle. The castle was not entirely constructed from scratch, but the main keep was actually moved here from a different castle known as Kanayama Castle.

After Hideyoshi took Odawara, he stationed Ishikawa Sadakiyo at Inuyama castle. Following the Battle of Sekigahara, Ishikawa was defeated and Matsudaira Tadayoshi (master of Kiyosu castle) stationed his retainer Ogasawara Yoshitsugu in Inuyama Castle. In 1616 Ogasawara was replaced by Naruse Masanari and his family have more or less owned the castle through the present day.

Inuyama-jo was famous for being the only privately owned castle in Japan. It had a few different owners early on, and was seized by the Meiji government who held it in their possession from 1872 to 1895. It suffered damage during an earthquake in 1891 and was returned to the Naruse family in 1895 under the condition that they repair the damages continue to keep up the castle into the future. It was recently sold to the city of Inuyama and will soon be taken over by Aichi Prefecture.

Visit Notes

This is a great little castle to visit if you are in the area and have some time. It's also not far from Gifu or Nagoya so you could go to 2 sites in the same day. If you're really ambitious you might be able to make it to all three.

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Gallery

Inuyama Castle Sunset
main keep
Kurogane gate
main keep
honmaru viewed from the main keep
view from the main keep
Sanmon of Tokurinji, the former Kuromon Gate of Inuyama Castle
Sanmon of Zuisenji, the former Uchidagomon gate of Inuyama Castle
Sanmon of Jorenji, the former Matsunomon Gate of Inuyama Castle
Sanmon of Joumanji; the former Matsunomon Gate of Inuyama Castle
Sanmon of Unzenji, a former gate of Inuyama Castle
Higashi Gate of Senjuin, the former Yarai Gate of Inuyama Castle

Castle Profile
English Name	Inuyama Castle
Japanese Name	犬山城
Alternate Names	Hakutei-jo
Founder	Oda Nobuyasu
Year Founded	1537
Castle Type	Hilltop
Castle Condition	Original main keep
Designations	Top 100 Castles, has National Treasures, National Historic Site
Historical Period	Edo Period
Main Keep Structure	3 levels, 4 stories, plus 2 stories below ground
Artifacts	tenshu
Features	main keep, gates, turrets, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Inuyama Yuen Station (Meitetsu), 15 minute walk
Visitor Information
Time Required
Website	http://www.inuyama.gr.jp/miru/kokuhouinuyamajyo.html
Location	Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture
Coordinates	35° 23' 18.06" N, 136° 56' 21.01" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	1999
Admin Year Visited	1992, 1996, 2004
Admin Visits	July 1992; May 1996; February 22, 2004
Friends of JCastle
Malcolm Fairman Photography - Inuyama Castle

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ARTShogun

47 months ago

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I was going to post some pictures but when I clicked the "upload" button on the photo contribution page nothing happened. Probably a problem my end. Anyway for now I'll just comment.

The Many Gates of Inuyamajō 　犬山城門 So I went on a mission to find all of the relocated gates from Inuyamajō! After Inuyamajō was decommissioned many of its gates were auctioned off for re-use and ended up at temples in north-eastern Aichi Prefecture. In order of my visiting the gates and associated temples are as follows: 1. Jōrenji　浄蓮寺　－ This Yakuimon type gate is said to have been relocated from the Matsu no Maru (Pine Bailey) of the castle in 1868. 2. Unzenji　運善寺　－ This Kōraimon type gate (a common style of gate to find at castles) was relocated from Inuyama Castle in 1868 but was also damaged by fire around that time and repaired by the temple, changing its appearance. However, a renovation in the Heisei Period saw it restored to the original form. 3. Senjuin　専修院　－This Kōraimon gate was relocated to Senjuin in Ōmachi in 1878, and was the “Yaraimon (矢来門)” gate at Inuyamajō. 4. Tokurinji　徳林寺　－This Yakuimon was relocated to Tokurinji in Ōmachi in 1876. It was the first Kuromon (Black Gate) at Inuyamajō and thought to be the castle’s oldest Yakuimon style gate. 5. Zuisenji　瑞泉寺　－Located close to Inuyamajō in Inuyama, Zuisenji’s main gate formerly functioned as a rear gate on the east side of the castle, near the “Yagen Moat”. One legend holds that this gate was in fact originally constructed at Mino-Kanayamajō before being moved to Inuyamajō (this may be related to the debunked theory that the tenshu was also originally built there).

6. Jōmanji　常満寺　－Also in Inuyama, Jōmanji’s Sanmon was formerly the back gate of Inuyamajō’s Pine Bailey. Last year Jōmanji’s main hall and other structures were charred to pieces in a fire, but luckily this gate survived. Entering through it we come to an empty lot with burnt trees.