Ishinomaki Castle
History
Kasai Kiyoshige served under Minamoto No Yoritomo. The jp-history.info site says he had the castle built after being awarded the land for his achievement in the battle of Oushuu, which took place in 1189. The on-site sign says he was awarded several areas, including Oushika county, but does not give dates. The castle became the Kasai family’s main base through the Muromachi and Warring States periods. During the latter, according to jp-history.org, the then head, Kasai Harutane (ruler of seven districts with a 300000 koku estate), decided to make Teraike Castle the main base instead, and destroyed Ishinomaki Castle. It’s not clear when that would have been. The on-site sign states the family ruled the area until overthrown by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1590. (There was a passing reference to the castle on sengokujidai.org in an article about the Battle of Imahashi. It seems the Eishou Mikawa Conflict theory linked an attack on the castle to that battle and various others.)
The castle’s existence was regarded as an unverifiable legend until 1983, when excavations established that there was once a “large-scale medieval castle” on the site. (Thanks to Yuriko Suematsu san who translated the on-site sign. Other info from jp-history.info, with snippets from Wikipedia.com and bunka.pref.iwate.jp. There was an entry for Kiyoshige in prabook.com, but it had his date of birth as 1185 which can’t be right.)
Visit Notes
An on-site sign outlines the castle’s history (it appears in one of the photos here, and there’s a close-up photo on the jp-history.org site). The two monuments in the photo may also be related to the castle, but unfortunately as I can’t read Japanese I didn’t realise at the time the significance of the history sign, and didn’t take close-up photos of the monuments. There are various embedded and loose stones, and stonework, right across the site, but castle bloggers say there are only baileys left.
It’s a beautifully scenic area and there are fine views from the site, which also has many cherry trees blossoming in spring. Ishinomaki was hard-hit by the 2011 earthquakes, tsunami and consequent fires, with over 3300 killed and 50,000 homes and other buildings destroyed. People took refuge in the park. The Kashimamiko Shrine torii at the summit has photographs showing what the waterfront below used to look like. There are seats and it has become an area for quiet observation, contemplation and perhaps prayer. A lookout area with views of the Kitakami River upstream (in the opposite direction and further down), also has before photos. Redevelopment has and is taking place in both directions, but some areas have been deemed unsuitable for residences. There is a large memorial park visible on the ocean side.
Gallery
| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Ishinomaki Castle |
| Japanese Name | 石巻城跡 |
| Alternate Names | Hiyoriyama Castle |
| Founder | Kasai Kiyoshige |
| Year Founded | First half of 13th century |
| Castle Type | Hilltop |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Designations | Local Historic Site |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Main Keep Structure | Unknown |
| Artifacts | Some stones, stonework possibly??, see Visit Notes |
| Features | |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | About 20 minutes walk (1.5km) from Ishinomaki Station (Ishinomaki is a 50 minute train trip from Sendai). Flat to begin with then ascend steps – steep but not difficult. 56m above the Kitakami River Estuary and Pacific Ocean. Steps on both north-western and north-eastern (river) sides. |
| Visitor Information | Site is now occupied by Hiyoriyama Park and Kashimamiko Shrine (it may have extended further). Park address is 2 Chome-2 Hiyorigaoka, Ishinomaki, open 24 hours. Shrine is at the summit, open 10am-3pm. |
| Time Required | 60-120 minutes |
| Location | Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 38° 25' 22.87" N, 141° 18' 26.06" E |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2023 |
| Contributor | AnneMcL |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
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