Komatsu Castle

History

The site of Komatsujō was first fortified by the Ikkō-Ikki in 1576. It was conquered by Oda Nobunaga's general Shibata Katsuie in his campaign against them and in the Edo Period became part of Kaga Domain. In 1615 the One Castle Per Domain Edict led to the fort being abandoned. However, in 1639 Maeda Toshitsune began work on rebuilding the castle, creating wide moats surrounding a series of large islands. The castle ballooned in proportions and became twice as large in surface area as Kanazawajō (Kanazawa Castle). It was built with a three-tier tenshu and was thought to have been an impregnable fortress, due principally to its many moats and baileys. Komatsujō owes its existence to the power dynamic between Kaga Domain, which was one of the largest and most powerful polities in the land at that time, and the Edo Bakufu. Maeda Toshitsune, in order to allay the Shogunate's fears, retired as ruler of Kaga and built Komatsujō as a place for his retirement, splitting the domain between himself and his heirs. However, Toshitsune remained de facto in charge and for a brief time Komatsujō and not Kanazawajō was the political center of Kaga. Daishōji-jin'ya and Toyamajō (Toyama Castle) were also built as a result of this compromise. After the death of Toshitsune in 1658 Komatsujō reverted to a branch castle of Kanazawajō. Komatsujō was abandoned in 1872 with the abolition of the Han System.

Visit Notes

The only remnants of this once sprawling castle are the main keep foundation and a portion of the stone wall of a moat nearby. A small yakuimon from the original castle now stands on the grounds of a nearby elementary school and a yaguramon was also repurposed to use as the gate for the Raishoji Temple. The castle's honmaru is now a park, the ninomaru (second bailey) is now a high school, and the sannomaru (third bailey) is now the Rojo Park. Other baileys which existed are now built over with residential sprawl.

The original profile is from ART with updated photos by Eric.

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Castle Profile
English Name	Komatsu Castle
Japanese Name	小松城
Founder	Maeda Toshitsune
Year Founded	1639
Castle Type	Flatland
Castle Condition	No main keep but other buildings
Designations	Local Historic Site
Historical Period	Edo Period
Artifacts	Baileys, Tenshudai, Ishigaki, Dorui, (relocated?) Gate
Features	gates, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Komatsu Station (Hokuriku Main Line); 15 minute walk
Visitor Information	24/7 free
Time Required	60 mins
Location	Komatsu, Ishikawa Prefecture
Coordinates	36° 24' 45.29" N, 136° 26' 37.14" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2019
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	2020
Admin Visits	October 17, 2020
Friends of JCastle
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2.00

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ARTShogun

44 months ago

Score 1

Updated to yellow; has relocated structures both nearby and on castle site itself.

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