Obu Yashiki (Kai)

History

A moat of the Obu-yashiki, the fortified residence of Obu Toramasa, existed until the Taishō period when it was filled in. A marker for the moat was at some point located north of the temple Jōshōin.

The Obu Clan was founded by Obu Munenaga who was the adopted son of Henmi Mitsunaga who was a member of the Kai-Genji Clan. Obu Munenaga acquired territory in Obu-gō (township; collection of villages and farms), and took that name.

In the Sengoku period Obu Toramasa served Takeda Nobutora and, later, Takeda Shingen, and acted as a tutor to Takeda Shingen's first son, Takeda Yoshinobu. Obu Toramasa was known as the 'Wild Tiger of Kai', a fierce warrior, one of the twenty-four Takeda generals and known to the West through the story 'The Samurai's Tale' by Erik Christian Haugaard. Obu Toramasa would join Takeda Yoshinobu in his assassination plot against his father in 1564 after Yoshinobu opposed Shingen's invasion of Suruga in his war with the Imagawa Clan. After Toramasa's brother, Obu Saburōbē, exposed the plot to Shingen, Yoshinobu was arrested and he fell on his sword after two years of confinement, and Takeda Nobukatsu, the son of Takeda Katsuyori, would replace Takeda Yoshinobu as the prince of Kai. Obu Toramasa took responsibility for the attempted coup and was executed in 1565; eighty of Toramasa's men were also purged. Obu-yashiki was likely abandoned at this time.

Visit Notes

The site of Obu-yashiki is now that of a temple, Jōshōin, and the farmland north of the temple. There are no ruins, the last of them being buried a century ago, and now the area is suburban housing and agri' allotments. I searched for a marker for the site of the moat which is supposed to survive, but I failed (I suspect the site is now redeveloped over with new housing), and instead just visited Jōshōin.

Gallery

Castle Profile
English Name	Obu Yashiki (Kai)
Japanese Name	甲斐飯富屋敷
Founder	Obu Munenaga
Year Founded	Medieval Era
Castle Type	Fortified Manor
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features
Visitor Information
Access	Closest Station is Ryūō Station on the Chūō Main Line
Visitor Information	24/7 free; temple
Time Required	20 minutes
Location	Kai, Yamanashi Prefecture
Coordinates	35° 38' 43.04" N, 138° 31' 14.02" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2022
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed
Friends of JCastle
Oshiro Tabi Nikki

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