Ohmine Castle

History

It is unknown for sure but it is thought that the Uesugi Clan built Ôminejō in their wars against the Takeda Clan as the castle was a key stronghold in the Kawanakajima Campaign. Ômine Kurōdo is thought to have been castellan; he was a vassal of the Ochiai Clan. The faux reconstructed tenshu dates to 1962. It was initially an observation tower and was then converted into a bug and nature museum in 1981. It has been closed since 2007.

Visit Notes

Ôminejō is a yamajiro (mountaintop castle) ruin consisting of earthworks such as trenches, earthen ramparts and kuruwa (baileys). Aside from these real remains of the fortress, there is also a big, fat folly, which I suppose we could generously call a faux reconstruction. I'm not against it per se, although earth piled-up at the rear of the tower I don't know whether is part of the original ramparts or heaped there as a result of clearing enough space for the tower. Concrete castle towers which are either speculative or don't represent any structure proven to have existed historically are called, in Japanese, mogi-tenshu (模擬天守), "faux keeps". Lots of them were built in the post-war boom period. The one at Ôminejō is unfortunately a rather poor jobby, featuring a large garage-like entrance with rusting shutters, and "windows" in the stone base. There are two balcony areas which appear fantasian, and some strange design motifs. A faux gatehouse is also located at the base of the shukuruwa (main bailey). Ishigaki (stone-pilings) can be found throughout the site but it appears to have been built as part of the "reconstruction", and so is modern. It looks okay in some places though. Well, it's not the worst attempt at a reconstruction I've seen but it's still on the worse side, and if it was done better I might even be able to approve of it, ahistorical though it may be. Needless to say, this tower is no longer open, and has started to become dilapidated, which little pieces falling off here and there. Probably it will be demolished at some point, so I'm glad I visited before then. I've actually been to a site expecting to find a mogi-tenshu only to find it already demolished before (Mutsu-Iwasakijō (Mutsu Iwasaki Castle))! The tower can actually be seen from Zenkōji, but it's small and easy to miss; I didn't even notice it the first time I came to Nagano.

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Gallery

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  Mogi Gatehouse (old ticket office)
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  Hori; actual ruins can be found in this area
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  Mogi Tenshu (faux reconstruction)

Castle Profile
English Name	Ohmine Castle
Japanese Name	大峰城
Founder	Ômine Kurōdo
Year Founded	Sengoku Period
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Reconstructed main keep
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Main Keep Structure	3 levels, 4 floors
Year Reconstructed	1962
Artifacts	Dorui, Hori, Kuruwa, Mogi-Tenshu, Gatehouse, Ishigaki
Features	main keep, gates, trenches, stone walls, walls
Visitor Information
Access	Zenkoujishita Station on the Nagano Line; 35 minute walk to trailhead next Hanchasan'amidaji
Visitor Information	24/7 free; Tower is now closed (forever)
Time Required	50 minutes
Location	Nagano, Nagano Prefecture
Coordinates	36° 40' 32.48" N, 138° 10' 36.91" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2020
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed

2.00

(one vote)

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ARTShogun

31 months ago

Score 0

Added co-ordinates. Different maps show the castle marker in various places but my co-ordinates are most accurate here. There is also an outer branch castle nearby - 大峰出城.

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