Okkoto Jinjou
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History
Okkoto-jinjō / Okkoto-jinba was a fortified encampment built by Tokugawa generals. The below history I’ve roughly translated from the blog Orenoshiro:
‘The area to the south of Ashiba Reservoir, which still bears the name of “Jinjō", is where the Tokugawa forces were stationed in 1582.
The area used to be a gently sloping ridge, but it was cut off by land improvement and land readjustment projects in 1953, and only a portion of the ridge remains.
After Oda Nobunaga was defeated at Honnōji Temple in June 1582, Suwa Yoritada quickly recovered his old Suwa domain and became independent.
Tokugawa Ieyasu sent one of his local vassals, Gomi Tarōzaemon, the nanushi (village chief) of Okkoto Village, as an envoy to demand the surrender of the Suwa Clan, but Suwa Yoritada would not submit. In late July, Tokugawa ordered seven generals, including Ôkubo Tadayo and Sakai Tadatsugu, to attack Suwa.
Meanwhile, Hōjō Ujinau, also trying to control Shinshū, marched from Saku County with a large army of 43,000 men. Sensing this, the Tokugawa forces of 3,000 retreated to Okkoto-jinba, but Hōjō's army closed in on them within one ri (a Japanese mile), and the two armies were on the verge of colliding at Okkoto-jinba.
At this time, Tarōzaemon probed the movements of the Hōjō forces and gave appropriate advice to Tokugawa forces, allowing them to retreat to Shinpujō without losing a single soldier.
The Hōjō forces entered Kai (where they were based at Wakamikojō) and retreated again for more than 80 days, but a peace agreement was finally reached between the two armies, and the campaign was disbanded in November, with the Hōjō forces gaining Kōzuke Province and Tokugawa gaining the provinces of Kai and Shinano.
Tarōzaemon was later summoned by Tokugawa Ieyasu who changed his family name to Okkoto and made him a hatamoto (direct retainer).’
Visit Notes
I’ve not written about a jinba before I think. Jinba were fortified encampments. Usually I wouldn’t bother with such transient sites, but there’s more information than usual about this one, and the site today has a large explanatory board set-up pertaining to its history. Although the term ‘jinba’ is standard, this site is officially referred to as ‘jinjō’, using an unorthodox reading for the same characters. The site is now a reservoir and the lay of the land has been altered dramatically; no ruins remain.
- The boar god Okkotonushi in Miyazaki Hayao’s Mononoke-hime appears to be named for this locale; Miyazaki drew a bird’s eye style map of the area, which has many ancient Jōmon sites, and so it seems he was familiar with it.
| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Okkoto Jinjou |
| Japanese Name | 乙事陣場 |
| Alternate Names | Okkoto-jinba |
| Founder | Tokugawa Forces |
| Year Founded | 1582 |
| Castle Type | Hilltop |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Features | |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Shinano-Sekai Station on the Chūō Main Line; 45 minute walk |
| Visitor Information | 24/7 free; fields |
| Time Required | 10 minutes |
| Location | Fujimi, Nagano Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 35° 54' 23.80" N, 138° 15' 59.90" E |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2022 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Ore no Shiro | |
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