Morioka Castle
Morioka Castle | |
---|---|
盛岡城 | |
Morioka, Iwate Prefecture, Japan | |
![]() Morioka Castle | |
Coordinates | 39°41′59.81″N 141°09′0.04″E / 39.6999472°N 141.1500111°E |
Type | hirayama-style Japanese castle |
Site information | |
Owner | city of Morioka |
Condition | National Historic Site |
Site history | |
Built | 1598-1633 |
Built by | Nanbu clan |
In use | 1633-1889 |
Morioka Castle (盛岡城, Morioka-jō) is a hirayama-style Japanese castle constructed in 1611. It was the seat of the Nanbu clan, a tozama daimyō clan who ruled over Morioka Domain, Mutsu Province in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan during the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. The castle is located in what is now the center of the city of Morioka, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. It was also referred to as Kozukata Castle (不来方城, Kozukata-jō), but strictly speaking this name pertains to the predecessor of Morioka Castle on the same site.
Location
The confluence of the
History
Because of its strategic geographic position, the area around Morioka had been regarded as the center of northern Ōshū since the construction of nearby
During the late
The actual construction work on Morioka Castle was supervised by his Nanbu Nobunao's son, Nanbu Toshinao, who later became the 1st daimyō of Morioka Domain, but the castle was not completed until 1633, during the tenure of Nanbu Shigenao, the 2nd daimyō. However, its three-story tenshu burned down only one year later, and was never rebuilt.
In 1906, the site was opened to the public as Iwate Park, with gardens laid out by modern park designer
In 1937, the grounds were designated as a National
Structures and gardens
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/171103_Morioka_Castle_Morioka_Iwate_pref_Japan06n.jpg/220px-171103_Morioka_Castle_Morioka_Iwate_pref_Japan06n.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/171103_Morioka_Castle_Morioka_Iwate_pref_Japan10n.jpg/220px-171103_Morioka_Castle_Morioka_Iwate_pref_Japan10n.jpg)
Morioka Castle occupies a long and narrow elliptically shape hill approximately 300 meter long by 100 meter wide. The southeastern side faces the Nakatsu River, and formerly the main stream of Kitakami River protected the western side. As white granite was readily available in the vicinity, most of the ramparts were faced in stone, which was unusual for castles in the Tōhoku region at the time. Both the Toyotomi and Tokugawa governments encouraged the Nanbu to build a strong fortification, partly as a counter to the strength of the Date clan to the south.
The Inner bailey is a square area approximately 60 meters on a side, with a large gate on its eastern end. In the southern corner was a three-story yagura, which served as the tenshu after the main tower was lost in a fire in 1634. The remainder of the area was occupied by the palace and administrative structures of the Nanbu clan.
A secondary enclosure is positioned at the northern part of the inner citadel, and a red-painted bridge spans a moat that divides the two enclosures. There is a tertiary enclosure positioned at the northern end; a Koshi no kuruwa (腰曲輪), a Awaji maru (淡路丸) and a Sakakiyama kuruwa (榊山曲輪) enclose the inner citadel. Each area is protected by a huge masugata style composite gate.
All of the structures of the castle were dismantled during the early
The surrounding Iwate Park (岩手公園, Iwate Kōen) (now known as Morioka Castle Ruins Park (盛岡城跡公園, Morioka-jō ato kōen)) contains a monument inscribed with a poem of
不来方のお城の草に寝ころびて空に吸はれし十五の心
Kozukata no oshiro no kusa ni nekorobite sora ni suwareshi jū-go no kokoro
(English: I laid down on the grass of the Kozukata Castle, absorbed by the sky; my heart of fifteen)
See also
Bibliography
- Benesch, Oleg and Ran Zwigenberg (2019). Japan's Castles: Citadels of Modernity in War and Peace. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 374. ISBN 9781108481946.
- De Lange, William (2021). An Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles. Groningen: Toyo Press. p. 600. ISBN 978-9492722300.
- Schmorleitz, Morton S. (1974). Castles in Japan. Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Co. pp. 144–145. ISBN 0-8048-1102-4.
- Motoo, Hinago (1986). Japanese Castles. Tokyo: Kodansha. p. 200 pages. ISBN 0-87011-766-1.
- Mitchelhill, Jennifer (2004). Castles of the Samurai: Power and Beauty. Tokyo: Kodansha. p. 112 pages. ISBN 4-7700-2954-3.
- Turnbull, Stephen (2003). Japanese Castles 1540–1640. Osprey Publishing. p. 64 pages. ISBN 1-84176-429-9.
Notes
- ^ Morioka Castle Ruins Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine Agency for Cultural Affairs (in Japanese)
External links
Media related to Morioka Castle at Wikimedia Commons
- Guide to Japanese Castles site Archived 2017-01-31 at the Wayback Machine
- Japanese Castle Explorer - Morioka Castle
- JNTO site