Anjo Castle was built on a slight elevation at the edge of the Hekikai Plateau, about 2 kilometers southeast of present-day central Anjo City in Aichi Prefecture. Today, the surrounding area thrives on large-scale agriculture and automotive manufacturing, utilizing the expansive flatlands and its proximity to the Nagoya region.
The exact year of Anjo Castle’s construction is unknown, but it is believed to have been established in the mid-15th century by the local Hatakeyama clan. The original Anjo Castle was located roughly 500 meters west of the current site, within a valley near a water source, serving as the residence of a minor local lord.
As the Hatakeyama clan expanded their power, they relocated their main stronghold to the current location. The new castle was built on a peninsula-like height surrounded by marshland, making it naturally defensible. It also commanded both the old Tokaido Road and the Yahagi River, giving it control over key land and water transportation routes.
Around the same time, the Matsudaira clan — based in the Matsudaira region of present-day Toyota City and ancestors of the Tokugawa Shogunate — began expanding southward. In the mid-15th century, they captured Iwatsu Castle (in present-day Okazaki City) and pushed into the Okazaki Plain.
Structure of Anjo Castle
Anjo Castle featured a central enclosure and several surrounding areas. The main enclosure was a rectangular space measuring about 60 meters by 30 meters, now the site of a temple. The central area stood about 5 meters above the surrounding terrain and was once fully enclosed by clay walls, although only the western portion remains today.
To the south of the main enclosure was the secondary enclosure, now home to a shrine. This area was originally larger but was reduced in size due to the expansion of dry moats and the construction of thick clay walls, strengthening its role as a defensive buffer zone.
North of the main enclosure was the castle’s northern gate, where remnants of a turret platform still survive. To the west, where a museum now stands, was a corridor area designed to launch side attacks against enemies approaching the north gate. Overall, the castle measured about 200 meters in length and 100 meters in width.
The Matsudaira and Oda Clans at Anjo Castle
The Matsudaira clan controlled Anjo Castle for around 20 years until Matsudaira Kiyoyasu (1511–1535), grandson of Matsudaira Nagachika, moved their base to Okazaki Castle. Kiyoyasu succeeded in unifying much of Mikawa Province, but his assassination in 1535 significantly weakened the clan's power.
This power vacuum attracted the attention of Oda Nobuhide (1511–1552), lord of neighboring Owari Province and father of the famous Oda Nobunaga, as well as Imagawa Yoshimoto (1519–1560) of the powerful Imagawa clan from Suruga Province.
In 1540, Nobuhide invaded Mikawa Province, capturing Anjo Castle and pressuring Matsudaira Hirotada (1529–1549) at Okazaki Castle. In response, Hirotada submitted to the Imagawa clan, sending his son Takechiyo (later Tokugawa Ieyasu) as a hostage. However, Nobuhide managed to capture Takechiyo by bribing the Toda clan, who were responsible for the hostage transfer.
In 1548, Nobuhide attempted to seize Okazaki Castle, leading to a major confrontation at the Battle of Azukizaka. Imagawa forces, led by the monk-general Taigen Sessai (1496–1555), defeated the Oda army.
In 1550, Imagawa forces attacked and captured Anjo Castle, taking Nobuhide's eldest son, Oda Nobuhiro (?-1574), as a prisoner. Nobuhiro was later exchanged for Takechiyo. With Hirotada’s death in 1549, the Imagawa clan effectively took control of Mikawa Province under the name of Takechiyo.
The Decline and Legacy of Anjo Castle
Anjo Castle remained in use for about 10 more years but was eventually abandoned following the peace agreement between Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu after the Battle of Okehazama in 1560. It is possible that the castle was briefly restored as part of Okazaki Castle’s defensive network during Ieyasu’s conflict with Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1584.
Today, while no buildings remain, traces of Anjo Castle’s structure survive in the grounds of a temple and a shrine. The surrounding marshlands, once crucial to the castle’s defense, have been lost to land reclamation, and the site now sits amid expansive rice fields. However, by carefully comparing the current terrain with old maps, the strategic significance of Anjo Castle — once the main base of the Matsudaira clan and the center of fierce regional struggle — becomes clear.
See also
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Fukuyama Castle
After the defeat of Toyotomi Hideyori’s supporters in the Osaka Campaigns of 1614–1615, many clans in Japan still remained not fully loyal to the Tokugawa shogunate, especially in the western Chūgoku region. Mizuno Katsunari (1564–1651), a cousin of Tokugawa Ieyasu, became the first of the Tokugawa house’s close retainers, the so-called fudai daimyō, to be relocated to this strategically important area.
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Tiba Castle
The founder of the Chiba clan is considered to be Chiba Tsunesige (1083–1180), who in 1126 moved his residence to the Inohana area and built a strongly fortified stronghold there. Although Tsunesige himself came from the Taira clan, the Chiba clan later supported Minamoto no Yoritomo, the future founder of the first shogunate.
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Sunomata Castle
Oda Nobunaga, as part of his “final solution” to the conflict with the Saitō clan, conceived the construction of a fort in the Sunomata area, which was intended to serve as a forward base for an attack on Inabayama Castle (later renamed Gifu). Sunomata was a swampy area located between Ogaki Castle, a stronghold of the Oda clan, and Inabayama, the main fortress of the Saitō clan. Earlier attempts to build fortifications in this area, carried out by Oda generals Sakuma Nobumori and Shibata Katsuie, had all ended in failure. After that, the task was entrusted to the young vassal Kinoshita Tokichirō, who later became known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
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Shibata Castle
The exact time when structures first appeared on the site of the present-day castle is unknown; however, it is generally believed that the first fortified buildings were constructed here during the Muromachi period, when these lands were controlled by the Shibata clan.
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Okayama Castle
According to a number of accounts, the earliest fortifications on the site of present-day Okayama Castle appeared as early as the 14th century and were built by the Nawa clan. The Asahigawa River was used as a natural defensive barrier, protecting one side of the fortifications.
In the early 16th century, the Kanamitsu clan constructed a new castle here, which at the time was known as Ishiyama. In 1573, it came under the control of the Ukita clan, after which Ukita Naoie (1529–1582) launched large-scale reconstruction efforts. He did not live to see the work completed, and construction was continued by his son Hideie. -
Nagahama Castle
Hashiba, later known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi, received Odani Castle and the surrounding lands from Oda Nobunaga after the defeat of the Azai clan. However, Odani Castle was located high in the mountains, which made it poorly suited for the effective administration of the territory. For this reason, in 1575 Hideyoshi began constructing a new castle in the village of Imahama on the shore of Lake Biwa. Taking the character naga from Nobunaga’s name, he renamed both the village and the new castle Nagahama.
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Kokura Castle
Kokura Castle is traditionally considered to have been founded by Hosokawa Tadaoki (1563–1645), although by the time the Hosokawa clan came to control these lands, the fortification had already existed since at least 1569 and was most likely built by members of the Mori clan.
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Ikeda Castle
In 1334, Ikeda Noriyoshi built a small fort on this site, which over time was repeatedly expanded and rebuilt. During the Ōnin War of 1467–1477, the Ikeda clan supported the Western Coalition. As a result, Ikeda Castle was attacked and captured by the forces of the Eastern Coalition, but it was soon recaptured, allowing it to avoid serious destruction.
