It is believed that the first structures on this site were built by Tachibana Akitoshi (?-1568), head of the Tachibana clan, a branch family of the Ōtomo clan, as auxiliary fortifications for Tachibanayama Castle. In 1587, Toyotomi Hideyoshi established control over the island of Kyushu and granted Chikuzen Province to Kobayakawa Takakage, one of the leading vassals of the Mori clan. Takakage began construction of a new castle on the site of the existing fortifications in 1588. The exact date of completion is unknown, but by the time the invasion of Korea began in 1592, the castle had already been finished, as records note that Toyotomi Hideyoshi stayed there overnight on his way to Hizen Nagoya Castle, which served as the headquarters of the invasion forces.
Najima Castle was located on a small peninsula projecting into Hakata Bay, north of the mouth of the Tatara River. The main enclosures of the castle were arranged in a line from west to east, with the central enclosure (honmaru) being larger than the second enclosure (ninomaru) and the third enclosure (sannomaru). The castle had its own donjon, stone walls, gates, and towers.
The castle town was situated southeast of the main enclosures. According to eyewitness accounts, the castle had its own port, allowing ships to dock directly at the castle grounds. It is believed that this was done by direct order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, as the castle was intended to serve as one of the naval hubs supporting the invasion forces bound for Korea. For the construction of the new castle, the ancient shrine Benten-jinja, dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten, was relocated from the hilltop to the south. As a result, the separate southern enclosure of the castle became known as Bentenkuruwa. The shrine still exists today on the castle ruins under the name Najima-jinja.
After the Korean campaign, Kobayakawa Takakage transferred the castle to his adopted son, Kobayakawa Hideaki. Hideaki became infamous as the most notorious betrayer of the Sekigahara campaign: during the decisive Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, he defected to the side of Tokugawa Ieyasu. After the victory of the Eastern coalition, Hideaki received an increased income and lands in the area of Okayama Castle, while Najima Castle and Chikuzen Province were granted to Kuroda Nagamasa.
Nagamasa, however, concluded that Najima was not suitable for governing his newly acquired territories. Due to its geographic location, the castle had reached the limits of possible expansion and was also situated far from the major commercial city of Hakata. As a result, in 1601 Nagamasa began construction of a new stronghold, Fukuoka Castle, within the area of present-day Fukuoka, completing it by 1607. Many buildings of Najima Castle, and even stones from its walls, were reused in the construction of the new castle. Consequently, Najima Castle ceased to exist.
Today, only traces of earthworks, remnants of earthen embankments, and some stones from walls and building foundations remain. At the urging of local residents, the former castle grounds were purchased by the city from private owners, and in 2012 the “Najima Castle Ruins Park” was opened. Informational plaques describing the history of the castle and archaeological excavations conducted on the site have been installed. Some of the castle gates survived and are available for viewing. At least one gate has been definitively identified as having originally belonged to Najima Castle; after changing locations multiple times, it was finally installed in 1961 on the grounds of Fukuoka Castle under the name Najimamon. It is also believed that the gates of the temples Soshoji and Sofukuji, the latter being the family temple of the Kuroda clan, were formerly part of Najima Castle.
See also
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Kubota Castle
The founder of the castle is considered to be Satake Yoshinobu (1570–1633). Yoshinobu was one of the six great generals of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. During the Odawara Campaign of 1590, he took part in the siege of Oshi Castle under the command of Ishida Mitsunari, with whom Yoshinobu developed a good relationship.
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Kavanhoe Castle
Kawanoe Castle is located on the small Wasi-yama hill near the port area of the Kawanoe district in the city of Shikokuchuo, occupying a central position along the northern coast of Shikoku Island. Kawanoe was also known as Butsuden Castle. The term “butsuden” in Japan refers to temple halls, and for this reason it is believed that a Buddhist temple once stood on the site before the castle was built. Due to its location at the junction of four provinces on Shikoku Island, Kawanoe held significant strategic importance and was repeatedly targeted by rival forces seeking military control over the region.
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Yokote Castle
The founder of the castle is considered to be the Onodera clan. The Onodera were originally a minor clan from Shimotsuke Province and served Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147–1199), the founder of the first shogunate. The Onodera distinguished themselves in battle against the Fujiwara clan of the Ōshū branch and were rewarded with lands around Yokote. Around the 14th century, the Onodera moved to Yokote as their permanent residence. Their original stronghold was Numadate Castle, but after a series of clashes with the powerful Nambu clan, they relocated their base to the site of present-day Yokote Castle. It was likely during this time that the first fortifications appeared at the castle.
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Wakayama Castle
Wakayama Castle was built in 1585, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi ordered his uterine brother, Hashiba (Toyotomi) Hidenaga, to construct a castle on the site of the recently captured Ota Castle. The purpose of this construction was to secure control over the likewise newly conquered Province of Kii. Following an already established tradition, Hidenaga entrusted the project to his castle-building expert, Todo Takatora. Takatora carefully inspected the future castle site, personally drew up several designs, created a model of the planned castle, and took part in the work of laying out the grounds (nawabari). For the construction he brought in more than 10,000 workers and completed the large-scale project within a single year, which was considered extremely fast by the standards of the time.
Toyama Castle
Toyama Castle is located almost in the very center of the former province of Etchū and is surrounded by a wide plain with a large number of rivers. The very first castle on the banks of the Jinzu River was built in 1543 by Jimbo Nagamoto. The Jimbo clan were vassals of the Hatakeyama clan and governed the western part of Etchū Province. The eastern part of the province belonged to their rivals, the Shiina clan, who were also Hatakeyama vassals. Beginning in the 15th century, the influence of the ancient Hatakeyama clan gradually weakened, and as a result, the Jimbo and the Shiina fought constant wars for control of the province. Meanwhile, the forces of the Ikkō-ikki movement periodically intervened, helping first one side and then the other.
Takada Castle
During the Sengoku period, the lands where Takada Castle would later be built were part of Echigo Province and were controlled by the Uesugi clan.
Kishiwada Castle
The celebrated 14th-century military commander Kusunoki Masashige (1294–1336), who owned extensive lands south of what is now the city of Osaka, ordered one of his vassals, Kishiwada Osamu, to build a fortified residence. This order was carried out around 1336. These fortifications became the first structures on the site of what would later become Kishiwada Castle. From the beginning, the castle stood in a strategically important location—roughly halfway between the cities of Wakayama and Osaka, south of the key port of Sakai. Because of this position, it changed hands several times during periods of warfare.
Kaminoyama Castle
Kamino-yama Castle stood at the center of an important logistics hub, in the middle of the Yonezawa Plain, which served as the gateway to the western part of the Tohoku region. Roads connecting the Aizu, Fukushima, and Yamagata areas intersected here.
