Tatsuno Castle is not a single fortification but rather a complex consisting of two parts: a mountain fortress located at the summit of Mount Keirozan and a flatland-mountain castle situated at its base. The mountain stronghold was built around 1499 by Akamatsu Murahide. During the Muromachi period, the Akamatsu clan was an influential family that, at the height of its power, controlled the provinces of Settsu, Harima, Bizen, and Mimasaka. Murahide’s ancestors were directly involved in the events of the Genkō War in the 14th century and in the subsequent establishment of the Ashikaga shogunate. However, by the 15th century, due to the process of gekokujō, the clan began to lose its position under pressure from rising families, including their former vassals—the Urakami and Bessho clans. In addition, the Akamatsu faced constant pressure from the Amago clan of Izumo Province.
Akamatsu Masahide (1510–1570) became the head of the Tatsuno branch of the Akamatsu clan in the early 16th century. Making Tatsuno Castle his base, he initially managed to successfully resist attempts by the Urakami and Kuroda clans to take control of Harima Province. However, in 1569, he launched an attack on Kuroda Yoshitaka and was defeated. This defeat led to the loss of the Akamatsu clan’s power in the region and ultimately placed them under the vassalage of the Urakami clan.
After Masahide’s death, leadership of the clan passed to his son, Akamatsu Hirohide (1562–1600). In 1577, Tatsuno Castle was attacked by the forces of Oda Nobunaga, commanded by Hashiba Hideyoshi, who would later become known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Hirohide surrendered to Hideyoshi and entered his service. Hideyoshi later appointed him commander of Takeda Castle, while assigning one of his oldest retainers, Hachisuka Masakatsu (1526–1586), as the castellan of Tatsuno.
After the conquest of Shikoku in 1585, the Hachisuka clan was transferred to Tokushima Castle. Tatsuno Castle was considered an important defensive stronghold within the Chūgoku region’s defense system and was tasked with protecting the approaches to the main fortress—Himeji Castle. Hideyoshi appointed trusted vassals and relatives as castellans of Tatsuno, including Fukushima Masanori, Kinoshita Katsutoshi, and Koide Yoshimasa. During this period, the castle was significantly reinforced and expanded, incorporating the area at the base of the mountain. It was equipped with the most advanced fortifications of its time, including massive stone walls. The mountain section of the castle consisted of more than twenty terraces, each protected by walls and a complex system of gates.
Following the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, the entire Harima Province, including Tatsuno Castle, came under the control of the Ikeda clan. Later, the castle was held by members of the Honda, Ogasawara, and Kyōgoku clans. In 1658, the Kyōgoku clan was transferred to Marugame Castle, after which Tatsuno was abandoned for a period of time.
In 1672, the castle came under the ownership of Wakisaka Yasumasa, a descendant of Wakisaka Yasuharu, one of the “Seven Spears of Shizugatake.” He had to rebuild the completely ruined castle, but the laws of the Tokugawa shogunate prohibited the construction of new large-scale fortifications, including a donjon. As a result, Yasumasa limited his efforts to restoring some structures in the lower part of the castle and constructed a new residential palace, the goten. His descendants continued to govern the castle until the Meiji Restoration.
Thanks to its advantageous location near the Ibo River along a major transportation route, as well as effective management, Tatsuno gradually developed into a prosperous town. Today, many buildings from the Edo period have been preserved in the castle town, including samurai residences. For this reason, Tatsuno became known as the “Little Kyoto” of Harima Province. The famous 17th-century swordsman and strategist Miyamoto Musashi, author of The Book of Five Rings, spent some time here training and studying various disciplines.
The castle was destroyed during the Meiji era. In 1979, portions of the walls were reconstructed, along with the main bailey palace (honmaru goten), the Ujimi-mon gate, a kōrai-style gate, and a corner turret (sumiyagura). Of the mountain fortress, only ruins remain, where some remnants of stone walls can still be seen.
See also
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Takamatsu Castle
Takamatsu Castle was founded by Ikoma Chikamasa (1526–1603), who was appointed ruler of Takamatsu by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1587. The following year, Chikamasa began construction of the castle on the coast of the Inland Sea (Setonaikai), completing it by 1590.
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Sawayama Castle
During the Kamakura period, Sabo Tokitsuna, the sixth son of Sasaki Sadatsuna, built a fort on Mount Sawayama. This fort occupied a strategically important position because it allowed control over traffic along the important Tōsandō route, which was later known as Nakasendō. This road connected the capital, Kyoto, with the eastern regions of the country. Due to its location, the fortification held great military importance, and during periods of civil war it repeatedly became the site of fierce battles.
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Nadzima Castle
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.
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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.
