| Tachibanayama Castle | |
|---|---|
立花山城 | |
| Tachibana Mountain,Higashi-ku,Fukuoka,Japan | |
 Stone wall of Tachibana Castle | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Kamakura periodJapanese castle |
| Controlled by | Ōtomo clan (1330–1569, 1569–1586),Mōri clan (1569),Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1586–1598),Tokugawa Ieyasu/Tokugawa shogunate (1598 – c. 1603) |
| Condition | Ruins of stone elements ofkeep, wells and waterworks remain |
| Location | |
  Tachibanayama Castle  Tachibanayama Castle | |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1330 |
| Built by | Ōtomo Sadatoshi |
| In use | 1330–1586 |
| Materials | Wood, stone, plaster |
| Demolished | c. 1603 |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Tatarahama (1569),Kyūshū Campaign (1586) |
| Garrison information | |
| Past commanders | Tachibana Ginchiyo (c. 1575),Kobayakawa Takakage (c. 1586–1598) |
Tachibanayama Castle (立花山城,Tachibanayama-jō) was aJapanese castle inChikuzen Province, in the north ofKyūshū. It was at the peak ofMount Tachibana, extending in part into theHigashi-ku inFukuoka.[1] The castle is also known asRikka-jō,Tachibana-jō, orRikkasan-jō.
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The castle was originally built in 1330, byŌtomo Sadatoshi, Constable (shugo) ofBungo Province, as a show of support to theTachibana clan.[2] Since it was in a tactically powerful location, looking down upon the port town ofHakata, the castle was fought over throughout the Sengoku period by theŌtomo,Ōuchi, andMōri clans.
In one of the more significant sieges, the Ōtomo clan lost the castle to the Mōri clan in 1569, who had become one of the most skilled and powerful clans in the field of naval warfare; their use of Western-style cannon granted them a large advantage in this battle. They abandoned it soon afterwards, however, following a defeat atTatarahama to an allied Ōtomo-Amago clan force.
The castle was besieged once more, in 1586, by theShimazu family; the castle's lord at the time wasTachibana Muneshige. However, the Shimazu would fail in their siege and Muneshige successfully defended the castle. Soon after,Toyotomi Hideyoshi would arrive and launch hisKyūshū Campaign, which he would also gain the assistance of the Ōtomo. After Hideyoshi's conquest of Kyūshū ended with the surrender of the Shimazu, Muneshige and his clan were givenYanagawa castle, whereas Tachibana Castle would be entrusted in the care ofKobayakawa Takakage.
A little over a decade later, at the beginning of theEdo period, Tachibana was largely destroyed and dismantled, much of the stone going into the construction ofFukuoka Castle. Today, remnants of thehonmaru (central keep), the wells and waterworks survive.
33°40′47″N130°28′06″E / 33.679722°N 130.468319°E /33.679722; 130.468319