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| Yamagata Castle | |
|---|---|
山形城 | |
| Yamagata,Yamagata Prefecture,Japan | |
 Restored East Gate of Yamagata Castle | |
 Yamagata Castle from the air, 1972 | |
| Site information | |
| Type | flatland-styleJapanese castle |
| Open to the public | yes |
| Location | |
  Yamagata Castle  Yamagata Castle  Yamagata Castle | |
| Coordinates | 38°15′12.84″N140°19′44.56″E / 38.2535667°N 140.3290444°E /38.2535667; 140.3290444 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1357 |
| Built by | Mogami Yoshiaki |
| In use | 1357-1889 |
Yamagata Castle (山形城,Yamagata-jō) is a flatland-styleJapanese castle located in the center of the city ofYamagata, easternYamagata Prefecture,Japan. Throughout theEdo period, Yamagata Castle was the headquarters for thedaimyō ofYamagata Domain. The castle was also known as "Ka-jō" (霞城). The castle grounds are protected as aNational Historic Site by the Japanese government[1]
The Yamagata Basin is a long and narrow inland valley of theMogami River bounded by theŌu Mountains to the east. It is an important communications center for the southeastern portion of theTōhoku region of Japan. connecting the Shōnai Plains and theSea of Japan to the west with the Yonezawa Basin to the south, and the Sendai Plains and thePacific Ocean across the Ōu Mountains. In addition to riverine traffic, the route of theUshū Kaidō highway also passes through the area. Yamagata Castle is located at the southern end of the Yamagata Basin.
The first castle on this site dates to the middle of theMuromachi period, when Shiba Kaneyori established himself as lord of the surrounding area ofDewa Province and built a fortified residence on the site of what is now theinner bailey of Yamagata Castle. TheShiba clan was a strong supporter of theAshikaga shogunate and theNorthern Court. Shiba Kaneyori later changed his surname to "Mogami", and theMogami clan continued to rule for about 275 years. However, by theSengoku period, the Mogami had lost much of heir power due to a succession of internal conflicts and short-lived leaders. The aggressiveDate clan invaded Mogami territory and after a series of battles, reduced the Mogami to a subordinate position. However, the Date clan itself then fell victim to internal political conflicts. Taking advantage of the situation,Mogami Yoshimori regained his independence, and married his daughter toDate Terumune. Their son wasDate Masamune, and this relationship provided security for the Mogami clan.
Mogami Yoshimori's eldest son,Mogami Yoshiaki fought many battle against various cadet branches of his own clan as well as the local warlords of many strongholds acrossDewa Province from his base at Yamagata, with the Date clan sometimes assisting, but more often hindering his efforts to unit the province. However, following an invasion byUesugi Kagekatsu, who captured the Shōnai region, Yoshiaki was forced to submit toToyotomi Hideyoshi. Yoshiaki rebuilt Yamagata Castle in 1592, adding a second bailey and third bailey, and a number of two-story and three-storyyagura watchtowers. The castle never had atenshu. He also laid out thejōkamachi for what later became the city of Yamagata. However, his relations with the Toyotomi were always strained, as the Toyotomi favored the Uesugi clan, and Mogami Yoshiaki's daughter Komahime was killed by Hideyoshi when he purgedToyotomi Hidetsugu and his household. At the time of theSekigahara campaign, Mogami Yoshiaki sided withTokugawa Ieyasu. The forces of the Uesugi clan underNaoe Kanetsugu invaded the Yonezawa basin. Despite being severely outnumbered, the Mogami were able to repulse the invasion. The Mogami were rewarded after the establishment of theTokugawa shogunate with an increase in territory to 570,000koku with the recovery of the Shōnai region. This led to a further expansion of Yamagata Castle.
However, after the death of Yoshiaki in 1614, an internal conflict erupted between his major retainers, providing an excuse forattainder of the domain by the shogunate in 1622.
The Tokugawa shogunate broke up the Mogami domain into many smaller territories. In 1622, Yamagata Caste was awarded toTorii Tadamune, the son ofTorii Mototada who had heroically died at the Battle of Fushimi Castle near Kyoto at the time of the Battle of Sekigahara. However, he was relocated toTakatō Castle inEchigo Province in 1636, and the castle andYamagata Domain passed through a large number ofdaimyō clans, often for less than a single generation, and its revenues were severely reduced. With their reduced revenues, thesedaimyō could not afford to maintain this huge a castle and the by the middle of theEdo period, the main bailey was allowed to fall into ruins, the second bailey was used as the residence of thedaimyō , and the western half of the third bailey was plowed up for farmland. The castle was in the hands of a cadet branch theMizuno clan at the time of theMeiji restoration.
With theabolition of the han system in 1871, Yamagata Domain became Yamagata Prefecture, and in 1872 the castle grounds were sold to the government, and were used as a base for theImperial Japanese Army’s 32nd Infantry Regiment. Manysakura were planted around the castle grounds in 1906 to commemorate theRusso-Japanese War. AfterWorld War II the site of the castle became Kajō Park, containing theYamagata Prefectural Museum. The East Gate of the castle and the site of castle keep were restored in 1986, and the Higashi Otemon Gate of the second bailey was restored in 1991. In 2004 the stonework of the Inchimon Gate was restored, and a bridge leading to main bailey was reconstructed in 2006. Renovations and archaeological investigations are ongoing, and Yamagata City plans to restore as much of the castle as possible to its early Edo-period condition by the year 2033. The castle was listed as one of the100 Fine Castles of Japan by the Japanese Castle Foundation (日本城郭協会,Nihon Jōkaku Kyōkai) in 2006.
Yamagata Castle consists of three concentric square areas. The inner bailey is 200 meters square, was protected by clay walls and wet moats, and had gates at the southeast and north sides and a corneryagura. Within the enclosure was the foundation for atenshu, which was never actually constructed.
The second bailey measured 500 meters on each side, and completely surrounded the inner bailey. Its outer walls were indented in places to enable flanking fire against an attacking enemy. This enclosure had largeMasugata-gates on the south and east, and a smaller gate in the north.
The third area was about 2 kilometer on each side, and enclosed the semi-fortified residences of important retainers. The size of original castle thus exceededAoba Castle inSendai andAizuwakamatsu Castle, making it by far the largest castle in the Tōhoku region. However, without a massivetenshu or stone walls, it was deceptively plain.
100 Fine Castles of Japan by region | ||
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| Hokkaidō | .svg) | |
| Tōhoku | ||
| Kantō | ||
| Chūbu | ||
| Kansai | ||
| Chūgoku | ||
| Shikoku | ||
| Kyūshūa | ||
a includingOkinawa. | ||
| International | |
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| Other | |
