Oishi Castle (Bitchu)

Oishijō is a medieval castle which later became a fortified position during the siege of Bitchū-Takamtsujō. It was located in Kibi County, Bitchū Province. No ruins remain and the site is now a shrine, Oishi-jinja.

History

Oishijō was a medieval fort, and the base of the Oishi Clan. It was later the site of the encampment of Katō Kiyomasa during the 1582 spring invasion of Bitchū by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. A lengthy siege ensued at Bitchū-Takamatsujō, and the castle was eventually flooded by the construction of dykes in one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's mostfamous victories. Kiyomasa used the site of Oishijō, also called Hōonjiyama-jin after a nearby temple, during this time. The Oishi Clan helped to defend nearby Kamojō from Toyotomi (Hashiba) forces in 1582, so they may have abandoned Oishijō to make a more cohesive defence of Kamojō, a larger castle, thoguh the Oishi Clan would betray their fellow defenders during the course of the battle.

Just south of the Hōonjiyama-jin site is the site of the 'Ashimori River Sluice', where it is said that water was diverted by Katō Kiyomasa for the flooding of Bitchū-Takamatsujō. Accordingly the fort is believed to have provided defence for this vital infrastructure; any force seeking to destroy the dyke would've been repulsed from the fort. The site of this sluice gate is now a modern river embankment and no ruins remain, but there is a stone marker just south of the Kibi Line railway.

Field Notes

Oishijō is a medieval castle which later became a fortified position during the siege of Bitchū-Takamtsujō. It was located in Kibi County, Bitchū Province. No ruins remain and the site is now a shrine, Oishi-jinja.

Gallery

• 

  Shrine Gate
• 

Castle Profile
English Name	Bitchu Oishi Castle
Japanese Name	備中生石城
Alternate Names	報恩寺山陣 Hōonjiyama-jin
Founder	Oishi Clan; Katō Kiyomasa
Year Founded	Sengoku Period; 1582
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features
Visitor Information
Access	Ashimori Station on the Kibi Line; 5 minute walk
Hours	24/7 free; shrine
Time Required	10 minutes
Location	Okayama, Okayama Prefecture
Coordinates	34.7003, 133.80324
Loading map... {"minzoom":false,"maxzoom":false,"mappingservice":"leaflet","width":"auto","height":"200px","centre":false,"title":"","label":"","icon":"Castlemarker.png","lines":[],"polygons":[],"circles":[],"rectangles":[],"copycoords":false,"static":false,"zoom":6,"defzoom":14,"layers":["CartoDB.Positron"],"image layers":[],"overlays":[],"resizable":false,"fullscreen":false,"scrollwheelzoom":true,"cluster":false,"clustermaxzoom":20,"clusterzoomonclick":true,"clustermaxradius":80,"clusterspiderfy":true,"geojson":"","clicktarget":"","imageLayers":[],"locations":[{"text":"","title":"","link":"","lat":34.7003,"lon":133.80324,"icon":"../images/1/1e/Castlemarker.png"}],"imageoverlays":null} +− Leaflet | © OpenStreetMap contributors © CARTO
Admin
Added to Jcastle	2022
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed
Friends of JCastle
Jōkaku Hōrōki

1.00

(one vote)

Loading comments...