Shirayama Castle (Chiisagata)

Shirayamajō was the least interesting site of my large tour of castle ruins in the area. There are barely any ruins to be seen. There is some evidence of terracing of the ridge line, but this could've been built by anyone for any reason at anytime. The castle's main bailey could be a natural formati

History

It is thought that the Unno Clan constructed a watch tower or other small fortification on this ridge line as part of their defences to protect their valley home in the 14th century from the threat of the Murakami Clan to the west. The Unno Clan are also said to have founded the temple which sits below the ridge, and shrine structures may have also been built on the ridge. These were abandoned when the Murakami Clan took over the valley, but were later restored.

Field Notes

Shirayamajō was the least interesting site of my large tour of castle ruins in the area. There are barely any ruins to be seen. There is some evidence of terracing of the ridge line, but this could've been built by anyone for any reason at anytime. The castle's main bailey could be a natural formation. However, one nice thing about coming here was being able to see Kashiwayamajō above in near perfect profile which highlighted the contours of impressive earthworks. Shirayamajō, if it really stood here, must've been a very primitive fort indeed, making use only of wooden barriers.

Gallery

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  This is crazy, but bailey maybe?
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Castle Profile
English Name	Shirayama Castle (Chiisagata)
Japanese Name	小県白山城
Founder	Unno Clan
Year Founded	Mid. 14th century
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features
Visitor Information
Access	Ueda Sation on the Shinano Railway; bus to Kamishina; 20 minute walk to Sumiyoshi
Hours	24/7 free; mountain
Time Required	10 minutes
Location	Ueda, Nagano Prefecture
Coordinates	36.42736, 138.2827
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2022
Contributor	ART
Admin Year Visited	Viewer Contributed
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