Onigajo Castle: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 12:36, 24 May 2025

While older maps (like this one from the Kyoto Castle Survey) indicate ruins primarily around the mountain’s summit and main enclosure, a newer map in 明智光秀の城郭と合戦 reveals additional ruins along the trail. Notably, there are two distinct koguchi (gate entrances) along the pat

History

Onigajō Castle (鬼ヶ城) is historically linked to the Akai clan, whose main stronghold was Kuroi Castle. While the exact lord of Onigajō remains uncertain, it may have been under the control of either the Akai or Naitō clans at different times. The castle likely functioned as a satellite fortification of the Akai, overseeing the expansive Fukuchiyama plain. Its significant elevation above the plain provided a formidable defensive advantage and sight lines across the entire region.

In 1575, following the surrender of Naitō Tadayuki to Akechi Mitsuhide at Kameyama Castle (Tanba), some Naitō retainers defected and sought refuge at Onigajō. The castle ultimately fell to Mitsuhide’s forces in 1579 during the second Tanba campaign.

Field Notes

While older maps (like this one from the Kyoto Castle Survey) indicate ruins primarily around the mountain’s summit and main enclosure, a newer map in 明智光秀の城郭と合戦 reveals additional ruins along the trail. Notably, there are two distinct koguchi (gate entrances) along the path, each accompanied by dorui (earthen embankments). The nearer koguchi features some remaining stonework. Just before reaching the first koguchi, hikers will encounter a series of terraced kuruwa (baileys) too.

This is a long steep hike, but the trail is clear and well marked making it a good trek. The trailhead begins at Kannonji Temple and diverges from a popular hiking route leading to Mt. Chōgatake, which may have hosted another satellite fortification. Originally, I planned to explore this area as well; however, despite the clear morning weather, afternoon rain clouds prompted a change in plans.

Access to Onigajō via public transportation is limited. The nearest option is a 5 km uphill walk from Gujo Station. I started here but treated myself to a taxi ride to reach the trailhead since it was my birthday. Despite providing detailed directions, the driver attempted to take me to a forestry road leading to an alternate trail he recalled from his school days, which would supposedly end up much closer to the summit than Kannonji Temple. Unfortunately, this trail appears to no longer exist, or the forestry road is inaccessible. The driver felt bad about the inconvenience and kindly offered a complimentary return ride to Fukuchiyama Station after my hike. Given the changing afternoon weather conditions, I very much appreciated the gesture.

History clarification: Some blog sources inaccurately state that Onigajō fell to Akechi Mitsuhide in 1575. However, Mitsuhide’s initial campaign in Tanba began in 1575 but did not reach Fukuchiyama until the second campaign in 1578–1579. Therefore, the fall of Onigajō is more accurately dated to 1579.

https://www.kyoto-be.ne.jp/bunkazai/cms/?page_id=1521

Map Courtesy of Kyoto Pref. Board of Education.
Not to be used without permission.

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Gallery

koguchi

Castle Profile
English Name	Onigajo Castle
Japanese Name	鬼ヶ城
Founder	Akai Clan
Year Founded	Muromachi period
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	trenches, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Gujo Station (Line), 5km walk; Fukuchiyama Station, Taxi
Hours	Mountain trails, open any time
Time Required	180 mins
Hiking Trail	View on Yamap
Location	Fukuchiyama, Kyoto
Coordinates	35.34203, 135.14213
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2025
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2024
Admin Visits	October 21, 2024
Friends of JCastle
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@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 |Year Founded=Muromachi period
 |Castle Type=Mountaintop
-|Castle Condition=Reconstructed main keep
+|Castle Condition=Ruins only
 |Historical Period=Pre Edo Period
 |Features=trenches, stone walls
@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 |Visitor Information=Mountain trails, open any time
 |Time Required=180 mins
+|Yamaptrail=https://yamap.com/activities/35366847
 |City=Fukuchiyama
 |Prefecture=Kyoto
-|Notes=This is a long steep hike, but the trail is clear and well marked making it a good hike. Some older maps only show castle ruins right around the mountain top and main enclosure where there are great views and some stonework ruins around it but the further back along the trail there are also some ruins that I've only seen in a newer map in [https://amzn.to/3RX0ebO 秀吉の播磨攻めと城郭]. There are two clear koguchi entrances along the trail with dorui earthen embankments, the nearer of which has some stonework remains. Even further back just before the first koguchi there is a series of terraced baileys too. The morning was great weather but the extreme contrast between bright sky and deep shadows in many photos was a challenge to work with.
+|Notes=While older maps (like this one from the Kyoto Castle Survey) indicate ruins primarily around the mountain’s summit and main enclosure, a newer map in [https://amzn.to/44xemQv 明智光秀の城郭と合戦] reveals additional ruins along the trail. Notably, there are two distinct koguchi (gate entrances) along the path, each accompanied by dorui (earthen embankments). The nearer koguchi features some remaining stonework. Just before reaching the first koguchi, hikers will encounter a series of terraced kuruwa (baileys) too.
-This trail starts from Kannonji Temple and splits off a popular hiking trail to Mt. Chogatake, which might have had another satellite castle or fortification. My original plan was to go out here too but despite the clear weather in these photos, the afternoon rain clouds were rolling in as I came down the mountainside. The problem with this site is that it is not reasonably accessible by public transportation. The best you can do is a 5km uphill walk from gujo station. I started from here but called for a taxi to get me to the site. Despite giving detailed directions of exactly where I wanted to go, the driver tried to take me to a forestry road that leads to a different trail that was supposedly much closer to the mountaintop (that he had taken in his school days) and would result in much less climbing. Unfortunately, that trail does not seem to exist anymore or the forestry road is no longer there. Anyway, he felt bad about wasting my time and told me to call them when I was done for a free ride back to Fukuchiyama Station afterwards instead. I had planned to walk back to gujo station (line), but appreciated the ride given the changing weather conditions.
+This is a long steep hike, but the trail is clear and well marked making it a good trek. The trailhead begins at Kannonji Temple and diverges from a popular hiking route leading to Mt. Chōgatake, which may have hosted another satellite fortification. Originally, I planned to explore this area as well; however, despite the clear morning weather, afternoon rain clouds prompted a change in plans.
-This is another where history writeups in blogs are unreliable. I often see a date of 1575 for it falling to Akechi Mitsuhide but that is unlikely. Mitsuhide did not reach Fukuchiyama until the second Tanba Campaign in 1578-1579.
+Access to Onigajō via public transportation is limited. The nearest option is a 5 km uphill walk from Gujo Station. I started here but treated myself to a taxi ride to reach the trailhead since it was my birthday. Despite providing detailed directions, the driver attempted to take me to a forestry road leading to an alternate trail he recalled from his school days, which would supposedly end up much closer to the summit than Kannonji Temple. Unfortunately, this trail appears to no longer exist, or the forestry road is inaccessible. The driver felt bad about the inconvenience and kindly offered a complimentary return ride to Fukuchiyama Station after my hike. Given the changing afternoon weather conditions, I very much appreciated the gesture.
-|History=Onigajo is associated with the Akai clan whose home castle was [[Kuroi Castle]], but the lord of the castle may have been Akai or Naito. Onigajo was likely a satellite fortification intended to watch over the entirety of the huge Fukuchiyama plain. The large elevation difference between the plain and the castle itself made for a formidable fortification. When Naito Tadayuki surrendered to Akechi Mitsuhide's forces at [[Tanba Kameyama Castle]] in 1575, some of the Naito defected and fled to Onigajo. The castle fell to Akechi Mitsuhide in 1579.
+History clarification: Some blog sources inaccurately state that Onigajō fell to Akechi Mitsuhide in 1575. However, Mitsuhide’s initial campaign in Tanba began in 1575 but did not reach Fukuchiyama until the second campaign in 1578–1579. Therefore, the fall of Onigajō is more accurately dated to 1579.
+[[File:Kyotosurveyonigajo.jpg|center|350px|border|caption|Map courtesy of Kyoto Pref, not to be used without permission|https://www.kyoto-be.ne.jp/bunkazai/cms/?page_id=1521]]<small>Map Courtesy of [https://www.kyoto-be.ne.jp/bunkazai/cms/?page_id=1521 Kyoto Pref. Board of Education].<br>Not to be used without permission.</small>
+|History=Onigajō Castle (鬼ヶ城) is historically linked to the Akai clan, whose main stronghold was [[Kuroi Castle]]. While the exact lord of Onigajō remains uncertain, it may have been under the control of either the Akai or Naitō clans at different times. The castle likely functioned as a satellite fortification of the Akai, overseeing the expansive Fukuchiyama plain. Its significant elevation above the plain provided a formidable defensive advantage and sight lines across the entire region.
+In 1575, following the surrender of Naitō Tadayuki to Akechi Mitsuhide at [[Tanba Kameyama Castle|Kameyama Castle (Tanba)]], some Naitō retainers defected and sought refuge at Onigajō. The castle ultimately fell to Mitsuhide’s forces in 1579 during the second Tanba campaign.
 |Year Visited=2024
 |AddedJcastle=2025