Imaichikami Fort: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 22:44, 23 June 2025

The ruins of the embankments here are slight and can be difficult to identify—especially the first square bailey, which is easy to miss. The highlight of this fort is the large horikiri trench near the top. Once you reach the ridge, it's actually a relatively easy walk over to Tohnoyama Fort, o

History

Imaichikami Fort was established across the valley from Tenjinyama Fort as part of Hideyoshi’s original forward defensive line. It sits at a much higher elevation and provides a clearer view up the valley toward Genbao Castle than Tenjinyama.

It’s unclear whether the site was abandoned when Hideyoshi pulled back from Tenjinyama Fort, or whether it remained in use as a satellite of Tohnoyama Fort. Since it was not directly threatened by Shibata-aligned forts, had easy access to Tohnoyama, and maintained visibility up the valley, it's reasonable to think it continued to serve as a lookout or intelligence post.

See the Battle of Shizugatake page for broader context.

Field Notes

The ruins of the embankments here are slight and can be difficult to identify—especially the first square bailey, which is easy to miss. The highlight of this fort is the large horikiri trench near the top. Once you reach the ridge, it's actually a relatively easy walk over to Tohnoyama Fort, one of the most impressive forts in the Battle of Shizugatake network.

Just beside the Hachiman Shrine is a slightly elevated, flattened area with a grave for the Tohno clan, local landholders. Some say this was the site of their fortified residence, while others suggest the nearby Jurakuji Temple. This same area marks the trailhead for Imaichikami Fort. From here, head straight up the ridge. There is a worn path or trail-like route you can follow partway up. Along the way, there's a spot with what looks like dorui embankment to the left, offering excellent views up the valley. It's also more spacious around here, and I believe it must have been fortified or used as a lookout.

After this point, you’ll need to angle up the ridge to the right. It would be best to follow my Yamap trail or take a good map. There is no clearly defined route.

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Gallery

Castle Profile
English Name	Imaichikami Fort
Japanese Name	今市上砦
Founder	Hashiba Hideyoshi
Year Founded	1583
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	trenches
Visitor Information
Access	JR Yogo Station, 3.5 km walk to Hachiman Shrine
Hours	Mountain trails; not signposted
Time Required	30 mins
Hiking Trail	View on Yamap
Location	Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture
Coordinates	35.56176, 136.20525
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2025
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2025
Admin Visits	April 20, 2025
Friends of JCastle
Jokaku Horoki

1.00

(one vote)

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Castle
-|English Name=Imaichi Fort
+|English Name=Imaichikami Fort
 |Japanese Name=今市上砦
 |Romaji Name=Imaichikami Toride
-|Founder=Toyotomi Hideyoshi
+|Founder=Hashiba Hideyoshi
 |Year Founded=1583
 |Castle Type=Mountaintop
@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 |Historical Period=Pre Edo Period
 |Features=trenches
-|Access=JR Yogo Station, 3.5km walk to Hachiman Shrine
+|Access=JR Yogo Station, 3.5 km walk to Hachiman Shrine
-|Visitor Information=Mountain trails, not signposted
+|Visitor Information=Mountain trails; not signposted
-|Time Required=20 mins
+|Time Required=30 mins
+|Yamaptrail=https://yamap.com/activities/40828441
 |City=Nagahama
 |Prefecture=Shiga Prefecture
-|Notes=The ruins of the embankments are slight and a bit difficult to identify especially the first square Bailey which is easy to miss.  The highlight of this castle is surely the large horikiri.  Once you've reached the top here, it is actually a fairly easy walk around the ridge line to [[Tonoyama Fort]], one o the true highlights of all the castles and forts of the [[Battle of Shizugatake]].
+|Notes=The ruins of the embankments here are slight and can be difficult to identify—especially the first square bailey, which is easy to miss. The highlight of this fort is the large horikiri  trench near the top. Once you reach the ridge, it's actually a relatively easy walk over to [[Tohnoyama Fort]], one of the most impressive forts in the [[Battle of Shizugatake]] network.
-Just to the side of the Hachiman Shrine is a slightly elevated and flattened area with a grave for the Higashino Clan, local landholders.  Some say this was the site of their fortified home, others say it was the nearby Jurakuji Temple.  This flattened area also marks where to start climbing for Imaichikami Castle. Go straight up the ridge from here. There is a kind of worn path or trail looking thing you can follow partyway up.  Along the way there is an area with what looks like a dorui embankment on the left side with good views up the valley. It is also somewhat more spacious around this part. I really think this must have been fortified or used as a lookout. At some point shortly after this area you will need cut up the ridge to your right. It would probably be best to follow my Yamap trail or find something similar because there is no clear cut trail around here.
+Just beside the Hachiman Shrine is a slightly elevated, flattened area with a grave for the Tohno clan, local landholders. Some say this was the site of their fortified residence, while others suggest the nearby Jurakuji Temple. This same area marks the trailhead for Imaichikami Fort. From here, head straight up the ridge. There is a worn path or trail-like route you can follow partway up. Along the way, there's a spot with what looks like dorui embankment to the left, offering excellent views up the valley. It's also more spacious around here, and I believe it must have been fortified or used as a lookout.
-|History=Imaichikami Fort was founded just across the valley from [[Tenjinyama Fort]] as part of Hideyoshi's original forward defensive line. it is  a much higher elevation and provides clearer views up the valley towards [[Genbao Castle]] than [[Tenjinyama Fort]].  It is not clear if this was abandoned when Hideyoshi pulled back from [[Tenjinyama Fort]] or if it was still maintained as a satellite of [[Tonoyama Fort]].  It was not clearly threatened by other Shibata fortifications, had easy access to [[Tonoyama Fort]] and could have continued to provide intelligence from up the valley. I would like to think that it was in continued use as a satellite of [[Tonoyama Fort]] rather than potentially being used against it.
-Refer to the [[Battle of Shizugatkae]] for more details.
+After this point, you’ll need to angle up the ridge to the right. It would be best to follow my Yamap trail or take a good map. There is no clearly defined route.
+|History=Imaichikami Fort was established across the valley from [[Tenjinyama Fort]] as part of Hideyoshi’s original forward defensive line. It sits at a much higher elevation and provides a clearer view up the valley toward [[Genbao Castle]] than Tenjinyama.
+It’s unclear whether the site was abandoned when Hideyoshi pulled back from [[Tenjinyama Fort]], or whether it remained in use as a satellite of [[Tohnoyama Fort]]. Since it was not directly threatened by Shibata-aligned forts, had easy access to Tohnoyama, and maintained visibility up the valley, it's reasonable to think it continued to serve as a lookout or intelligence post.
+See the [[Battle of Shizugatake]] page for broader context.
 |Year Visited=2025
 |AddedJcastle=2025