Azuchi Castle

Azuchi Castle is a fantastic site to visit. They've done an amazing job excavating the ruins and rebuilding the stone walls throughout the site. Since I was last there in 2004 they rebuilt all the stonework foundations around the base of the mountain. There are still many inaccessible ruins around t

History

By 1575 Nobunaga had become the most powerful samurai in the country. He turned over control of the Owari & Mino provinces to his eldest son Nobutada and set his own eyes on the unification of all Japan. In 1576, Nobunaga established his new castle and power base at Azuchi on Lake Biwa. This was a very strategic location in that it gave him significant control over the nearby Tokaida and Nakasendo roads to Kyoto and any traffic on Lake Biwa.

It took 3.5 years to complete the main keep and entire castle. Unfortunately, the castle was short lived. After Nobunaga was killed by Akechi Mitsuhide in 1582 at Honnoji Temple, Azuchi Castle was burned to the ground in a battle between Nobunaga's second son Nobukatsu and Akechi's men who had taken over the castle.

The construction of Azuchi Castle was a revolution in castle design and marked the turning point in a new type of castle. Until this time, most were smaller mountaintop structures that were only used as a lookout or as needed. Nobunaga's Azuchi castle led the way for the larger and more grand structures of the late Sengoku Period and Early Edo Period turning castles in to quarters for the daimyo and some retainers.

The main keep itself was 7 stories high and thought to have been the largest multi-storied wooden building in the world at that time. The fifth floor of the main keep was an octagon representing heaven and the quadrangular sixth floor represented the thoughts of Taoism and Confucianism.

The picture above is of the Ote-michi entrance through to the castle. Along either side were houses of loyal retainers.

Field Notes

Azuchi Castle is a fantastic site to visit. They've done an amazing job excavating the ruins and rebuilding the stone walls throughout the site. Since I was last there in 2004 they rebuilt all the stonework foundations around the base of the mountain. There are still many inaccessible ruins around the mountain so I hope they continue these efforts and open up more of the castle soon. Even though there are only ruins I have to give 4 stars due to the extent of ruins, signage, and the maintenance and ongoing excavations. This site is really a must see for any castle fans.

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Gallery

Ote entrance
Entrance at the foot of the mountain
entrance at the base of the mounatin
stone walls around the mountain
masugata entrance
Stone walls near the Otemon Entrance
Stone walls near the Otemon Entrance
Stone walls near the Otemon entrance
Stone walls of Maeda Toshiie's palace
Stone walls of Ieyasu's palace
Remains of Hashiba Hideyoshi's palace
Hideyoshi's palace drawing
stone walls of Hideyoshi and Tokugawa's palaces.
Remains of Hideyoshi's palace
Otemichi Road
Path to the Kuroganemon Gate
Kuroganemon gate
Stone walls of the Ninomaru
Stone walls of the Ninomaru
Stone walls near the Ninomaru
Kuroganemon Gate stone walls
Ninomaru stone walls
Honmaru (?) stone walls
Main keep entrance
Stone walls near the Sannomaru
Sannomaru stone walls
Sannomaru stone walls
Honmaru entrance stone walls
Honmaru stone walls
Entrance to the main keep
Entrance to the main keep
main keep foundation
View from the main keep foundation
Honmaru stone walls
Route to the Sokenji Temple
Route to the Sokenji Temple
Three story pagoda
Route to the Sokenji Temple
Map

More Galleries and Feature Pages

Eastern Baileys

(64 photos)

Castle Profile
English Name	Azuchi Castle
Japanese Name	安土城
Founder	Oda Nobunaga
Year Founded	1576
Castle Type	Hilltop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Designations	Top 100 Castles, Top 100 Mountaintop Castles, National Historic Site, Special Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	trenches, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Azuchi Station (JR Tokaido Line)
Hours	700 yen
Time Required	120 mins
URL	Castle Website
Location	Azuchi, Shiga Prefecture
Coordinates	35.15593, 136.13928
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2004
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2004, 2011, 2021
Admin Visits	February 21, 2004; November 26, 2011; December 12, 2021

3.84

(19 votes)

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