Iwakura Castle (Owari)
Iwakurajō was a chance encounter for me (ART). I had been to Inuyama Castle that day, but a fire at a depot along the Meitetsu-Inuyama line stranded me at Iwakura. Iwakura is a small municipality; many of the smallest municipalities by area size in Japan are actually in Aichi Prefecture, and Iwakur
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History
Iwakurajō is thought to have been constructed by Oda Toshihiro in 1479.
Iwakurajō was a large, multilayered structure. The main bailey contained the castellan's palace, and it was surrounded by a narrow ditch and a simple paling wall. The main bailey also contained an elaborate watchtower and a well. The second bailey surrounded the main bailey, and was protected with dorui (earthen ramparts) and palisades. It also contained palatial halls, as well as a residence for the chief vassal, itself surrounded by a ditch. The second bailey was surrounded by the uchibori (inner moat). A narrow third bailey ringed the second bailey, itself surrounded by the sotobori (outer moat). The residences of vassals were located in the souther portion of this outer bailey.
In 1559, Iwakurajō was commanded by Oda Nobukata. It was besieged and destroyed in the Oda Clan civil war in which Oda Nobunaga defeated his younger brother, Oda Nobuyuki.
Field Notes
Iwakurajō was a chance encounter for me (ART). I had been to Inuyama Castle that day, but a fire at a depot along the Meitetsu-Inuyama line stranded me at Iwakura. Iwakura is a small municipality; many of the smallest municipalities by area size in Japan are actually in Aichi Prefecture, and Iwakura is typical of them in that it is a town which serves as a bedroom community and suburb of Nagoya. That is to say, there are very few distractions there. So, I and hundreds of others were stranded there. In order to kill some time whilst I waited for the next train (it never came; I ended up getting the bus to a JR line in the next town over), I identified the ruins of Iwakurajō nearby and went for a look-see.
Owari-Iwakurajō is a hirajiro (flatland) castle ruin in Iwakura Municipality. It is designated by the municipality as a site of historical importance. Despite this, few to no ruins remain. As such, the most interesting thing about this site was reading the explanatory boards there. One featured a nice map of what the castle used to look like.
Additionally there is a encarved stone block to mark the castle on a mound with a Buddhist altar house. The other stele on the mound are religious monuments. However, at the back of the mound there is a row of houses with nothing but a long, narrow field behind them. Naturally I wondered if this is where the castle's moat once ran. Maybe this is where the city conducted archaelogical digs.
Owari-Iwakurajō is located in historic Owari Province, not to be confused with other castles with the same name in neighbouring provinces, such as Mikawa-Iwakurajō and Ōmi-Iwakurajō, which I've visited both.
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| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Iwakura Castle (Owari) |
| Japanese Name | 尾張岩倉城 |
| Founder | Oda Toshihiro |
| Year Founded | 1479 |
| Castle Type | Flatland |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Designations | Local Historic Site |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Features | trenches |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Iwakura Station on the Meitetsu-Inuyama Line; 10 minute walk |
| Hours | Access Limited |
| Time Required | 10 minutes |
| Location | Iwakura, Aichi Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 35.27493, 136.87816 |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2024 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Jōkaku Hōrōki | |
| Shiseki Yawa | |
