Ogawa Castle (Koka)

This one was not even very high on my radar despite putting together the Koka Castles article a year earlier, but RaymondW who visited Ogawa Castle earlier this year (2023) reached out to say that I absolutely had to prioritize this above any other current castle plans because

History

Ogawa Castle has a typical mountaintop castle design with multiple baileys along the ridge with commanding views of the valley. Among the hundreds of castles in Koka, including nearby castles of the Tarao clan, Ogawa Castle does not fit with the typical yakatajiro profile. It is likely that it was built in the mid 1500's to help the Tarao fortify this end of the valley

Ogawa Castle's claim to fame is that Tokugawa Ieyasu spent one night here during his flight from Sakai to Mikawa after the death of Oda Nobunaga (called the Iga Crossing). He was too scared with what the world would become after Mitsuhide's betrayal that he fled back home to regroup and see how things would play out before making his own moves. During this flight the Tarao escorted Tokugawa Ieyasu to the Iga border. For this service the Tarao were later granted a magistrate position which they held until the end of the Edo Period.

Field Notes

This one was not even very high on my radar despite putting together the Koka Castles article a year earlier, but RaymondW who visited Ogawa Castle earlier this year (2023) reached out to say that I absolutely had to prioritize this above any other current castle plans because it was so good. Well, the site did not disappoint! The castle offers both stunning views and fantastic castle ruins. It's a brilliantly designed small castle just covering the top of the mountain with with steeps sides and beautifully preserved earthen embankments and trenches. One of the baileys also has some stone wall ruins and the foundation stones of a building.

Just before the main sign and entrance to the castle there is a small trail that cuts down steeply and narrowly from the castle. This trail actually takes you down to a side bailey and continuing down the ridge from here you will find a subsidiary castle called Ogawa Nakanojo Castle. See Ogawa Nakanojo Castle for more details.

Walking up the main road and fire trail to get to Ogawa Castle is fairly easy, but there was one area where there was a lot of noise in the trees above me and a branch fell near me, then another, and another. Looking up, there was some crazed cackling monkey throwing branches down at me. So, if you go, be careful of crazy monkeys too!

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Castle Profile
English Name	Ogawa Castle (Koka)
Japanese Name	小川城
Founder	Tarao clan
Year Founded	mid 1500s
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Designations	Prefectural Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	trenches
Visitor Information
Access	Shigaraki Sta (Shigaraki Kogen Railway Line); 10 min bus, 35 min walk
Hours	Mountain, open 24/7
Time Required	45 mins
URL	Castle Website
Location	Koka, Shiga Prefecture
Coordinates	34.8437, 136.0344
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Collections	Koka Castles
Admin
Added to Jcastle	2023
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2023
Admin Visits	March 12, 2023
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