Ohmori Castle (Mino)
Ômorijō is a yamajiro (mountaintop castle) ruin in Ômori Township, Kani Municipality. The castle has a syncretic and fairly unorthodox design, and is also considered a hirayamajiro, a castle combining both mountaintop and flatland fortification features. It is also an okajiro (hilltop castle) becaus
History
Ômorijō is said to have been built by Okumura "Matahachirō" Motohiro circa 1570. Matahachirō was originally a retainer of lord Toki "Akugorō" Yorioki, lord of Kukurijō, but Matahachirō would become the vassal of Mori Nagayoshi, lord of Mino-Kanayamajō. However, Matahachirō planned to usurp and kill Nagayoshi. When word of this plot got out in 1582, Mori forces attacked Ômorijō. Matahachirō fled to Echizen, and the castle was razed.
Field Notes
Ômorijō is a yamajiro (mountaintop castle) ruin in Ômori Township, Kani Municipality. The castle has a syncretic and fairly unorthodox design, and is also considered a hirayamajiro, a castle combining both mountaintop and flatland fortification features. It is also an okajiro (hilltop castle) because the castle mount is only about 40m tall in relative height. Horikiri (trenches) separate baileys, like at a typical yamajiro, but then beneath these a large yokobori (hillside lateral trench) surrounds much of the entire fort. This is a very satisfying design. I still consider this site primarily a yamajiro because no part of it is built on flat terrain.
Features of Ômorijō consist of earthworks such as dorui (earthen ramparts), dobashi (earthen bridges), yokobori, horikiri, tatebori (climbing moats), kuruwa (baileys) and gate complexes. The castle had a residential annex where Ômori-jinja is today, but structures there are related to the shrine. The main route to the main bailey appears to have wound around beneath the castle through the moat, and up via a crank-shaped gate complex into the northern bailey group. The arrangement of the trenches here is fairly complex with dead-ends.
Gallery
| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Ohmori Castle (Mino) |
| Japanese Name | 美濃大森城 |
| Founder | Okumura Motohiro |
| Year Founded | c.1570 |
| Castle Type | Mountaintop |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Designations | Local Historic Site |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Artifacts | Dorui, Yokobori, Kuruwa, &c. |
| Features | trenches |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Shimogiri Station on the Taita Line; 18 min walk to mount's southern ridge; or, 25 min walk to shrine |
| Hours | 24/7 free; hill |
| Time Required | 60 mins |
| URL | Castle Website |
| Location | Kani, Gifu Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 35.40076, 137.07099 |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2025 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Jōkaku Hōrōki | |
| Yogo | |
| Kyūtarō no Sengoku Shiro Meguri | |
