Yakyu Fort
Yakyū-toride is a mountaintop fort site in Miasa Township, Ômachi Municipality. Specifically it is located on a hill opposite 'Pokapoka Land Miasa', above an Akiba shrine. The fortification ruins are on the ridge above the shrine. Yakyū-toride has a long, narrow layout, essentially following the r
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History
Yakyū-toride was built on a hill above where there is now a shrine to Akiba. It's not clear whether the shrine area was also part of the fort or was levelled in later times. Interestingly, Akiba is a diety of fire, and is thought to have been worshipped at noroshidai (beacon tower) sites, suggesting Yakyū-toride may have had such a role. Oral tradition within the village below would also suggest the fort hosted a residence, as it is called 'Shiro no Yakata'. However, there is no paper trail for this site, and it's lords are not known. I would imagine it likely functioned as a satellite fortification of Senmijō to the east, and that their respective histories are largely congruent.
Field Notes
Yakyū-toride is a mountaintop fort site in Miasa Township, Ômachi Municipality. Specifically it is located on a hill opposite 'Pokapoka Land Miasa', above an Akiba shrine. The fortification ruins are on the ridge above the shrine.
Yakyū-toride has a long, narrow layout, essentially following the ridge. There are three baileys: upper, middle and lower. The middle bailey appears to be the main bailey. Each bailey is connected by narrow slips of the ridge. The middle bailey is the best defended, with dorui (earthen ramparts) to the rear, and a horikiri (trench) beneath the dorui. These earthworks are a sure sign that we have a fort ruin here, and aren't just looking at a natural ridge formation.
Other fortification ruins are a bit less obvious. I went into the upper bailey, and it looks bailey-shaped with a rear embankment, but it is also covered in chest-high bamboo grass. This type of bamboo in Japanese is called 'kumazasa (bear bamboo)'. A bear could hide in it! I was able to traverse the area and get to the rear of the site where there is a narrow ridge. This seems to be the end of the fortified area. I amused myself on the return journey by photographing mushrooms and fungi, of which there were hundreds of specimens around.
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| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Yakyu Fort |
| Japanese Name | 矢久砦 |
| Alternate Names | Shiro no Yakata |
| Founder | Unknown |
| Year Founded | Unknown |
| Castle Type | Mountaintop |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Artifacts | Horikiri, Kuruwa, Dorui |
| Features | trenches |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Shinano-Ômachi Station on the Ôito Line; rental e-bike |
| Hours | 24/7 free; mountain |
| Time Required | 30 minutes |
| Location | Ômachi, Nagano Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 36.60792, 137.89506 |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2023 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Yogo | |
