Hamada Castle

From Jcastle.info

Hamada8.jpg

History

Yoshida Shigeharu was given the Hamada domain for his success at the Battle of Sekigahara and moved here from Matsuzaka (Mie Pref.) in 1619. The Hamada domain was an important domain held closely by Tokugawa allies as a defense against the Mouri in the Choshu region. The castle and castle town were completed in 1623. After Yoshida, the castle was briefly ruled by the Matsudaira, Honda, and then back to the Matsudaira again, where it stayed until the end of the Edo Period. In 1866 the Hamada Domain formed the center of the second Choshu Incursion by the Tokugawa. The Hamada forces lost badly and set fire to the castle before fleeing. The castle was never rebuilt.


Visit Notes

This is a surprisingly nice little castle. Well preserved stone walls and excellent signage makes it an enjoyable stop. It's a bit out of the way from anywhere you might normally go but it's a worthy half day trip if you are visiting the area. You can get a direct bus from Hiroshima to Hamada which is faster than trains and could also set you up for excursions into Tsuwano and Hagi.
以外によかったお城です。石垣が多くて立地も構造も面白いです。説明板も多く設置されているのは嬉しいです。浜田市はあまり観光で行くようなところではなさそうですが機会があればお城を訪れる価値があります。広島からのバスもあるので電車より速いです。1日に近くの津和野城も回ることができます。


Loading map...


Gallery
  • Gate
  • Gate
  • Sanmaru stone walls.
  • Entrance to the Sanmaru Bailey
  • Sanmaru stone walls
  • Sanmaru stone walls
  • Sanmaru Stone walls
  • Sanmaru stone walls
  • Nimaru stone walls
  • Demaru bailey
  • Honmaru Bailey
  • View from the Honmaru bailey
  • Ichinomaru Gate and Honmaru stone walls
  • Ninomon Masugata Gate
  • Ninomon Gate
  • Ninomon stone walls
  • Ninomon stone walls
  • Ninomon Gate
  • Stone walls
  • Stone walls
  • Stone wall remnants
  • Stone walls
  • Sanmaru Bailey
  • Path to the Enshogura
  • Enshogura site
  • Ninomaru stone walls
  • Stone walls of the Uramon Gate
  • Nakanomon Gate
  • Otemon
  • Map
  • Map
  • Reconstruction illustration


Castle Profile
English Name Hamada Castle
Japanese Name 浜田城
Alternate Names Kameyama-jo
Founder Furuta Shigeharu
Year Founded 1619
Castle Type Mountaintop
Castle Condition No main keep but other buildings
Designations Next 100 Castles, Prefectural Historic Site
Historical Period Edo Period
Features gates, trenches, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access Hamada Sta. (San'in Line), 25 min walk or 10 min bus + 5 min walk
Visitor Information open any time, enter the grounds through the shrine and go towards the right not to the main shrine area.
Time Required 45 mins
Website http://www.city.hamada.shimane.jp/www/contents/1001000002482/index.html
Location Hamada, Shimane Prefecture
Coordinates 34° 54' 10.48" N, 132° 4' 23.99" E
Loading map...
Admin
Added to Jcastle 2015
Admin Year Visited 2014
Admin Visits November 23, 2014


2.25
(4 votes)
Add your comment
Jcastle.info welcomes all comments. If you do not want to be anonymous, register or log in. It is free.


avatar

ARTShogun

37 months ago
Score 0++
Updated to yellow status for the historic albeit relocated gate.
avatar

ARTShogun

39 months ago
Score 0++

Hamadajō (Hamada)  浜田城 [島根県浜田市]

Hamadajō is a hilltop castle (ladder-like arrangement) in the port town of Hamada, Shimane Prefecture. Ruins feature ishigaki and baileys. The views of the bay are pleasant and the site is easy to access. If possible I recommend starting at the Uramon ("Rear Gate") and then Nakanomon ("Middle Gate") ruins so as not to have to double-back to visit them, but the site is anyway not so large (actually I missed the Uramon > <). The ishigaki is in mostly good condition and the masugata (square layout) gate complex is impressive, especially since one can walk all the way around it and inspect it from every angle. There are many signposts at the site detailing features and showing both maps and computer graphic mock-ups, so the site gets full marks from me here, albeit - an afterthought but - all information is in Japanese only.

The gate seen here is Edo Period but was originally the gate of a bukeyashiki (samurai residence) in Tsuwano! It was not moved to Hamadajō until 1967, having first been relocated to Hamada to serve as the entrance to the Hamada Prefectural Office (all domains were temporarily converted into prefectures at the start of the Meiji Period), which later became the Naka District Head Office when in 1876 Hamada-ken was merged into Shimane-ken (which - trivia - until 1881 also included Tottori-ken).

Hamadajō was destroyed during the Second Chōshū Expedition in 1866 after the invasion of Chōshū led by Ômura Masujirō.