Oda Castle

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Oda33.jpg

History

Oda Castle started as a fortified home of the Oda Clan who were the provincial lords during the Kamakura Period. By the 1300's it became one of the major castles in the Kanto region. In 1495, the 13th head of the Oda clan, Oda Harutaka, was killed by his younger brother Akiie who became the new (14th) lord of the castle. Akiie increased the Oda influence and power in the region and fought with Edo, Daijo, and Yuki clans. During the reign of the 15th lord, Ujiharu, the Hojo had expanded their territory to encroach on the Hitachi (Ibaraki) lands. At first, Ujihara defied the Hojo but eventually joined with them in 1562. in 1556, Oda Castle fell to the Yuki with support from the Hojo. In 1564, after aligning with the Hojo, Oda Castle was taken by the combined Uesugi and Satake forces. Each time, Ujihara retreated to Tsuchiura Castle from which he launched attacks to retake Oda Castle. In 1569, Ujiharu again lost the castle to Satake and Makabe forces but was not able to retake it. Oda Castle remained in Satake hands until they were sent to Akita in 1602 and the castle was abandoned. Oda Ujihara had moved to Echizen (Fukui Pref) with the Yuki in the previous year (1601) and so they were never able to retake the castle again. Oda Castle underwent large scale renovations several times since it was founded in the Kamakura Period, the latest of which was in the mid 1500s around the time of the heaviest unrest when the castle was repeatedly attacked.


Visit Notes

This site was reopened in late April 2016 after reconstructing much of the castle and building a very nice little museum. Originally a train track ran right through the middle of the castle but the train line was abolished and most of the track was turned into a bicycling course starting from Tsuchiura Station. Some day I would love to ride the bike trail as well. It looks very nice. If you ride the <a href=""http://www.pref.ibaraki.jp/doboku/urado/doni/documents/map11.pdf>full 30km course</a> you can also visit 3 castles along the way!
2016のGWに新しく開園されました。もともとは線路が城跡を横切っていましたが、線路の廃止とともに城跡の復元を実現することができました。新しく建設された資料館もとても面白いです。線路だったところをりんりんロードというサイクリングコースになりました。<a href="http://www.pref.ibaraki.jp/doboku/urado/doni/documents/map11.pdf">全30キロのコース</a>を走れば城跡を三つ訪れることができます。


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Gallery
  • North Entrance
  • Moat
  • North Entrance
  • North entrance
  • Stone wall of the bridge
  • Yagura foundation
  • Earthen embankment
  • Water moat of the East Bailey
  • Northeast corner yagura foundation
  • Main bailey seen from the East Bailey
  • Earthen embankment of the East Bailey
  • East Entrance
  • East bailey and moat
  • Main bailey
  • Water moat between the East Bailey and Main Bailey
  • Southeast corner yagura foundation
  • Main bailey
  • Main bailey
  • Main bailey and moat
  • Umadashi in the southwest
  • Southwest entrance to the main bailey
  • Southwest entrance to the main bailey
  • Main bailey
  • Main bailey seen from the Southwest Umadashi Entrance
  • Part of the Southwest Umadashi Bailey
  • Southwest Umadashi Entrance
  • Southwest Umadashi Entrance
  • Southwest Umadashi Entrance
  • Rest area
  • Main bailey
  • Main bailey and embankment
  • Map
  • Map
  • Diorama of the castle


Castle Profile
English Name Oda Castle
Japanese Name 小田城
Founder Oda
Year Founded late 1100's
Castle Type Flatland
Castle Condition Ruins only
Designations National Historic Site
Historical Period Pre Edo Period
Features water moats, trenches, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access Tsuchiura Sta, 30 min bus, 10 min walk
Visitor Information Park, open any time. Museum open 9-4:30. Closed Mondays (except national holidays), the day after a holiday and 12/28-1/4
Time Required 60 mins
Website http://www.city.tsukuba.ibaraki.jp/14214/14274/370/008714.html
Location Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture
Coordinates 36° 9' 2.70" N, 140° 6' 40.25" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle 2016
Admin Year Visited 2016
Admin Visits May 5, 2016


3.00
(2 votes)
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ARTShogun

86 months ago
Score 0++
Odajō is a well maintained site and a good representation of the earthworks of a Sengoku Period castle. It has impressive dorui (earthen embankments), mizubori (water moat) and karabori (dry moat). There is a museum nearby with a model showing what the castle looked like in the 1500s. It shows that the castle had Shōjibori moats, an intriguing feature of moats made up from a latticework of rammed earth.