Sakamoto Castle

From Jcastle.info

Sakamoto8.jpg

History

After annihilating the warrior monks of Hiezan in 1571, Oda Nobunaga ordered Akechi Mitsuhide to construct a castle at Sakamoto. Sakamoto Castle was a lakeside castle of strategic importance as it guarded the Western Omi Road, the road to the mountain pass into Kyoto from Omi (present day Shiga Prefecture), and it was also directly linked to Azuchi Castle by boats across Lake Biwa. It was also built to monitor the activities of the Enryakuji monks and to guard the western shores of southern Lake Biwa. Sakamoto Castle replaced nearby Usayama Castle. In 1586, four years after the death of Akechi Mitsuhide, this castle was dismantled and replaced by Otsu Castle as the local castle for controlling the area of southern Lake Biwa around Sakamoto and Otsu.


Visit Notes

There is essentially nothing left of the castle to see today. There is a small castle park with a statue of Akechi Mitsuhide and some fake stone walls that were put up when the park was built but they are not remnants of the original stone walls and in fact the park is not even on the castle grounds.

In the fall of 2021, low rainfalls and few typhoons in 2021 caused the water level of Lake Biwa to drop, revealing some remnants of the honmaru stone walls that have been underwater for years. Those are the main photos you see below. This article from Shirobito shows the location of these stone walls on an illustration of the castle. There is also some stonework along one side of the Ryosha Shrine that is thought to be the edge of the Outer Bailey.

While Sakamoto Castle Ruin isn’t really worth a visit by itself, combined with a visit to see the Anou-shu Zumi stone walls in Sakamoto and a trip up Mt. Hiei to visit the Enryakuji Temple, it makes for a great day trip from Kyoto. If you ever wondered where Nobunaga and Hideyoshi’s castle builders came from, go to Sakamoto and see the stonemasons’ legacy. There are Many original stone walls here and more than at many castle ruins in Japan. They are mainly located between the Keihan Sakamoto Station and the cable car station up to Mt. Hie.

Original profile by RaymondW (2012), updated by Eric (2022), photos of gates by ART and RonS.


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Gallery
  • original honmaru stone wall ruins
  • Akechi Mitsuhide statue
  • Sakamoto Castle Park - not original stone walls
  • Sakamoto Castle Park
  • Sakamoto Castle Park
  • Ryosha Shrine, stone walls thought to be the outer moat
  • Relocated Gate from Castle (Saikyouji General Gate)
  • Relocated Omotemon Gate 聖衆来迎寺表門(坂本城移築城門)


Castle Profile
English Name Sakamoto Castle
Japanese Name 坂本城
Founder Akechi Mitsuhide
Year Founded 1571
Castle Type Flatland
Castle Condition No main keep but other buildings
Historical Period Pre Edo Period
Features stone walls
Visitor Information
Access Hiezansakamoto Sta (JR Kosei Line) or Keihan Matsunobanba Sta.; 20 min walk
Visitor Information free open park
Time Required 60 mins
Website http://www.otsu.or.jp/sengoku/sakamoto.html
Location Otsu, Shiga Prefecture
Coordinates 35° 3' 35.75" N, 135° 52' 37.70" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle 2012
Contributor RaymondW
Admin Year Visited Viewer Contributed, 2021
Admin Visits November 20, 2021
Friends of JCastle
Kojodan: Sakamoto-jo
Shirobito: Sakamoto-jo
Jokaku Horoki: Sakamoto-jo
Shirofan: Sakamoto-jo
Ken's Castle Storage: Sakamoto Castle


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ARTShogun

19 months ago
Score 0++
Added co-ordinates for relocated gates.
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ARTShogun

25 months ago
Score 1++
Many people contributed to make this profile!
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ARTShogun

37 months ago
Score 0++
Updated to yellow as there are several relocated gates very nearby.
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ARTShogun

51 months ago
Score 1++
Ron and I found two relocated gates for this site. One at Shojuraigo Temple to the north, and another at the front of Saikyouji.