Ogyu Castle

History

The castle started as fortified manor in the 1400's built by a local lord. It was captured by Matsudaira Nobumitsu in 1507 and Matsudaira Chikatada was put in charge of castle. Chikatada and his son Norimoto built the site into the large scale castle you see today. Norimoto remained as castle lord and founded the Ogyu Matsudaira branch of the Matsudaira clan. The Ogyu Matsudaira supported the main branch of the Matsudaira clan but had several conflicts with other Matsudaira clans in the area. The castle was ruined in a 1575 battle with the Takiwaki Matsudaira. It was completely abandoned in 1590 when Tokugawa Ieyasu moved to Edo. The Ogyu Matsudaira went with Ieyasu and moved to Gunma.

Visit Notes

This was the most impressive mountaintop castle ruin I have been to in a long time. There is a lot of stonework around the site, but it also has these amazing huge boulders that are combined with the stonework in some locations and act as natural barriers and potential defensive positions in others. It's certainly a one-of-a-kind castle among those that I have been to. The castle ruin itself is about a 20 min walk from the nearest bus stop. You need to walk uphill up the road from the bus stop and there is a bit of an uphill trail in the mountain, but all things considered it is a very accessible mountaintop castle and highly recommended for any castle fans. There are fantastic views from the top and would be a great place for a family picnic with some hiking. I think it must have great autumn colors too. When I visited, there was road construction going on and the bus stop was moved from where I expected it to be, based on old information I had, so I lost some time trying to figure out where I was and where to go. If you visit this castle by bus just be aware that some information you find may be old if this new road affects bus routes. Try to confirm with up-to-date websites, Navitime, Google Maps or the bus company. Hopefully it will let you get closer to the castle in the end.

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Castle Profile
English Name	Ogyu Castle
Japanese Name	大給城
Founder	Nagasaka Shinzaemon
Year Founded	15th C.
Castle Type	Mountaintop
Castle Condition	Ruins only
Designations	Top 100 Mountaintop Castles, National Historic Site
Historical Period	Pre Edo Period
Features	trenches, stone walls
Visitor Information
Access	Toyotashi Sta (Meitetsu); 25 mins bus to Ohuchi bus stop
Visitor Information	mountain; open 24/7
Time Required	150 mins
Location	Toyota, Aichi Prefecture
Coordinates	35° 3' 13.46" N, 137° 13' 42.85" E
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Admin
Added to Jcastle	2020
Contributor	Eric
Admin Year Visited	2020
Admin Visits	January 14, 2020
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