Kaerikumo Castle

Kaerikumo Castle was a fortress at the foot of Mount Sanboukuzure, standing on high ground above the Shogawa River valley. A commemorative stone now stands at the approximate site of the vanished fortress and its settlement.

Uchigashima Tameuji built the fortress in 1460 as a strategic base for controlling the Shirakawa region. The great Tensho earthquake destroyed it completely in 1586, burying the settlement under a landslide.

The name recalls the Uchigashima family who once ruled here and controlled mining operations in the surrounding mountains. Today the Kaerikusumo Shrine marks the spot where people of the lost settlement lived and worked.

The memorial site lies near National Route 156 close to Kaerikusumo Shrine, where visitors can park. The stone itself is easily visible and accessible at any time of day.

The disaster wiped out a settlement of roughly 300 buildings within minutes, and only four people survived because they happened to be elsewhere. Mount Sanboukuzure still carries a name that refers to the collapse.

Location: Shirakawa

Inception: 1460s

Founders: Uchigashima Tameuji

GPS coordinates: 36.21006,136.89283

Latest update: December 14, 2025 19:48