茂木城, Mountain castle ruins in Tochigi, Japan

Motegi Castle is a yamajiro, a mountain castle, built on a ridge above the town of Motegi in Tochigi Prefecture. Its grounds are now the Shiroyama Park, where visitors can see the kuruwa (enclosures), dorui (earthen ramparts) and karabori (dry moats) cut into the slopes. The trees on the hillside have been thinned, so the shape of the fortifications is easy to follow.

Motegi Castle was built in the 1190s by Motegi Tomomoto, a son of Hatta Tomoie, who received the Motegi estate from Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1180. In 1556 the Motegi clan submitted to the Satake, and in 1585 the castle fell to a Hojo and Yuki force before being retaken with Satake help. The Satake moved to Akita in 1610, and Hosokawa Okimoto established a jinya below the castle, which was then abandoned.

The layout follows traditional Japanese fortification principles, using natural terrain and multiple levels of defense connected through narrow passages. Walking through the ruins shows how the builders made clever use of the steep slopes to protect the site.

Marked hiking trails through forested paths lead to the ruins and the main archaeological areas. Good footwear and a reasonable level of fitness help since the terrain is steep and uneven in places.

The castle was first taken in 1585 at the Battle of Amagai, then retaken with help from the Satake clan. In 1610 the Satake moved to Akita and Hosokawa Okimoto set up a jinya below the hill, ending the castle's use. Today the earthworks and dry moats survive in Shiroyama Park.