藤崎城, Japanese castle in Fujisaki, Japan
Fujisaki Castle is a flatland castle site on a river terrace on the right bank of the Hirakawa River in Fujisaki, Aomori Prefecture. It consists of three enclosures: the main enclosure, a rectangle about 83 by 95 metres divided by a 9-metre-wide moat into first and second baileys; the western enclosure, about 122 by 155 metres, bordered by the Hirakawa and cut by moats 14.5 and 7 metres wide; and the eastern enclosure, or Shinjo, measuring about 400 by 540 metres. No stone walls remain; the layout is read from earthworks and ditches.
Abe no Takakimaru, son of Abe no Sadato, fled to Tsugaru after defeat in the Former Nine Years' War in 1062 and later took the name Abe no Sadayoshi. His son Abe no Takanori built Fujisaki Castle in 1092, and his descendants took the name Ando. In 1443 the Nanbu attacked and took the castle; it was revived in 1567 after 200 years and abandoned in 1585.
The castle gave its name to the Andō clan, which traces its origin to this site: Abe no Takakimaru, defeated in the Former Nine Years' War of 1062, fled to Tsugaru, and his descendant Takatsune built Fujisaki Castle in 1092. The family later took the name Andō. The Inari shrine and Hōkō-ji stand in the western enclosure, and Hachiman Shrine remains in the eastern one.
The site lies on the right bank of the Hirakawa in Fujisaki, split into three parts: the main enclosure, the western enclosure and the eastern enclosure (Shinjo). The western enclosure borders the Hirakawa and holds the Inari shrine and Hokko-ji; the eastern enclosure looks over the Tsugaru plain toward the Iwaki and Hirakawa rivers. The whole site measures about 360 m east-west and 800 m north-south, so allow time to walk between the enclosures.
The castle site is traditionally held to be the birthplace of the Andō clan: in 1092, Abe no Takakiyo's heir built it, and his descendants took the name Andō. The grounds also hold Hachiman Shrine and Inari Shrine, and the west enclosure borders the Hirakawa River.
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