Chihaya Castle, Mountain fortress in Chihayaakasaka, Japan
Chihaya Castle occupies five enclosures along a narrow ridge of Mount Kongō, with the main bailey about 100 by 20 metres and dry moats between the terraces. The ridge top rises 175 metres above the valley, and the site is reached by a climb of some 500 steps. A stone monument with a vertical column of carved characters stands on a low base near a slim wooden post.
The fortress was built in 1332 by Kusunoki Masashige as part of his resistance against the Kamakura shogunate. It endured multiple sieges that tested its defensive position and strategic importance during medieval Japan's power struggles.
The grounds feature a Shinto shrine honoring Kusunoki Masashige and his military legacy. Visitors can see how this location remains a place of remembrance connected to medieval Japanese warfare and strategy.
Reaching the castle requires climbing approximately 500 steps along a mountain path to the ridge. The ruins are open to the public and protected as a National Historic Site, allowing visitors to walk through the grounds freely.
During the 1333 siege, Kusunoki Masashige had 20 to 30 straw dummies dressed in armour and armed with bows and spears placed at the foot of the mountain overnight, with 500 soldiers hidden behind them. At dawn the troops raised a war cry; the shogunal army charged, and when it reached the dummies, boulders were rolled down, killing 300 and wounding 500.
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