Ozu Castle

Japanese: 大洲城 - おおずじょう

Hirayama Castle is located in Ozu, Ozu City, Ehime Prefecture. It is one of the "100 Great Castles in Japan" selected by the Japan Castle Foundation. It was built on Jizogatake (20m above sea level ) facing the Hijikawa River, with inner and outer moats built using the flow of the Hijikawa River. It is said to have been built in 1331 (Gentoku 3) by the guardian Utsunomiya Toyofusa. It was the residence castle of the Utsunomiya clan for a long time, but when Toyotomi Hideyoshi conquered Shikoku, Kobayakawa Takakage took over the castle and made it a subsidiary castle. Later, Toda Katsutaka took over the castle, and during the reign of Todo Takatora and Wakisaka Yasuharu, who took over the castle, it was developed into a modern castle. During the reign of the Wakisaka clan, the main citadel was built on the top of Jizogatake Mountain and a castle tower was built, and the name of the place was changed from Otsu to Ozu. In 1617 (Genwa 3), the Kato clan became the lord of Ozu Domain, and continued to rule for 12 generations. Many of the turrets and gates were demolished during the Meiji period, but the castle tower and parts of the turrets were left standing thanks to preservation efforts by local residents. However, the castle tower was demolished in 1888 (Meiji 21) due to deterioration and other reasons. Currently, four turrets remain, including the Kitchen Turret and the South Corner Turret, and the four-story, four-storey castle tower was restored in 2004 (Heisei 16). It is a 20-minute walk from Iyo- Ozu Station on the JR Yosan Main Line. ◇It is also called Jizogadake Castle, Hiji Castle, and Ozu Castle.

Source: Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles Information

Japanese:

愛媛県大洲(おおず)市大洲にある平山城(ひらやまじろ)。日本城郭協会選定による「日本100名城」の一つ。肱川(ひじかわ)の流れを利用して内堀・外堀を設け、肱川に面した地蔵ヶ嶽(じぞうがだけ)（標高20m）に築かれた。1331年（元徳3）、守護の宇都宮豊房が築城したとされる。長く宇都宮氏の居城だったが、豊臣秀吉の四国制覇により、小早川隆景が入封し、支城とした。その後、戸田勝隆が入城し、つづいて入封した藤堂高虎と脇坂安治の時代に、近世の城郭として整備された。脇坂氏の代には、地蔵ヶ嶽山頂に本丸を構えて天守を建立、また地名を大津から大洲に改めた。1617年（元和3）加藤氏が大洲藩主となり、以後12代続いた。多くの櫓(やぐら)や門は、明治時代に取り壊されたが、住民の保存活動により天守と櫓の一部は残された。しかし、天守は老朽化などの理由で、1888年（明治21）に解体された。現在、台所櫓(だいどころやぐら)や南隅櫓など4棟の櫓が現存するほか、2004年（平成16）に四重4階の天守が復元された。JR予讃本線伊予大洲駅から徒歩20分。◇地蔵ヶ嶽城(じぞうがだけじょう)、比志城(ひじじょう)、大津城(おおずじょう)ともいう。

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