Koriyama Castle

Japanese: 郡山城 - こおりやまじょう

Hirayama Castle was located in Jonai-cho, Yamatokoriyama City, Nara Prefecture. During the Sengoku period, Tsutsui Junkei's castle was the residence. In 1577 (Tensho 5), Tsutsui Junkei defeated Matsunaga Hisahide and was awarded Yamato Province by Oda Nobunaga. In 1580 (Tensho 8), he moved his base from Tsutsui Castle to Koriyama and began renovating it into a Sengoku castle. In 1584 (Tensho 12), Junkei died at the young age of 36, and the following year Hidenaga , the younger brother of Hashiba Hideyoshi (later Toyotomi Hideyoshi), was appointed governor of Yamato, Kii, and Izumi with a fief of 1 million koku. Hidenaga carried out further large-scale renovations, and the castle was almost complete. After Hidenaga's death, his adopted son Hideyasu took over, but he also died in 1595 (Bunroku 4), ending the Toyotomi clan after two generations. After that, Masuda Nagamori was given 200,000 koku of rice as a fief in Koriyama. Nagamori continued to repair the castle, and it is said that the size of the castle was determined by the construction of the outer moat . After the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 (Keicho 5), Nagamori was removed from his fief and Mizuno Katsunari and Matsudaira Tadaaki were given fiefs, who renovated the castle into a modern castle. The castle was passed down from the Mizuno, Matsudaira, and Honda clans, and in 1742 (Kyoho 9), Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu's son Yoshisato was transferred from Kofu Castle (Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture) to the fief of 150,000 koku. Since then, the Yanagisawa clan has lived here for generations, until the Meiji Restoration. In the Meiji era, the castle was demolished, but the remains of the stone walls and moat remain. Currently, the castle ruins have been turned into a park, and the Bairinmon Gate, Tsukimi Yagura, Ote Higashisumi Yagura, and Tamon Yagura have been restored, and walking paths have been developed. It is a 15-minute walk from Koriyama Station on the JR Kansai Main Line, or a 7-minute walk from Kintetsu Koriyama Station on the Kintetsu Kashihara Line.

Source: Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles Information

Japanese:

奈良県大和郡山市城内町にあった平山城(ひらやまじろ)。戦国時代に筒井順慶(じゅんけい)が居城。1577年（天正5）、筒井順慶は松永久秀(ひさひで)を破って織田信長から大和国を与えられると、1580年（天正8）に本拠地を筒井城から郡山に移し、戦国城郭へと修築を開始した。1584年（天正12）、順慶が36歳の若さで没し、翌年、羽柴秀吉（のちの豊臣秀吉）の弟秀長(ひでなが)が大和・紀伊・和泉の太守として100万石で入封した。秀長はさらに大規模な修築を行い、城はほぼ完成した。秀長の死後、養子秀保が継いだが1595年（文禄4）に死去し、豊臣家は2代で断絶した。その後、増田長盛(ましたながもり)が郡山20万石で入封した。長盛は城の修築を続け、外堀普請(ふしん)によって城郭の規模が定まったとされる。1600年（慶長5）の関ヶ原の戦いの後、長盛は除封となり、水野勝成・松平忠明が入封し、近世城郭へと改修した。水野・松平・本多氏へと城主が替わり、1742年（享保9）に甲府城（山梨県甲府市）から柳沢吉保の子吉里が15万石で転封となった。以来、代々柳沢氏が居城し、明治維新を迎えた。明治になって城は取り壊されたが、石垣や堀の遺構が残っている。現在、城跡は公園化され、梅林門、月見櫓(つきみやぐら)、大手東隅櫓、多聞櫓が復元されて散策道が整備されている。JR関西本線郡山駅から徒歩15分。または近鉄橿原線近鉄郡山駅から徒歩7分。

出典　講談社日本の城がわかる事典について　情報

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