[Castle name]
Mayabashi Castle (Maebashi Castle)
Uesugi Kenshin, Takeda Shingen, and Hojo Ujimasa fought for the castle. Kitajo Takahiro lived in it.
[Description]
Maebashi Castle was a castle on a plain in Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture It is called Maebashi Castle, but it used to be called Mayabashi Castle. It was one of the seven great castles in Kanto
The castle said to be built as a branch castle of the Nagano family in Minowa Castle in the middle of the Muromachi period The 20th year of Tensho period (A.D. 1551), the army of Hojo Ujimasa invaded Kozuke Province and the residents of Mayabashi Castle leave the castle. They asked the Uesugi family for help.
In the third year of the Eiroku period (A.D.1560), Nagao Kagetora (Uesugi Kenshin) attacked Mayabashi Castle take it back. However, in the 6th year of the Eiroku period (A.D. 1563), Hojo Ujimasa from Odawara and Takeda Shingen from Kai invaded the castle and took it. After that, the Hojo family owned the castle, but the Uesugi family took it back again and Kitajo Takahiro, a senior statesman of Kenshin, got in charge of it.
However, in the 10th year of Eiroku (A.D.1567), Kitajo Takahiro defected to the Hojo family and they own the area of Mayabashi again. Later on, the Hojo family and the Uesugi family formed an alliance to prepare for the battle against the Takeda family. Takahiro became belong to the Uesugi family again.
The 7th year of the Tensho period, Takeda Katsuyori, who had succeeded Takeda Shingen, invade Kozuke Province. Kitajo Takahiro resigned to him and Katsuyori got Mayabashi Castle. The 10th year of The Tensho period, the Takeda family fell by the army for Koshu conquest of Oda Nobunaga from Azuchi. The Oda family get Mayabashi Castle and Takigawa Ichmasu get in charge of the castle as an agent to invade Kanto.
In June of the year, Nobunaga was killed by his man Akechi Mitsuhide in the Honnoji Incident. Then Takigawa Ichmasu was defeated by Hojo Ujinao in the battle of Kan’na River. He went back to his original home Nagashima Castle in Owari and the Hojo family got back Mayabashi Castle.
In the 18th year of the Tensho period, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who succeeded Nobunaga, sent his army to conquer the Hojo family. Asano Nagamasa in Toyotomi side seized Mayabashi Castle. In August of the year, Tokugawa Ieyasu got in charge of Kanto and appointed his man Hiraiwa Chikayoshi to the head of Mayabashi Castle.
In the 6th year of Keicho (A.D. 1601), after the Battle of Sekigahara, Chikayasu moved to Kohu Domain and Sakai Shigetada got in charge of Mayabashi Domain with 33000 kokus of feudal estate. The Sakai family repaired the castle and developed its castle town for generations. It renamed Mayabashi Castle as Maebashi Castle.
In the second year of the Kanen period, the Sakai family moved to Himeji and Matsudaira Tomonori get in charge of Maebashi Castle with 15000 kokus of feudal estate. The Matsudaira family ruled the castle until the Meiji Restoration.
While the Matsudaira family ruling the Mayabashi Castle, it was broken by floods again and again. The Matsudaira family in Maebashi Domain couldn’t afford to repair it. Then they established Kawagoe Domain under the permission of the shogunate. The Matsudaira family moved to Kawagoe Domain and they owned the area around Maebashi Castle as a minute territory.
They left Maebashi Castle as it was, but it was destroyed in the 6th year of the Meiwa period (A.D.1769). The people in Maebashi hope the Matsudaira family to come back. In the 3rd year of the Bunkyu period (A.D.1863), head of Kawagoe Domain, Matsudaira Naokatsu start rebuilding Maebashi Castle.
In the 3rd year of the Keio period (A.D.1867), Naokatsu reestablished Maebashi Domain. Now city office and court stand on the ruin of Maebashi Castle and outline of the third castle keep became Maebashi Park.
[Address,access]
371-0026 Ote Town, Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture 1-1-1
[Map]
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