Japanese Castle guide in Japan castle Historical site Statue Introduction.

[Castle name]
Tottori Castle
During the Sengoku Era, Yamana Toyokuni was attacked by Hashiba Hideyoshi’s castle and surrendered Tottori Castle.

[Explanation]
Tottori Castle is a mountain castle site that was present in Tottori City, Tottori Prefecture. It is also famous as a holding a castle for four months and at the end surrendered after being attacked by Oda Family’s “Chugoku Regional Commander” Hashiba Hideyoshi in Tensho 8th year (1580). Originally Yamana Uji, who had a great influence mainly in the San’in region, but in the Sengoku Era, “Yamana Toyokuni” had declined until it governed slightly around Tottori Castle.

In such a case, under the attack from Hashiba Hideyoshi (Yoriki Amako party) who was ordered the Chinese supression, Toyokuni will return immediately. However, when the Chugoku’s supreme leader “Mori Terumoto” starts attacking Tottori, this time it falls to the Mohri family easily. Looking at the situation like this, the Yamanae family’s vassal expell the castle owner “Toyokuni” before the Hashiba army planning the Tottori offense attacks again.

Mouri sends a messenger to request castle owner to change, and Yoshikawa Ichimon’s “Yoshikawa Tsuneie” was newly appointed as a castle owner. In the 9th year of Tensho (1581) April, Hashiba Army attacked Tottori Castle at last and Yoshikawa Musashi caged himslef. As well as Miki castle, Hideyoshi completely surrounded Tottori Castle and showed a long-term stand against Yoshikawa’s holing strategy. This is world famous “Tottori’s thirst for killing”.

The battle of Siege lasted for 4 months, and finally “Yoshikawa Tsuneie” decides to surrender and castle in exchange for his own life. After that, the vassal of Hashiba Hideyoshi, “Keijun Miyabe” enter the castle as a castle keeper and made it the base of the San’in region. However, when Oda Nobunaga is killed by his vassal Akechi Mitsuhide (Incident of Honnōji) Hideyoshi Toyotomi took revenge and became a Shogun both in name and reality.

Tottori castle was officially given “50 million Jewels” as castle owner “Miyabe Keijun”, who had a merit in Hideyoshi’s Kyushu attack. When the “battle of Sekigahara” broke out between Tokugawa Ieyasu and Ishida Mitsunari, the Miyabe clan belonged to the West Army led by the Mitsunari, and attacked by the East Army “Kamei Shigenori” and “Akamatsu Hirohide” and capitulate.

The battle of Sekigahara became the victory of the East Army in one day, the result of Ieyasu’s conferral of honors “Ikeda Nagayoshi” entered into Tottori Castle 60 thousand with Jewels and was rehabilitated to a full-fledged castle of modern times at this time. In the 3rd year of Ganwa (1617), “Ikeda Mitsukasa” won the title of chief with 325,000 Jewels, and Tottori Castle further refurbished and the castle town was improved.

After that, the Okayama clan and Ikeda family were exchanged for territory, but Ikeda family continues to govern the land and is approaching Meiji Restoration. Currently it has been chosen as 63rd of Japan 100 castle, leaving the castle tower, restoration castle gate, stone wall, moat, well etc.

[Address,access]
Tottori prefecture Tottori city east town

[Map]