Oji Castle
Cost
free
Attractions > Other Cities and Areas > Japanese Castles > Chiba
About | Access | Hotels & Lodging | Hours & Fees
The hill upon which Oji Castle sat
About
Oji Castle is located in Chiba Prefecture which is the prefecture to the right (east) of Tokyo. Oji Castle was really not a castle but more of a "Fort" and built a long time ago. Historians believe it was built sometime around the middle of the Heian Period (for simplicity lets just say 1000 A.D.) by the Daimyo Taira no Tadatsune of the Taira Clan. The castle is significant because it is the starting point of the Chiba Clan which in later years became one of the more dominant clans in the region and the namesake for the current name of "Chiba Prefecture". Although Taira no Tadatsune of the Taira Clan originally built the castle, one of his sons took the name "Chiba" and his descendants eventually took control of the castle and the area.
This attraction/castle is most likely not a typical place a tourist would enjoy visiting but for hard-core castle lovers and for those who really want to see same ancient history, it might be of interest. There are very little physical remains of the castle to be seen by the naked eye. You might be able to make out earth rampart formations but that's about it. Someone (either government or private funding) has made some trails through the area along with a few stone and wooden markers but information is very sparse and the trails are over-run with jungle. Furthermore, in 2019 the typhoon Faxai blew threw the area and massive trees broke in half or fell everywhere blocking a lot of the trails (see image below).
Trail Update (2020, March): Surprisingly the trails around Oji Castle have been mostly cleared. It's a very nice walk around the castle up on the hill with some nice rural/farmland views on the back-side.
Please visit our Japanese Castles page to find more castles in Japan.
Data
Name: Oji Castle - 大椎城 (OOji Jyou)
Original Year Built: around 1000 (middle Heian Period)
Type: Hilltop 丘城
Class: Fort - Residence at top of hill with dirt and log walls.
Main Tower Size: 5 Stories
Features: Earthen embankments (no structures remain)
Condition: Original
Founder: Taira no Tadatsune
Timeline
around 1000 - Taira no Tadatsune built a stronghold here.
1126 - Chiba Clan moved it's headquarters from this Oji Castle to Inohana Castle (or better known as Chiba Castle). The Chiba Clan were descendants of one of the sons of Taira no Tadatsune (Oji Castle founder).
1590 - Abandoned
References
Conceptual Image of how Oji Castle might have looked like. Looking from South to North.
Access
Closest Train Station: Toke
851 Ojicho
Chiba-shi, Midori-ku, Chiba 267-0065 Japan
1.) It's about a 1 hour ride (on a direct, limited express train) from Tokyo Station to Toke Station.
2.) About a 45 min. walk from Toke Station (about 2.8 kilometers or 1.7 miles)
Hotels & Lodging
Recommended
View a full list of Hotels and Lodging in or nearby Oji Castle.
Hours & Fees
Hours: 24/7 Year Round
Closed: Never
Cost: Free
