Oshi Castle
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Oshi Castle in Saitama Japan by ColdSleeper (CC BY 2.0)
About
Oshi Castle was built in an area of marshes and swamps and considered to be well designed and impregnable. It was also built using the natural levee of the close by river to fill various moats that surround the castle.
Oshi Castle is famous for defending itself against 23,000 troops while the castle itself only retained 619 Samurai and 2,000 townspeople to help defend. Ishida Mitsunari, the warlord in charge of taking the castle under orders of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, failed at his first attempt to take the castle so instead of a "Military Assualt" decided to try an flood the castle by diverting the nearbye river into the town and castle. Telling his men to lay down their swords and start digging, a 28 kilometer wall was built to divert the river into the town. The river did flood the town buy the castle remained... as it had high enough elevation to escape the flooding waters.
Please visit our Japanese Castles page to find more castles that are close to Tokyo.
Data
Name: Oshi Castle 忍城 (Oshi Jyou)
Original Year Built: 1479
Type: Flatland Castle 平城
Class: Castle with moat
Condition: Reconstruction
Founder: Narita Akiyasu (Daimyo)
Timeline
1479 - Completed by Narita Akiyasu
1574 - Uesugi Kenshin razed the town around the castle but the castle stood strong and repelled Kenshin.
1590 - During the Siege of Oshi, Toyotomi Hideyoshi sent an army of 23,000 troops to take Oshi Castle. 619 samurai and 2000 local conscripts inside Oshi Castle held off numerous attacks and even an attempted flooding of the castle.
1870 (around) - As per orders of the Emperor, all of the structures of the castle were destroyed and its site turned into a public park.
1988 - Reconstructed using modern equipment and materials but a faithful attempt to build how it was in it's heyday. Some elements of the castle are original structures.
References
The Floating Castle (Nobo no Shiro) a Japanese "Fantasy" movie in which Oshi Castle plays a big part.
Access
Closest Train Station: Fukiage(Saitama)
17-23 Hommaru
Gyoda-ku, Saitama 361-0053 Japan
Tel: 048-550-1611
NOTE: on the "City Maps" this reconstructed castle is called the "Gyoda Folk Museum" NOT "Oshi Castle".
From JR Fukiage Station (吹上駅): Use the North exit (北口) and take a bus that goes to Oshijyou Bus Stop (忍城[おしじょう]バス停)
From Gyoda Shi City Station (行田市駅): From the South exit (南口) about a 15-30 min. walk (about 2 miles) or jump in a taxi (600 - 1000 yen).
Hotels & Lodging
Recommended
View a full list of Hotels and Lodging in or nearby Oshi Castle.
Hours & Fees
Hours: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Information presented is based on the time it was created. There may be changes since publication. Please confirm information by visiting the Official Website before visiting.
Resources
Website: Oshi Castle Homepage
