Hachiōji Castle
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Hachiōji Castle (八王子城 Hachiōji-jō?) is a yamashiro, or Castle, located in Hachiōji, Tokyo, Japan.
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[edit] History
Hachiōji Castle was built in the 1570's by Hojo Ujiteru. It was constructed on a mountain, with many many features located in strategic positions to deter an enemy force. Ujiteru left only 1,300 men behind at Hachiōji Castle when he went to help lift the Siege of Odawara (1590), which had been surrounded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Shortly thereafter, on June 23rd, 1590, more of Hideyoshi's forces, numbering 50,000 and led by Maeda Toshiie and Uesugi Kagekatsu, arrived to take the castle, which fell in just one day.[1] Hideyoshi then commanded that the castle be destroyed, as he worried that it could be used against him. For years afterwards, the site remained abandoned because it was believed to be haunted.[2]
[edit] Today
The castle now lies in ruins, though in 1990 some stone walls, a bridge across a moat, and the entrance to the lord's palace were re-built.[3] The site may now be in danger as national government is currently constructing a train tunnel through the mountain upon which the castle sits.[4]
[edit] Sources
http://www.jcastle.info/castle/profile/41-Hachioji-Castle http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/Fieldtrips/Castles/castles.html http://www.city.hachioji.tokyo.jp/languages/english/sightseeing/hachiojicastle.html http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fv20040917a1.html
