Ikeda Castle Traces of the Castle
The rocky hill where Ikeda Inari is located has long been called “Shiroyama” (castle mountain).
A book written in the middle of the Edo period called “Noyo Shiryaku” also states, "The old castle of the Ikeda clan is located in the southeast of the village, and is named Iwayama.
A study of old place names in Ikeda reveals that there are place names related to the castle, such as “Daimon,” “Deguchi,” “Umasaka,” and "Horinouchi”.
In the Warring States Period, a fort was built near the top of the mountain, and the lords and their retainers usually lived in mansions at the foot of the mountain.
At Ikeda Castle, too, the Toki River flows on the east side of the castle mountain, and its tributary, the Karasawa River, flows from the northwest at the foot of the mountain, with the natural river and deep valley serving as a moat.
The natural river and deep valley serve as a moat, and steep cliffs rise from the riverbanks.
These rivers and rock walls form a natural fortress.
This whole mountain has been called Joyama since ancient times, and the castle ruins are thought to have been located on the hillside around 145 meters above sea level, including the precincts of the Inari Shrine.
There are two paths to Shiroyama. One leads from a point called Aza Daimon to the top of the mountain along a deeply cut valley (Kawai-bora).
The other is the route up from Shimokannonji, which was renovated as a roadway in the early Showa period (1926-1989). The mountain forest on either side of this path up Ikeda Inari is terraced, with several flat areas. The flat area on the right was an old grave. In the flat area on the left, old pottery such as tea bowls and mortars used in daily life have been found.
Therefore, it is assumed that such a point was a cemetery or mansion area from the early Warring States period to the early Edo period.
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| From "Remains of Ikeda Castle Ruins / Our Hometown” |
In the precincts of Inari Shrine on the mountain, there are seven five-wheeled pagodas estimated to be from the early Muromachi period, which are believed to be the tombs of castle lords and their retainers.
There are also about eight five-wreath pagodas that were transferred to the mountain forest where Fudomyoo is located.
Part of a collapsed stone wall can be seen in the middle of the mountain slope across the valley from the Inari Shrine grounds.
The top of the hill where Ikeda Inari Shrine is located is the flat area with the best view.
If this is the central part of the castle, the fort ruins may have been the site of a facility such as a watchtower.
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| From "Masonry / Our Hometown" |
About the Lord of Ikeda Castle
There are various traditions about the lord of the castle, and it has not been confirmed.
The “Koyo Shiryoku” (a short history of the region) states that the Ikeda clan lived in the area for many generations. At the beginning of the Muromachi period, the Toki clan ruled this area, and the lord of Ikeda Castle was probably a member of that clan or a retainer of the Toki clan.
Toward the end of the Warring States period, in the middle of the 16th century, a man named Tadashi Ikeda Oribe (Oribe no Sho), whose ancestors were the Akechi clan, originally a member of the Toki clan, is believed to have been the lord of the Ikeda castle in Kani County. Oribe Ikeda was a retainer of Mitsuhide Akechi, who was killed in the Battle of Yamazaki after the Honnoji Incident, according to the book "Akechi Gunki.
After Nobunaga's demise, the Mori clan, who had been Nobunaga's retainers at Kaneyama Castle (Uhoujo) in Kani County, came to rule the entire Tono region. At that time, the Wakao clan, lords of Nemoto Castle, also came under the control of Mori Nagayoshi.
In 1894, when construction of the Chuo Line began, the shrine of Ikeda Inari, which was located in Ikeda 3-chome (Daimon), was moved to its current location. Ikeda Inari is said to be the guardian deity of Ikeda-cho.