S P O T ／ SPOT-266
Akagi Castle Ruins
赤木城跡あかぎじょうあと
The ruins of a mountain castle built on a hill about 230 m high in Kiwa-cho, Kumano City, Mie Prefecture, said to have been laid out around 1589 (Tensho 17) by Todo Takatora. Built on the orders of Toyotomi Hidenaga to suppress the Kitayama uprising and secure the forest resources of Kumano, the castle holds high value as a transitional ruin: it exploits the terrain of a medieval mountain castle while combining early-modern fortress elements such as unsloped, roughly piled high stone walls and well-formed gateways (koguchi). On October 9, 1989, it was designated a National Historic Site as the "Akagi Castle Ruins and Tabirako Pass Execution Ground." Through excavation and maintenance, the layout — baileys spreading along three ridges and below the castle around a central main bailey — has been preserved in restored form. On cold early mornings from autumn to winter it can float in a sea of clouds and is called a "sky castle," though such appearances are rare.
H I G H L I G H T S
Highlights
- 01Unsloped, roughly piled high stone walls said to be laid out by Todo Takatora (the northwest corner about 5 m high, with corner masonry at the four angles)
- 02A transitional layout that overlays early-modern gateways and stone walls onto medieval mountain-castle terrain, surviving intact
- 03The "sky castle" floating in a sea of clouds on cold early mornings of late autumn to winter (a rare occurrence)
- 04The historical backdrop of designation as a historic site together with the Tabirako Pass execution ground, where rebels were executed around the castle's completion
A C C E S S ／ M E T A
Essentials
- Location
- Mie Prefecture Kumano City
- Address
- 〒519-5413 三重県熊野市紀和町赤木
- Fee
- 無料（見学自由）
- Hours
- 見学自由（常時開放）。冬季早朝は凍結注意
- Status
- 現存（国指定史跡・石垣遺構保存）
- Nearest
- JR紀勢本線「熊野市駅」（そこから車で約40〜50分）
- Walk
- 0 min
- Parking
- あり（無料・専用駐車場）。そこから徒歩で主郭へ
- Time
- 1〜1.5時間（雲海狙いは早朝待機で+α）