Iwadono Castle

Architecture, patrimoine et histoire · Préfecture de Yamanashi

Clinging to Mount Iwadono, a 634-metre rocky peak overlooking the city of Ōtsuki, Iwadono Castle (岩殿城) watched over the Kōshū Kaidō, the road linking the heart of the Takeda domain in Kai Province with the eastern provinces. The place was first a religious site: tradition dates the founding of a Tendai temple there to the late 9th century, followed by Shugendō ascetic practice. In the 16th century the Oyamada clan, vassals of the Takeda, established a fortress there, which Takeda Shingen strengthened into a bulwark of his eastern frontier. Its name remains tied to the fall of the Takeda: in 1582 Takeda Katsuyori, having abandoned Shinpu Castle, sought refuge there, but Oyamada Nobushige refused him entry, sealing his fate. The site exploits cliffs and natural boulders: visitors can still see the site of the Agejido gate, the honmaru, a signal-fire platform, a horse-training ground and a water reserve fed by two wells. Designated a cultural property by Yamanashi Prefecture since 1995, the mountain offers a wide view of Mount Fuji, though some trails are periodically closed due to rockfalls.