Sagiyama Castle

Gifu, Japan, Japan

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Sagiyama Castle  was a small mountaintop castle in what is now the city of Gifu, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.

Originally built around 1185 by Satake Hideyoshi, it served as a residence and administrative base rather than a heavily fortified stronghold, sitting on the 68‑meter peak of Mount Sagi in the middle of the urban area. The castle was first used by the Toki clan, who were provincial governors of Mino Province, and later came under the control of the famous Sengoku warlord Saitō Dōsan and his son Saitō Yoshitatsu.

After Yoshitatsu’s murder of his brothers and the ensuing Battle of Nagaragawa in 1556, Dōsan was killed and Sagiyama Castle was destroyed, ending its use after centuries as a local power center. Today only fragments remain, including earthen walls and a moat, while part of Mount Sagi was reduced in size during 1960s road and railway construction, though archaeological work at that time uncovered stone foundations thought to belong to the castle. The ruins are protected as a historic site located in the city center of Gifu, close to the Nagara River and the better-known Gifu Castle on Mount Kinka.