Komakiyama Historical Museum: See, Learn, and Experience the History of Komakiyama Castle!

Komakiyama suddenly appears in a residential area of Komaki City, Aichi Prefecture. It is a castle site with an altitude of about 86m where Oda Nobunaga once lived and where Komakiyama Castle was the site of the battle between Komaki and Nagakute.

On April 1, 2023, the Komakiyama Historical Museum, which will be built on the summit, is renovated and you can fully enjoy what it was like at that time, including exhibits of the history and relics of the past.

In addition, we will also introduce the “Komakiyama Castle Historical Site Information Center” and other sightseeing spots.

What is Komakiyama Castle?

Komakiyama Castle was built in 1563 (Eiroku 6) by Nobunaga Oda, who moved from Kiyosu Castle as a base to attack Mino, and lived there for four years.

In 1584 (Tensho 12), the headquarters of Ieyasu's army was set up in the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute between Hideyoshi Hashiba (Toyotomi) and Nobukatsu Oda and Ieyasu Tokugawa.

Stone Walls of Komakiyama Castle

The stone wall that can be seen today was restored based on the results of the excavation.

Castles have various characteristics, but the main feature of Komakiyama Castle is the stone walls!

Castles before Nobunaga were built with soil for battle and defense by digging (= moat) and building up (= earthworks), but Nobunaga adopted stone walls when constructing Komakiyama Castle.

A chert stone found in what is believed to be a quarry.

The reason why the stone walls were built is that Mt. Komaki is a rocky mountain made of one type of sedimentary rock called "chert stone." Even in the area that appears to be a quarry within the grounds of Komakiyama, there are scattered rugged rock surfaces, and most of the stone walls are made of chert stones.

It is also said to be the oldest stone walled castle in Owari.

As a result of the excavation survey, it seems that the main enclosure was surrounded by two or three steps of stone walls (the photo shows the first step from the top). It is said that the reason for the 3 tiers was to make it look like a towering castle when viewed from below (*there are various theories).

“Chart stones” scattered around the site. You will be surprised by its size! How did they carry it?

Reopened on April 1, 2023
Komakiyama Historical Museum

The Komakiyama Historical Museum (former Komaki City Historical Museum) was built in 1968 on the top of Mt.

As the name suggests, it used to exhibit historical and folklore materials of Komaki City, but was renewed on April 1, 2023. The main contents of the exhibition are the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute, and other information about Mt. Komaki during the Sengoku period. Along with images based on the latest research results, it has become a facility where you can see, touch and experience.

1st floor: History of Komaki (free area)

The first floor of the history museum is the "History of Komaki" floor. This is a free area, so anyone can freely visit!

This area introduces the history of Komaki from the Paleolithic period to the present day, as well as the history of Komakiyama Castle.

In the surrounding area, you can also find the Ogi Burial Mounds and the Mitsuyama Burial Mounds from the Kofun period.

And here are the bronze statues of two people who are closely related to the Komakiyama Historical Museum.

On the left is Shigeru Hiramatsu, a businessman who invested his own money to build a historical museum on Mt. Komaki. On the right is Yoshichika Tokugawa, the 19th head of the Owari Tokugawa Family. It was owned by the Owari Tokugawa Family until the time of Yoshichika, and was donated to Komaki-machi (currently Komaki-shi) in 1930, after which it was opened to the public.

2nd floor: Owari country in the Sengoku period (fee charged & photography prohibited area)

The second floor is an exhibition about Owari Province during the Sengoku period.

Panels and videos (mini-theater) introduce the thoughts and background of Nobunaga's construction of Komakiyama Castle and why the combined forces of his son Nobukatsu and Ieyasu chose Komakiyama as their headquarters.

In one corner, there is also an exhibition of folding screens depicting the battle between Komaki and Nagakute between Hideyoshi's army and the allied forces of Nobukatsu and Ieyasu.

3rd floor: Sengoku quiz corner (fee required & photography prohibited area)

The 3rd floor is a corner where you can play quizzes about the lives of Nobunaga, Nobukatsu, and Ieyasu, titled "Sengoku Quiz Corner".

Even if you don't know much about history, it's a section where you can enjoy learning.

There is also an exhibition of war tools drawn with life-size illustrations that were used during the Sengoku period. You can also learn how to use it.

4th floor: Observation room

The top floor of the museum is an observatory with a panoramic view of the Noubi plains.

One of the renewals this time is the aerial photograph of this floor. By showing the positions of the forts that were built mainly during the battles of Komaki and Nagakute, it is devised so that you can experience the sense of distance and strategy between Hideyoshi's army and Nobukatsu and Ieyasu's army.

And when you go outside, you can see a 360° panoramic view! The height of the observatory is about 100m above sea level, and there are few tall buildings around, so you can see prefectural Nagoya Airport in the immediate vicinity and Mt. Ontake in the distance.

[Komakiyama Historical Museum]
Address ：1-1-1 Horinouchi, Komaki City, Aichi Prefecture
Telephone number ：0568-72-0712
Hours ： 9:00 - 16:30 (admission until 16:15)
Closed ：Closed on the 3rd Thursday of the month and year-end and New Year holidays (December 29-January 3)
Admission ： ¥200 for adults / ¥100 for groups (30 or more people), free for children 18 and under
*You can also enter the "Rekishiru Komaki" with the above admission fee only.
Access ：25 min. walk from Komaki Sta. on the Meitetsu Komaki Line by train.
Parking ：Komakiyama Kita (north) parking lot (100 yen / 30 minutes, but the first 2 hours are free)
web：http://www.komakiyama.com/