[Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture] Follow in the footsteps of the Oshu Soma clan, who fostered a unique culture for 800 years

More than 800 years have passed since the Sengoku feudal lord Soma clan was given the namekata district of Mutsu Province (Minamisoma City, Iitate Village) in the northern part of Fukushima Prefecture by Minamoto no Yoritomo. Even in the Reiwa era, the Soma region of Fukushima Prefecture still retains a strong influence on the culture created by the Soma clan. The era of the Soma clan lasted for about 680 years until the Meiji era, which ended with the abolition of feudal domains and establishment of prefectures, and gave birth to folk culture such as "Soma Nomaoi", "Soma Bon Uta", and "Soma Nagareyama". .

The Soma clan, a Bando warrior who received the land of Oshu from Minamoto no Yoritomo.

The Soma clan is said to have originated from the Chiba clan of the Bando warriors, whose territory was Shimousa Province, which straddles present-day Chiba and Ibaraki prefectures, at the end of the Eian period. . Morotsune, the second son of the feudal lord Tsunetane Chiba, lived in the northern part of Shimousa Province (currently Toride City, Ibaraki Prefecture - around Kashiwa City, Nagareyama City, and Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture), and was called Soma Mikuriya. It all started when he inherited the area where he had lived and called himself the Soma clan.

Soma Morotsune took part in the battle in which Minamoto no Yoritomo destroyed the Oshu Fujiwara clan (Oshu Battle, 1189), and was rewarded with the title of Namegata County as a reward. For a while, the Soma clan had territories in Shimousa Province (Shimosa Soma clan) and Oshu (Oshu Soma clan), and for about 130 years they did not have a castle in the Oshu territory and managed it from Shimousa Province. Later, in 1323, Shigetane Soma, the 6th head of the Oshu Soma clan, entered the Namegata District of Mutsu Province with his vassals, 83 horsemen (some say there were more than 30 horses), and entered the Oshu region. will be under direct control.

The Oshu Soma clan's first residence was Besshokan.

Namegata District, Mutsu Province, where the Soma clan first received the Holy Communion, is present-day Minamisoma City and Iitate Village. )” was made into a castle.

Besshokan was the residence of the Miura family, who held an important position in the Kamakura shogunate, and it is said that Shigetane vacated it when he entered the castle. Currently, there are no buildings left, but the remains can be found within the grounds of Soma Ota Shrine.

"Soma Ota Shrine" is one of the three shrines that enshrines Myoken Bosatsu, the guardian deity of the Oshu Soma clan, and is currently the departure shrine for the heroic festival "Soma Nomaoi", which is designated as an important intangible folk cultural property of the country. It is known as.

Odaka Castle was the residence of the Oshu Soma clan for about 280 years.

Shigetane stayed at Besshokan for about three years, and in 1326 he moved to a mansion in Odaka (present-day Odaka Ward, Minamisoma City), about 5km away, and in 1336, he renovated it to make it look like a castle. . This ``Odaka Castle'' was the residence of the Oshu Soma clan until 1611, when they moved their headquarters to ``Nakamura Castle''.

There are no buildings left from Odaka Castle, and the only remains are on a small hill within the grounds of Soma Odaka Shrine. ``Soma Odaka Shrine'' is also one of the three Soma Myoken shrines, and is the shrine where ``Soma Nomaoi'' takes place.

The northernmost region captured in the battle against Date Masamune

The Oshu Soma clan greatly expanded its power from the Kamakura period to the Sengoku period. In addition to Namegata District, the territory includes Shibeha District (currently Okuma Town, Namie Town, Futaba Town, and Katsurao Village) to the south, and Uda District to the north (Soma City and Shinchi Town). Shinchimachi]).

However, the northernmost part of Uda District, where present-day Shinchi Town is located, was taken over by the Date clan, which had a large influence to the north of the Oshu Soma clan, after a battle. The Oshu Soma clan resisted the attacks of the Date clan by building forts such as ``Shinchi Castle'' and ``Komagamine Castle,'' but the power of the Date clan led by Date Masamune I couldn't compete with that. From 1589 until the Meiji period, this area was under the control of the Date Sendai domain.

There are currently 30,000 tulips of 40 different varieties planted at the Shinchi Castle ruins, and the area is crowded with tourists in spring. A stone monument has been erected on the site of Komagamine Castle, which was also known as Gagyu Castle, but there are no remains of the castle.

The Date clan saves us from the danger of confiscation of our territory.

During the period of drastic change from the Sengoku period to the Edo period, the Oshu Soma clan sided with Toyotomi and their territory was protected, but the 16th head of the family, Yoshitane Soma, decided to build a castle stronger than Odaka Castle. I decide. In 1595, construction of Murakami Castle was started on the coast about 3km east of Odaka Castle (Odaka Ward, Minamisoma City), but it was abandoned due to a fire, and soon it was rebuilt as the castle of the Ushikoshi clan, which had been destroyed by the Oshu Soma clan. The castle was renovated from Ushigoe Castle and moved from Odaka Castle in 1597.

The Battle of Sekigahara broke out soon after. The Oshu Soma clan was in a neutral position, and after the war, Tokugawa Ieyasu criticized them for this, and their territory was confiscated for a time.

This situation was the biggest crisis for the Oshu Soma clan, but it is said that for some reason, their old enemy, the Date clan, interceded with Ieyasu, and he succeeded in restoring power. Due to this incident, Yoshitane thought that ``Ushigoe Castle'' was a bad luck, so he moved his residence to the original ``Odaka Castle'' and abandoned ``Ushigoe Castle''.

“Nakamura Castle” was the headquarters of the Soma Nakamura domain.

After overcoming the crisis, the Oshu Soma clan was granted the traditional territory of Namegata, Shibeba, and Uda counties (excluding Shinchi) and 60,000 koku by the shogunate, and became a feudal lord. The first lord of the domain was Yoshitane's eldest son, Toshitane Soma. Toshitane built a castle in Nakamura (Nakamura, Soma City) in 1611 and moved there from Odaka Castle, and from then on, the Oshu Soma clan conducted their domain at Nakamura Castle for about 260 years until the end of the Edo period.

Nakamura Castle, the residence of the Oshu Soma clan, is also known as Baryojo, and although no actual buildings remain, the remains of the castle indicate that it was quite large and sturdy.

The ruins of Nakamura Castle have been maintained and turned into a recreational park for citizens as ``Umaryo Park.''

``Nakamura Castle'' is currently being maintained as ``Maryo Park'' and is open to the public as a place of relaxation. It is especially famous for its cherry blossoms and autumn leaves. Within the castle ruins is ``Soma Nakamura Shrine'', one of the three major Myoken shrines in Soma, and during ``Soma Nomaoi'', the marching ceremony for Udago (Soma City) is held.