Taking the Kobe Electric Railway from Kobe to Tour Castles in Settsu and Harima (Hyogo): Hanakuma Castle and Miki Castle [Station-to-Castle Stamp Rally 2025, May Part 2]

JR West's "Station-to-Castle Stamp Rally" is quite an ambitious project, involving a tour of 53 castles ranging from Takada Castle (Niigata) in the east to Fukuoka Castle (Fukuoka) in the west.

I won't say I'll visit all 53, but I decided to tackle the nearby Kansai area. As a start, with a Hankyu Railway free pass in hand, I spent the morning visiting Ikeda Castle (Osaka) and Arioka Castle (Hyogo).
(Even though it's supposed to be a JR West stamp rally.)

From the afternoon, I will venture further out from the Hankyu line.

13:10 Arrived at Hanakuma Station. Was there a castle in Kobe? (Settsu Province, Hyogo)

After transferring from Hankyu Itami Station, it took a little over 30 minutes.
On a whim, I decided to get off at Hanakuma Station, one stop from Hankyu Kobe-Sannomiya Station.

My original plan was to head straight to my afternoon destination.

Since I had visited Ikeda Castle and Arioka (Itami) Castle in the morning—both of which are associated with Araki Murashige, who rebelled against Nobunaga—I remembered that there was also a castle in Kobe associated with him.

It is a "castle" unrelated to the stamp rally, but since it was right on my way, I decided to stop by.

"Hanakuma Castle Ruins," located just a short walk from Kobe Kosoku Railway's Hanakuma Station.

Hanakuma Castle was the western base for Araki Murashige in Settsu Province (northern Osaka + part of Hyogo Prefecture). Being close to the sea, it also served as a base for supplying provisions from the Seto Inland Sea to Arioka (Itami) Castle.

However, when Arioka (Itami) Castle fell, Araki Murashige fled to Hanakuma Castle. But this castle, too, fell shortly after.

After Araki Murashige was driven out, the area around present-day Kobe was governed by Nobunaga's subordinate, Ikeda Tsuneoki, and a new castle was built near Hyogo-tsu, southwest of Hanakuma Castle.

When I climbed up onto the stone wall, the JR Tokaido Main Line (Kobe Line) was running right in front of me.
Looking a little to the east, I could also see JR Motomachi Station.
Beyond those tracks, the sea stretches out if you go a little further.

Because the historical structures of the Hanakuma Castle ruins were demolished by Ikeda Tsuneoki, almost nothing remains. For that reason, the stone walls do not represent the historical layout of the castle either.

Even so, when I climbed the stone wall, I could certainly feel why this location was considered a base capable of controlling both sea and land.

Watching the trains go east and west, I felt once again that Kobe was a place with excellent conditions to flourish as a hub for transportation and shipping routes.

13:53 Departed Shinkaichi Station and boarded the Kobe Electric Railway

After spending some time at Hanakuma Castle, I arrived at the Kobe Electric Railway's Shinkaichi Station.

If you are heading to Arima Onsen, you might ride the Kobe Electric Railway, but living in Kyoto, I rarely have the opportunity to ride it.

My destination this time is not Arima Onsen, but Miki Castle, located to the west, over the mountains from Kobe.

Even though it is supposed to be JR West's "Station-to-Castle Stamp Rally," it feels a bit puzzling that locations far from JR stations are included as stamp targets...

Anyway, I am departing on the Kobe Electric Railway.

The Kobe Electric Railway heads north from Shinkaichi first.
It climbs the mountains located north of the Kobe city area all at once.

It is hard to tell from this photo, but the train is climbing a steep slope.

There is also a station called "Hiyodorigoe" along the way.

There is an anecdote that during the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani in the late Heian period, Minamoto no Yoshitsune launched a surprise attack by descending all at once from a "cliff" called Hiyodorigoe to strike the Taira clan's army from behind.
(Though there is also a theory that the location of that surprise attack was elsewhere...)

At the very least, the steep slopes of the Rokko Mountains tower over the north side of Kobe.

For a railway, steep slopes are a natural enemy.
Yet, they built a railway through such a place.
The tracks wind their way north, ever north.

After passing Suzurandai Station, where the lines split toward Miki and Arima, you emerge onto an open plateau as if the steep slopes from before were a lie.

The train heads west, ever west, through the laid-back scenery.

14:42 Arrived at Miki Uenomaru Station, heading to Miki Castle (Harima Province, Hyogo)

It took just under an hour from Kobe Shinkaichi Station to arrive at Miki Uenomaru Station.
If you climb the mountain to the right, you will be right at the ruins of Miki Castle.

A two-minute walk from the station...

The steep stairs leading up to the castle mountain.
Although it is not very long, the incline is quite steep, which can be mentally challenging.

From Miki Castle

The Mino River flowing below
The Miki city area spreading out on both banks

The Kobe Electric Railway runs below the castle.
This was a location where the river led down to the Kako River, and there was a road leading east to Arima.
Because there was a small hill at the intersection of these routes, a castle was built here.

It is said that Miki Castle was built by the Bessho clan in the mid-Muromachi period. As retainers of the Akamatsu family, who were the governors of Harima, they were based in the eastern part of Harima.

With the Akamatsu family losing power, the clan came under the influence of eastern and western powers, including Haruhisa Amago, Nagayoshi Miyoshi, Nobunaga Oda, and Terumoto Mori.

Miki Castle is famous because the lord during the Sengoku period, Nagaharu Bessho, rebelled against Nobunaga and ended up fighting a siege battle.

Hideyoshi, who was in command of the Chugoku campaign, besieged Miki Castle, but battles broke out all over Harima as they tried to break the siege, with Murashige Araki rebelling and the Mori forces attacking from the west at the same time.

Ultimately, Hideyoshi cut off the supply lines, and Nagaharu Bessho surrendered after about two years.

Looking at the signboards erected below Miki Castle, it looks as if there was a spectacular battle, but it was a battle of attrition through starvation rather than direct combat.

Of course, depicting a starvation siege doesn't make for a very flashy picture...

After strolling around the castle for a while and descending to the castle town, I found buildings that looked like they had a lot of history remaining here and there.

Even after it was captured by Hideyoshi, the castle town was developed partly because there was a road leading to Arima.

15:28 Returned from Miki Station

Miki Station, which I reached about 10 minutes after leaving Miki Castle.

This concludes my castle tour for this time.
I will take the Kobe Electric Railway for just under an hour to return to Kobe for now.

I love the history of the Sengoku period, and I was already familiar with warlords like Araki Murashige and Bessho Nagaharu, and I also had knowledge of their castles and the background of their battles.

Actually visiting this area in a single day allowed me to see the historical context of Nobunaga and the warlords who confronted him from multiple perspectives, making it a more enjoyable trip than I had expected.

Multiple events are indeed connected...
It was a trip that made me feel that way.

The atmosphere you feel when you actually go to that place
This is the most interesting part of traveling.

The End

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