Gunma · Numata

Numata Castle

沼田城

Numata, Gunma

CastleHilltop castle (hirayamajiro)Next 100 Fine Castles No. 118

What makes this castle distinctive

The Sanada family raised a five-tiered keep on this clifftop castle, and its original ground still lies about 60 cm beneath the park's paths.

Why?

Under Sanada Nobuyuki, Numata became a castle with a five-tiered keep, but in 1682 the shogunate ordered it torn down and its moats filled in. Little more than a few stone walls survives above ground. Yet city surveys from 2018 to 2023 found the castle's original ground about 60 cm below the park paths in the main enclosure, along with what are thought to be foundation stones of the keep and roof tiles decorated with gold leaf.^[1][4]

Three things not to miss

The West Turret base and the Goten-zakura cherry tree

Where: The West Turret base (nishi-yagura-dai) in the former main enclosure of Numata Park.
What to look at: The Sanada-era stone wall, and Goten-zakura, an old Edo-higan cherry tree spreading its branches above it.
Why it's interesting: This is one of the few traces of the castle to survive its demolition. The city explains that the walls were built for show, with stones laid so their faces look large and long horizontal stones set in gentle curves. Goten-zakura is the park's symbol and blooms in April.^[1][3][4]
Can you see it?: Visible from outsideFreely visible in the park. The walls show some deformation, and the city monitors them.

The view from Sutekuruwa over the Sanada–Hojo battleground

Where: Sutekuruwa, the enclosure on the outer side of the main enclosure.
What to look at: The direction of Ogawa, Nagurumi and Myotokuji castles and the Takaozan fort, with Mount Tanigawa, Mount Hotaka and other peaks behind.
Why it's interesting: Numata stands on the edge of a high river terrace, overlooking the castles across the rivers. From here you can take in at a glance how the Hojo and Sanada strongholds faced each other.^[3][1]
Can you see it?: Visible from outsideHow far you can see depends on the weather.

The bell tower and Sanada Nobuyoshi's castle bell

Where: The bell tower in the former main enclosure. The original bell is at the Numata City History Museum (2nd floor of Terrace Numata).
What to look at: The replica bell in the tower, and the inscription on the original bell at the museum.
Why it's interesting: Sanada Nobuyoshi, the second Sanada lord, had the bell cast in 1634 to pray for the safety of his domain and castle, and it hung in a turret of the third enclosure to tell the time. Its inscription says, in essence, that its sound should bring peace to the people and long life to the lord. After the castle was destroyed it wandered, serving for a time as a temple bell. It is a Gunma Prefecture Important Cultural Property.^[1][3][5]
Can you see it?: Partly visibleThe bell in the park is a replica; the original is on display at the Numata City History Museum.

At a glance for visitors

Nearest station: 15 min walk from JR Numata Station
Climb: Not confirmed
Time neededEditors' estimate: Allow 40 minutes to an hour to walk the castle remains in the park; add about 30 minutes to see the castle bell at the history museum.
Admission: Free
Hours: 9:00–17:00 March–November; 9:00–16:00 December–February
Access: Open to visitors
Numata Park is open and free. The Former Ubukata House and its memorial museum in the park charge admission. The Next 100 Castles stamp is at the Numata Tourism Association visitor center in the park; on its closing day (Wednesday) it is available at the city hall's Tourism Exchange Division (5th floor of Terrace Numata).

Checked: 2026-10-03

View on map Open in Google Maps Numata Castle ruins / Numata Park (Numata City)Numata Park (Numata Tourism Association)

The story of this castle

Historical record

On the cliff of a high river terrace

Numata lies in a basin ringed by mountains, where the Tone, Usune and Katashina rivers have carved high river terraces, step-like landforms with steep cliffs. The castle was built on the tableland at the top of one of these cliffs. Because it guarded a key route into the Kanto region, the Uesugi, Hojo and Takeda clans fought over it in the Sengoku period.^[1]

Historical record

Built by the Numata, taken by Sanada Masayuki

The castle is said to have been founded around 1532 by Bankisai Akiyasu, 12th head of the Numata clan, the leading local family. It was also called Kurauchi Castle. In 1580, Sanada Masayuki, advancing on Numata on the orders of Takeda Katsuyori, captured it, and the following year he killed Numata Kageyoshi, who came to retake it, ending the Numata clan.^[1][2]

Historical record

After the Nagurumi incident, Sanada Nobuyuki's castle

The Hojo and Sanada kept fighting over Numata. When the Hojo seized the Sanada-held Nagurumi Castle, Toyotomi Hideyoshi attacked Odawara and the Hojo were destroyed. In 1590 Masayuki's eldest son Nobuyuki became lord of Numata with 27,000 koku. He built the second and third enclosures, moats and earthen ramparts, and raised a five-tiered keep (tenshu), said to have been completed in 1597 (or 1607 by another account).^[1][2]

Historical record

Demolished after the Sanada lost the domain

The Sanada ruled Numata for about a century, but in 1681 the fifth lord, Nobutoshi, lost his domain, officially over delays in supplying timber for Edo's Ryogoku Bridge and misrule. In 1682 the castle was completely demolished and its moats filled in. The Honda, Kuroda and Toki families later ruled the domain from a residence in the third enclosure, but the keep was never rebuilt.^[1]

Historical record

A park, and clues to the keep from underground

In 1916 Kume Taminosuke, son of a former Numata samurai, bought the neglected castle grounds with his own money, turned them into a park, and donated it to the town in 1926. Today Numata Park keeps the stone walls of the West Turret base and part of the main enclosure's moat. City surveys from 2018 to 2023 found the earthen base of the keep and stones thought to have supported its pillars, with a second set of foundation stones about 90 cm below, showing that the keep had been rebuilt once. Two roof tiles decorated with gold leaf were also identified.^[1][4]

People of this castle

First Sanada lord of Numata, who built the five-tiered keep

Sanada Nobuyuki

真田信之

1566–1658

Eldest son of Sanada Masayuki and first lord of the Matsushiro domain. At Sekigahara he sided with the Tokugawa, apart from his father and brother, and in 1622 he moved from Ueda to Matsushiro.

Bought the castle grounds, made them a park and donated it to the town

Kume Taminosuke

久米民之助

Son of a former Numata domain samurai and an honorary citizen of Numata. He bought the neglected castle grounds with his own money, made them a park and gave it to the town.

Lord

Inomata Kuninori

猪俣邦憲

Retainer of the Hojo clan and commander of Numata Castle, who seized the Sanada-held Nagurumi Castle in 1589.

Lord

Honda clan

本多氏

Lord

Kuroda clan

黒田氏

Lord

Sanada clan

真田氏

Lord

Toki clan

土岐氏

Built

Numata Akiyasu

沼田顕泰

1510–1574

Lord

Honjō Hidetsuna

本庄秀綱

Timeline

1532
said to be around this year
Numata Akiyasu builds the castle^[1][2]
1580
Sanada Masayuki captures Numata Castle^[1]
1590
Sanada Nobuyuki becomes lord of Numata with 27,000 koku^[1][2]
1682
Following the Sanada's removal the previous year, the castle is demolished and the moats filled^[1]
1916
Kume Taminosuke buys the site and lays it out as a park^[1]
1976
Designated a Numata City Historic Site^[2]
2017
Selected as No. 116 of the Next 100 Fine Castles of Japan^[9]

Buildings and remains

The keep today

Keep lost

A five-tiered keep was built under Sanada Nobuyuki but was demolished with the rest of the castle in 1682 and never rebuilt. Surveys have found its earthen base and stones thought to be its foundation stones.

The site today

The main enclosure, Sutekuruwa and parts of the second and third enclosures form Numata Park (free). Parts of the outer enclosures are now school grounds. Surveys show the castle's ground surface and moats are well preserved underground.

Main buildings

Lost

Keep (tenshu)

Five tiers; said to have been completed in 1597 (or 1607). Demolished in 1682.^[1]

Key facts

Type: Castle
Setting: Hilltop castle (hirayamajiro)built on a low hill rising from the plainEditorial article
Period: Medieval (c.1185–1570s), Early modern (1570s–1871)Editorial article
Keep (tenshu): Keep lostthe castle had a keep, but it no longer stands (its stone base may remain)Editorial article
Built by: Numata AkiyasuJapan Castle Foundation
Built: 1532Japan Castle Foundation
Main lords: Inomata Kuninori, Honda clan, Kuroda clan, Sanada clan, Toki clan, Honjō HidetsunaJapan Castle Foundation
Abandoned: 1682Wikipedia (ja)
Remains to see: Earthen ramparts, Moats, Stone walls, Gates, Turrets or turret bases, Baileys / enclosures (kuruwa)Editorial article
Designation: Numata City Historic Site (Numata Castle ruins) (1976); Gunma Prefecture Important Cultural Property (castle bell) (1954)Editorial article
Selection: Next 100 Fine Castles No. 118Japan Castle Foundation

Visiting

Access

Open to visitors

Numata Park is open and free. The Former Ubukata House and its memorial museum in the park charge admission. The Next 100 Castles stamp is at the Numata Tourism Association visitor center in the park; on its closing day (Wednesday) it is available at the city hall's Tourism Exchange Division (5th floor of Terrace Numata).

Address

594 Nishikurauchi-machi, Numata, Gunma (Numata Park)^[2][3]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Nearest stations and how to get there

JR Numata StationJR Joetsu Line

about 15 min walk · Not confirmed

About 15 minutes (1.2 km) on foot. Or take a bus about 3 minutes to Terasu Numata Shiyakusho-mae and walk about 10 minutes (750 m).^[3]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Hours and admission

Numata City Tourist Information Center (in the park)

Hours: 9:00–17:00 March–November; 9:00–16:00 December–February
Closed: Wednesdays (except Golden Week, Obon and national holidays) and December 29–January 3
Admission: Free^[3][8]

Checked: 2026-10-03

By car / parking

About 8 minutes (3.7 km) from the Numata exit of the Kan-Etsu Expressway. Free parking at the front lot by the visitor center (45 cars, 3 large vehicles) and the east lot by the sports ground (23 cars, 3 large vehicles).^[3]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Grounds opening hours

Open access (no hours listed officially)^[3]Checked: 2026-10-03

Time neededEditors' estimate

Allow 40 minutes to an hour to walk the castle remains in the park; add about 30 minutes to see the castle bell at the history museum.

Steps, slopes and footing

The site sits on tableland at the top of a river-terrace cliff. The park has walking paths, with no major slopes mentioned. Whether the walk from the station involves a climb could not be confirmed officially.^[1][6]

Wheelchairs and strollers

There are three accessible toilets in the park.^[6]Checked: 2026-10-03

Toilets and rest

Four toilet facilities in the park, three of them accessible.^[6]

English signs / audio guide

The city's booklet on its survey results, "Excavated Sanada Castle," includes English summaries. English signage on site is not confirmed.^[7]

Seasons

April brings Goten-zakura and about 200 other cherry trees; azaleas (about 3,500) bloom April–July, ominaeshi (patrinia) in July–August and globe amaranth July–October. In early summer, the buried moat of the second enclosure can show up as differences in the grass on the sports ground (a crop mark).^[3][4]

Photography

Not confirmed

Works, closures and restrictions

The stone walls show some deformation, and the city is monitoring them.^[4]Checked: 2026-10-03

Around the castle

Museum

Numata City History Museum

On the 2nd floor of Terrace Numata, with exhibits on Numata's history from the Sanada era onward, including the original castle bell cast for Sanada Nobuyoshi. About 12 minutes' walk from JR Numata Station.^[5]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Castle town

Former Ubukata House

A late-17th-century townhouse moved to the second-enclosure site in Numata Park, designated an Important Cultural Property as one of the oldest townhouses in eastern Japan. Admission charged.^[1][3]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Editors' guide

An editorial guide based on sources and confirmed information — not a first-hand visit report.

Who will enjoy it

Good for fans of Sanada history, and for anyone who likes reading a castle from excavation finds when little survives above ground. It also fits a trip around Kozuke's Sanada castles together with Nagurumi and Iwabitsu.

What makes it interesting

The West Turret walls and Goten-zakura, the view from Sutekuruwa, and the bell tower. At the history museum, see the original castle bell and the map and diorama of the Sanada-era castle town.

Before you go

No keep or castle buildings survive; today it is a park full of flowers. Check the city's booklets or the museum displays to picture where the five-tiered keep stood. The visitor center is closed on Wednesdays.

Ways to enjoy it

Look toward Nagurumi from Sutekuruwa and picture the Sanada–Hojo standoff. The park is busiest in cherry blossom season. In early summer, try spotting the buried moat on the sports ground as a line of different-colored grass.

Photos

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Open questions

The city says the keep was completed in 1597 (1607 by another account); the tourism association says the Keicho era.
Numata City dates the Hojo seizure of Nagurumi to 1590, while Minakami Town dates it to 1589.
Parking figures differ between sources: the city's park page lists three lots with 109 cars in total, while the tourism association lists 45 at the front lot and 23 at the east lot.
The tourism association's park page says the visitor center is open every day except New Year, but the association's contact listing and the Japan Castle Foundation's stamp information say it closes on Wednesdays. This article follows the latter.
Admission fees for the Former Ubukata House, photo rules and English signage could not be confirmed.