Tate Castle ruins on a small hill in Assabu town located in the northwestern direction of Hakodate city, and is surrounded by fields. The castle is the last castle of Matsumae clan, a daimyo of Matsumae Domain, in the Edo period, and it is said that the castle is the last Japanese style castle in Japan. In the Meiji Restoration, it was attacked by the old Shogunate forces, and the castle was fallen for 75 days after construction.
The castle was not rebuilt. A parking space is along a road, and cherry trees are planted at the site, and there is no sightseeing facility in particular except a very small museum. Tatejo-ato Festival is held on the second Sunday in June, and visitors can enjoy the stage of Hakodate war. Admission free. The parking space is free of charge.
References:Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.
The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.
These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.