Hiuchiyama was one of Minamoto no Yoshinaka's

Minamoto no Yoshinaka

was a general of the late Heian Period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto samurai clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira clans....

 fortresses in Echizen Province

Echizen Province

was an old province of Japan, which is today the northern part of Fukui Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Etchū and Echigo Provinces.Echizen is famous for washi . A text dated AD 774 mentions the washi made in this area. Echizen-produced Washi is still the most commonly sold traditional...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. In April and May of 1183, a Taira force led by Taira no Koremori

Taira no Koremori

' was one of the Taira clan's commanders in the Genpei War of the late Heian period of Japanese history.He was the eldest son of Taira no Shigemori, who was the eldest son and heir of Taira no Kiyomori....

 attacked the fortress.
It was built on rocky crags, and well defended; the Minamoto had even built a dam to create a moat. However, a traitor within the fortress tied a message to an arrow, firing it into the Taira camp, and revealing a way to breach the dam and drain the water. The castle soon fell to the Taira, but Yoshinaka

Minamoto no Yoshinaka

was a general of the late Heian Period of Japanese history. A member of the Minamoto samurai clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo was his cousin and rival during the Genpei War between the Minamoto and the Taira clans....

and much of his forces survived and escaped.