Matsumoto Castle
| Matsumoto Castle 松本城 |
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|---|---|
| Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, Japan | |
The keep
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| Type | Hirashiro (flatland castle) |
| Site information | |
| Condition | Original keep (tenshu) and inner walls survive, several gates have been rebuilt since 1960 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1504 |
| Built by | Shimadachi Sadanaga |
| In use | 1504 to 1868 |
| Materials | Earth, stone, and wood |
| Demolished | Outer castle was taken down and the land reclaimed in the Meiji Restoration |
Matsumoto Castle (松本城 Matsumoto-jō?) is one of Japan's premier historic castles, along with Himeji Castle and Kumamoto Castle. The building is also known as the "Crow Castle" (烏城 Karasu-jō?) due to its black exterior. It was the seat of the Matsumoto domain. It is located in the city of Matsumoto, in Nagano Prefecture and is within easy reach of Tokyo by road or rail.
The keep (tenshukaku), which was completed in the late sixteenth century, maintains its original wooden interiors and external stonework. It is listed as a National Treasure of Japan.
Matsumoto Castle is a flatland castle (hirajiro) because it is not built on a hilltop or amid rivers, but on a plain. Its complete defences would have included an extensive system of inter-connecting walls, moats, and gatehouses.
The castle's origins go back to the Sengoku period. At that time Shimadachi Sadanaga of the Ogasawara clan built a fort on this site in 1504, which originally was called Fukashi Castle. In 1550 it came under the rule of the Takeda clan and then Tokugawa Ieyasu.
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