Ukita
Okayama Castle
岡山城
Picture Donated by Rad Deverala
| Alternate Name | U-jo, Kin'u-jo |
| Founder | Ukita Hideie |
| Year | 1597 |
| Reconstructed | 1965 (concrete) |
| Type | Flatland |
| Structure | 3 level, 6 stories |
| Condition | Reconstructed |
| Rating | ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ |
| Historical Site | National Historic Site |
| Historical Value | Top 100 Castles, Important Cultural Properties |
| Historical Artifacts |
Important Cultural Properties: Nishonomaru Nishite Yagura, Tsukimi Yagura |
| Location | Okayama, Okayama Pref. |
| Map | Google Map |
| Access | Okayama Sta. (San'yo Line); 20 min walk, 10 min bus |
| Website | Okayama Castle Official Homepage |
| Notes | not personally visited. All pictures donated by Raffi |
| History |
Ukita Naoie began construction of the castle in 1573 but it was not completed until 1597 by his son Hideie.
After Ukita, Kobayakawa Hideaki ruled for about 2 years until he died mysteriously at the age of 21. There are various theories about his death from murder by disgruntled farmers to political assassination by different parties. After Kobayakawa, the castle wa staken over by Ikeda Tadatsugu, a grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. The Ikeda family continued to rule over the area until the Meiji Period.
This was another one of the great castles of the Edo Period but was unfortunately destroyed in the air raids of 1945. |
Viewer Comments
(2) | Post CommentThis is a fabulous castle to visit. Great museum inside, photogenic exterior, and easy access from Okayama Station and can be done on a long day trip from Osaka or Kyoto. A combined ticket to both the castle and Korakuen Garden cost 520yen. If you want some nice piccies of the castle, make sure you walk across the white suspension bridge to the Korakuen Garden. Walk past the South Gate to the garden and go along the riverbank for some top notch photos of the river and castle. Then head into Korakuen to enjoy the garden and get more photos of the castle with the garden and one of the ponds in the foreground. I wonder how much of this castle's (and other castles') original construction was influenced by the Korean wa-jos during the six year occupation of southern Korea.
August 07, 2008 at 08:01 AM
Woah, that castle is awesome!!!! And the color scheme is really good. I'm actually researching this because I'm building a smaller model of it for my Ancient Civilizations Class. This website was really helpful in this study. Many thanks!!!!
March 26, 2008 at 06:26 PM