Matsushiro Castle

Architecture, patrimoine et histoire · Préfecture de Nagano

Set on the Kawanakajima plain, south of present-day Nagano city, Matsushiro Castle was born as Kaizu-jō around 1560, when Takeda Shingen had a forward base built to face Uesugi Kenshin; its design is traditionally attributed to Yamamoto Kansuke, and Kōsaka Masanobu was its first commander. The fortress played a key role in the battles of Kawanakajima. Contested after the fall of the Takeda, it became in 1622 the seat of the Matsushiro Domain, entrusted to Sanada Nobuyuki, transferred from Ueda; the Sanada held it until the end of the Edo period. The castle received its current name in 1711, then was almost entirely rebuilt after the fire of 1717. Dismantled early in the Meiji era, it retained only its stone walls. From 1995 to 2004 the city of Nagano carried out a remarkable restoration: the Taikomon and Kita-Akazumon gates, bridges, earthen ramparts and water-filled moats were recreated based on excavations and old plans. The site is part of Matsushiro's historic district, rich in samurai residences.