Differences between Japanese castles and foreign castles
The biggest difference is the form of the surrounding walls. Japanese castles have walls that surround only the castle. In contrast, foreign castles have walls that surround the entire town, forming a castle town. Therefore, in the case of foreign castles, the ruling owner never left the castle because the town itself was the place to defend. In Japan, the castle was easily abandoned in a losing situation. It was just used by the ruler at that time.
The number and classification of castles in Japan
The number of castles with main keeps, old or new, is thought to be about 90. Including castles with no main keeps, the number is 200. Twelve castles have main keeps remaining from the time of their foundation.
Castles are classified into four groups: mountain castles, low mountain castles, flatland castles, and water castles.
The construction and structure of Japanese castles
Tenshukaku, the main keep, is the highest and most imposing tower in the castle. It has two to five stories and as many floors inside. However, it wasn’t the lord’s residence. It stood prominently to show the prestige of the lord’s clan.
Stone Walls: They were built of rock almost vertically to prevent the enemy from climbing them. The slopes curve very smoothly and beautifully.
Moats are very important defense structures. They were wide enough to be out of the range of arrows and bullets. They were filled with water, making it more difficult to get close to the stone walls.
Yagura, or turrets, are watchtowers most often located on the corners of the stone walls. They are much smaller and lower than Tenshukaku, but they were very important for defending the castle by using weapons from higher points in four directions.
Gates are also thickly built of rock with strong wooden doors. It was tough for the enemy to get through these gates.
Defensive Devices:
Sama: Clay walls were built on the stone walls. The clay walls have small holes through which to shoot arrows and bullets.
Ishiotoshi: The towers on the stone walls have outwardly thrust floors, and these floors have holes. When the enemy came close to the tower, rocks were dropped from them.
Shinobikaeshi: Instead of holes, metal spikes came out of the floors.
Zig-zag paths: The paths in the castle are not straight to reduce the rushing force of the enemy.
Popular Castles
There are only twelve main keeps that preserve their original figure from the time of their foundation. Out of these twelve, five tenshukaku are designated as national treasures.
According to one survey, the top five popular castles, including rebuilt ones, are Himeji Castle, Osaka Castle, Matsumoto Castle, Kumamoto Castle, and Nagoya Castle.
Why do Japanese people love castles?
The top reason is that castles have very beautiful, high, and imposing figures. They can be a symbol of the town that local people take pride in. Many history fans are attracted to the association with samurai and samurai culture. They can immerse themselves in a dream-like fantasy world.
Why do so few castles remain today?
The castles were targets for US air force attacks during WWII.
The Tokugawa shogunate set the rule of limiting one castle to one domain.
The Meiji Government tore down many castles because of the cost of maintaining them. The iron from the torn-down castles was used for other purposes for free.