Kochi Castle is one of the 12 samurai castles with original keeps. Yamanochi Kazutoyo (Yamauchi Katsutoyo), who was granted Tosa Domain (modern-day Kochi Prefecture in Shikoku) after the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, began constructing the castle and residence in 1601. The project took ten years, and the Yamanouchi clan remained at Kochi until the Meiji Restoration.
Kochi Castle makes excellent use of the land's layout. The Kagami and Enokuchi Rivers form a natural outer moat, with the castle perched on Mt. Otasaka. The main Honmaru bailey is situated on a rise to the south, with the Ni-no-Maru occupying the northern hill at a similar elevation. The Ni-no-Maru connects to the Honmaru via a corridor-like bridge called a roka-bashi across a small valley. Directly under the roka-bashi, blocking the valley, is the Tsume-mon gate. The layout deceptively suggests that the Tsume-mon is the entry to the Honmaru. However, any attacking enemy breaching this gate would find themselves heading away from the central precinct. While trying to breach the gate, they could be fired upon from the keep to their left, the gate above, and watchtowers to their right. Instead, entry to the Honmaru is to the right, up a flight of once heavily guarded stone stairs, through the Ni-no-Maru, and across the covered roka-bashi.
In 1727, many central structures, including the tenshu, were damaged by fire. Today, what remains is the rebuilt keep and palace from that period. The remaining tenshu was modeled on the original four-roofed, six-floor tower designed by Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who had wanted a mawarien, a balcony, and railing around the top floor. The reconstructed keep includes this feature. Around the bottom edge of the tenshu are tsuruge spikes called Shinobi Gaeshi, meant to prevent ninja and attackers from climbing the structure. These spikes are found only at Kumamoto, Nagoya, and Kochi Castles, with Kochi uniquely featuring trident-shaped spikes. Kochi Castle’s Honmaru Goten, the lord’s palace, is connected to the base of the main keep, a rare architectural feature. The living quarters occupy the first level of the main keep.
Kochi Castle’s Honmaru is particularly historically valuable, as it is the only castle with all its original structures—keep, palace, gates, and walls—still intact. A total of 15 structures designated National Important Cultural Properties remain at Kochi Castle, including the tenshu, Kaitokukan Honmaru Palace, Nando storehouse, nishi and higashi tamon yagura, Ote, Kurogane, and Roka gates, six wall segments, and the roka-bashi linking the Honmaru to the Ni-no-Maru.
See also
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Yoshida Castle
Yoshida Castle is renowned worldwide, particularly through the intricate woodblock prints by Edo Period artist Hiroshige. His famous series, depicting the 53 stages of the Tokaido—the historic route between Kyoto and Edo (modern-day Tokyo)—includes the 34th print, which shows workmen repairing a castle overlooking a wooden bridge crossing a wide river. This scene captures the Toyokawa River at Toyohashi in southeast Aichi Prefecture, and the castle is Yoshida Castle.
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Yamato Koriyama Castle
The impressive ruins of Koriyama Castle sit atop a small hill, surrounded by two rivers. The strategic positioning and strong layout of the castle served it well through the final years of the Sengoku period and the peaceful days of the Edo period.
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Yamanaka Castle
Yamanaka Castle, established by Hojo Ujiyasu in the 1560s, is located in what is now eastern Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture. This castle served as the first line of western defense for the main Hojo Castle at Odawara. Carved into the side of a 586-meter-high mountain, Yamanaka Castle was strategically positioned along the Tokaido Highway, offering superb views of nearby Mt. Fuji, the ocean, and the road leading to Odawara.
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Uwajima Castle
Uwajima Castle, located in Uwajima City, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku, is one of the 12 remaining Japanese castles with an original keep. Known for its small size, Uwajima Castle is relatively difficult to access, which means it is less frequented by tourists.
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Ueda Castle
Ueda Castle in Nagano Prefecture once stood prominently on a cliff overlooking the Saigawa River. Also known as Amagafuchi-Jo, Isesaki-Jo, Matsuo-Jo, and Sanada-Jo, it was built around 1583 by its first master, Sanada Masayuki. This sturdy yet small fortress cleverly utilized the surrounding natural defenses, including the river, steep rocky cliffs, the layout of the town below, and the strategically designed waterways to hinder attackers. Ueda Castle was fortified with seven defensive yagura (watchtowers) atop robust stone walls and had two large gates with watchtowers above them.
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Tsuyama Castle
Tsuyama Castle, located in Tsuyama City, Okayama Prefecture, is celebrated as one of Japan's top three major hilltop (Hirayama) castles, alongside Himeji and Matsuyama Castles. Originally, Tsuyama Castle comprised 77 structures, including the main keep, various yagura (watchtowers), gates, palaces, and living quarters. For comparison, Hiroshima Castle had 76 structures, and Himeji had 61. The first castle on this site was built in 1441 but was soon abandoned. The large-scale construction that we recognize today began in 1603 under the orders of Mori Tadamasa. The castle served as the administrative base for the Tsuyama Han daimyo, the Mori clan from 1603 to 1697, and the Matsudaira clan from 1698 to 1871.
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Tsu Castle
Tsu Castle, located in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, was originally built by Hosono Fujiatsu in 1558 and was known as Anotsu Castle, named after the old region. The site was strategically chosen at the confluence of the Ano and Iwata Rivers, which naturally formed a moat around the castle, while the nearby port served as a vital trade route.
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Sasayama Castle
Tamba Sasayama Castle, also known as Sasayama or Kirigajo (Mist Castle), is a flatland castle (hira-jiro) situated on a gentle rise in the Tamba region of Hyogo Prefecture. It was constructed in 1608 as part of Tokugawa Ieyasu's strategy to prepare for an attack on Osaka, aiming to bring an end to the Toyotomi clan. Ieyasu ordered the castle's construction using the Tenka Bushin system, engaging 20 former enemy daimyo and their forces to complete the complex within six months. This system kept the former enemies close and preoccupied, financially straining them and limiting their capacity for further conflict. The stones used in Sasayama Castle feature engravings called kokumon, indicating who made each part of the walls and preventing theft by other lords' men.
