Maruoka Castle, Fukui | Japan is Nippon

Hokuriku's only castle among Japan's 12 with an original keep. Toppled by an earthquake, it was rebuilt from its own timbers under stone tiles.

Cherry trees in full bloom below the keep of Maruoka Castle — Photo: アラツク, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Wooden interior of the Maruoka Castle keep with plank floors and small windows — Photo: baku13, CC BY-SA 2.1 jp, via Wikimedia Commons

Hokuriku's only surviving original keep

Maruoka Castle is in Maruoka-cho, Sakai, Fukui Prefecture. It is said to have been built in 1576 by Shibata Katsutoyo, nephew of the Sengoku-period warlord Shibata Katsuie, to guard against the Ikko-ikki (armed uprisings by followers of a Buddhist sect).

Japan has 12 castles whose tenshu (keep, the tall main tower at the heart of a castle) was built in the Edo period or earlier and still stands today; they are known as the "12 original keeps". Maruoka Castle is the only one of them in the Hokuriku region, and it is a national Important Cultural Property. A 2019 study estimated that the present keep was built around the Kan'ei era (1624 to 1644) at the start of the Edo period.

The keep is small, with two roof tiers on the outside and three floors inside, and it preserves an old style. Its most distinctive feature is the roof, covered not with clay tiles but with ishigawara, tiles made of stone. Its other name, Kasumiga-jo ("Castle of Mist"), comes from a legend about a great serpent that protects the castle.

How the fallen keep was brought back

In the Fukui Earthquake of 1948 (the 23rd year of the Showa era), Maruoka Castle's keep collapsed completely, stone base and all. But detailed records existed from dismantling and repair work carried out in the 1940s, shortly before the earthquake, and many of the fallen keep's timbers and stones could be reused, so between 1951 and 1955 it was put back together in its original form. The enthusiasm of local people and donations from across Japan made the restoration possible.

Of the 12 original keeps, Maruoka Castle is the only one restored after collapsing completely.

Cherry blossoms and "Japan's shortest letter"

Around 400 Somei-Yoshino cherry trees are planted around the castle, and it has been chosen as one of Japan's Top 100 Cherry Blossom Spots.

In the castle grounds is a stone monument carved with the words "Ippitsu keijo, hi no yojin, Osen nakasu na, uma koyase" ("A brief note: mind the fire, don't make Osen cry, keep the horses fed"). It is a short letter that Honda Sakuzaemon Shigetsugu, a retainer of Tokugawa Ieyasu, sent to his wife from the battlefield, and Osen was his young son, who later became lord of Maruoka Castle. Inspired by this letter, Maruoka holds a "Japan's shortest letter" competition, and nearby is the Ippitsu Keijo Nihon-ichi Mijikai Tegami no Yakata (Museum of Japan's Shortest Letters), which collects the entries.

The castle during repairs, and getting there

Sakai City is planning major repairs to the keep, including earthquake-proofing, over fiscal years 2025 to 2027, and during the work you normally cannot go inside the keep. From 19 September to 31 October 2026, part of the work is open to view and you can go inside the keep. For later openings, check the official website.

From JR Fukui Station, take the Hapi-Line Fukui to Maruoka Station (about 12 minutes), then a Keifuku bus for about 15 minutes.

Tips

Repairs to the keep are expected to go on for several years. If you want to go inside, check the notices on the official Maruoka Castle website for opening days before you go.
Your Maruoka Castle admission ticket also gets you into the Ippitsu Keijo Museum of Japan's Shortest Letters.
Maruoka-jo Machiyori Market, near the castle, has a rest area and toilets, and you can leave your luggage there.