Kitanosho Castle

Kitanosho Castle (北ノ庄城, Kitanoshō-jō) was a hirashiro (castle located on flatland). Its remains are located in current-day Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. As the castle lasted merely eight years, few records survive about it. It is known, though that it was built by Shibata Katsuie in 1575. Also, it appears that the tenshu (keep) was nine stories high, making it the largest of the time.

Kitanosho Castle
北ノ庄城
Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Ruins of Kitanosho Castle found at Shibata Park
Site information
Type	flatland-style Japanese castle
Location
Kitanosho Castle Show map of Fukui Prefecture Kitanosho Castle Show map of Japan
Coordinates	36°03′37″N 136°13′11″E
Site history
Built	1575
Built by	Shibata Katsuie
Materials	wood, stone

The castle was destroyed by fire in 1583, after Katsuie killed his wife, Oichi, and then committed seppuku, following defeat in the Battle of Shizugatake against Toyotomi Hideyoshi.^[1][2][3] A few stone foundations of the castle were uncovered in archaeological digs and are now open to the public.^[4]

Further reading

• De Lange, William (2021). An Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles. Groningen: Toyo Press. pp. 600 pages. ISBN 978-9492722300.