Fukuoka Castle

Fukuoka Castle (福岡城, Fukuoka-jō) is a Japanese castle located in Chūō-ku, Fukuoka, Japan. It is also known as Maizuru Castle (舞鶴城 Maizuru-jō) or Seki Castle (石城 Seki-jō). Completed in the early Edo period for tozama daimyō Kuroda Nagamasa, it has been designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1957.

The castle lies in the centre of Fukuoka, on top of Fukusaki hill. The Naka River (那珂), Naka-gawa in Japanese, acts as a natural moat on the eastern side of the castle, while the western side uses a mudflat as a natural moat. Hakata, a ward with a bustling port, is located on the opposite side of the Naka River to the east. The castle town was established on the northern side, facing the sea.

Much of the castle grounds has been converted to Maizuru Park, which houses several sports facilities, a courthouse, and an art museum. Heiwadai Baseball Stadium, the past home field of the Nishitetsu Lions and the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, was also located on the castle grounds. Some of the castle's gates as well as its towers and turrets, known as yaguras, are preserved inside the park. The Minamimaru Tamon Yagura (南丸多聞櫓) completed in 1854 is designated as an Important Cultural Property.

The remnants of a korokan (鴻臚館), an ancient guest house for foreign diplomats, were discovered under the castle grounds in 1987, showing that the castle was a vital geographical checkpoint even into the Heian period. This is the only korokan remnant found in all of Japan.

Text adapted from “Fukuoka Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Fukuoka Castle ranks #1,226 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #60 of the 297 mapped in Japan. Founded 1601, it is older than 32% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 580 atlas entries founded in the 17th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 9,793 times in the last 60 days, more than 92% of the atlas. 5 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Kumamoto, 92 km away. It is one of the 37 landmarks on the atlas's regional map of Kyushu. See how Japan compares in the castle statistics.

View on the interactive castle map →

Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗