Tsuyama Sta. (Tsuyama Line); 15 min walk
Tsuyama castle is well known as one of the great cherry blossoms locations in Japan, but this stone walled fortress is also one of the greatest castles in Japan too. In some ways, this castle reminds me of Marugame Castle. With few moats you can get right up to most of the stone walls which cover the mountain in tiers similar to Marugame Castle. Tsuyama Castle was also one of, if not the most heavily fortified castles ever built with 77 yagura. Unfortunately we only have one yagura today to communicate the splendor of the castle. The Bitchu Yagura was an ornate yagura rebuilt in 2005 for the castle's 400th anniversary. Even though it is in a very strategic location, it actually did double duty as part of the Honmaru palace, so we have a unique defensive structure with both tatami mats and loop holes. Unknown to many, Tsuyama actually has a very well preserved castle town atmosphere too, including many former samurai residences. Most of these are abandoned, in poor condition, or currently lived in so none of them are open to the public. Some city historical site preservation materials helped me to identify the most well preserved of the samurai residence architecture and document it here for this site. In the end it came down to some investigations on site, at the museum and asking questions at the museum and Tourist Information Center to gather what I've collected on this page. As far as I can tell there is no other site or source with as much information on the castle town gathered in one place. Be careful that Tsuyama Station does not take IC cards at the gates despite being a bigger and manned station. You will need to get a paper ticket at Okayama. There is also a 2.5 hour bus route from Osaka. I had planned to take this on the way back, but it was delayed by heavy rains so I took the train back to Okayama and on to Osaka to be safe. I did a lot of research before visiting this site and when writing the articles. There is a wealth of history and Edo Period artifacts to be preserved but the city is also struggling under rapid population decline and a lack of interest and funds to preserve and make use of them better. Tsuyama Town is a must see for all castle fans so please show your support. Just don't visit for cherry blossoms like everyone else. Let's spread out our visits!
8:40-19:00 (17:00 during winter months); 310 yen; Closed Dec 29-31
Tsuyama Castle
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