Hagi Castle

Hagi Castle, also known as Shizuki Castle, is located in Hagi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture. Built by the Mōri clan after the Battle of Sekigahara, the remains of the castle are now designated as a National Historic Site of Japan and maintained as Shizuki Park. Within the park, the former Nagaya of the Asa-Mōri clan in Hagi (an Important Cultural Property) is preserved, and together with Shōka Sonjuku and the samurai residence district, it forms one of Hagi’s key cultural attractions.

Construction of Hagi Castle began in 1604 (Keichō 9). After the Mōri clan was forced to relinquish Hiroshima Castle and retreat to the provinces of Suō and Nagato following their defeat at Sekigahara, Mōri Terumoto commenced the building of this new stronghold. Although the castle was completed in 1608 (Keichō 13), Terumoto had already moved into the unfinished castle at the end of 1604. The castle layout incorporated Mount Shizuki and consisted of two main sections: a flatland castle area at the mountain’s base, including the Honmaru, Ninomaru, and Sannomaru; and the mountaintop fortification known as Tsumemaru. The Honmaru Palace served both as the lord’s residence and the administrative center, functioning as the political and military headquarters of the Chōshū Domain (Hagi Domain) for more than 250 years.

However, in 1874 (Meiji 7), following the previous year’s Castle Abolition Decree, the keep and most of the structures were dismantled, leaving only stone walls and moats. The original grandeur of the castle is preserved in photographs taken before its demolition. Today, some structures such as the Ninomaru earthen walls and the Sannomaru main gate have been reconstructed in wood, but although there is local enthusiasm for restoring the main keep, the immense costs make such a project difficult to realize.