Imabari Castle

Imabari Castle (いまばりじょう), located in Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku, is one of Japan’s Three Great Water Castles, also known as Fukiage Castle (Fukiage-jō). Its distinctive feature was the introduction of seawater into its triple moats, which at the time even allowed ships to sail directly into the castle and dock inside. This fully demonstrated Imabari’s geographic importance as a strategic hub for transportation on the Seto Inland Sea. In 1953 (Shōwa 28), Imabari Castle was designated as a Historic Site of Ehime Prefecture.

Historical Background

Imabari Castle was constructed by the renowned castle architect Tōdō Takatora, beginning in 1602 (Keichō 7) and completed in 1604. The purpose of its construction was to replace Kokufu Castle on Mount Karako, thereby improving urban management and transportation. The castle’s tenshu (main keep) was the first in which Takatora adopted the tower-style (sōtōgata) design, which was sturdier and shortened construction time, making it more practical compared with the more common watchtower-style (bōrōgata) keeps of the era. This architectural approach later became the mainstream model for castles such as Edo Castle.

However, in 1609 (Keichō 14), Takatora was transferred to Tsu Castle in Ise Province, and he relocated Imabari Castle’s tenshu to Kameyama Castle in Tanba. Nevertheless, the Imabari domain of 20,000 koku remained as an exclave governed by his adopted son, Tōdō Takayoshi. In 1635 (Kan’ei 12), Matsudaira (Hisamatsu) Sadakuni took possession of Imabari Castle, and from then on it continued to serve as the residence of the Hisamatsu-Matsudaira clan of Imabari Domain until the Meiji Restoration.

In 1869 (Meiji 2), Imabari Castle was officially abolished under the haijōrei (Castle Abolition Edict), and most of its buildings were dismantled. The Armory Turret (Bugu Yagura) at the northern corner of the Ninomaru initially survived, but was destroyed in 1871 (Meiji 4) when a fire caused an explosion of stored gunpowder.

Modern Times

Today, the stone walls and inner moats of the Honmaru and Ninomaru remain preserved. In 1980 (Shōwa 55), a five-story, six-level tenshu (reconstructed in reinforced concrete) was rebuilt at the northern corner of the Honmaru on the site of the former turret. Later, in 1985 (Shōwa 60), the Ogane Yagura (Great Golden Turret) was reconstructed; in 1990 (Heisei 2), the Yamazato Yagura was restored at the western corner of the Ninomaru; and in 2007 (Heisei 19), the Iron Gate (Tetsu-no-mon) and Tamon Yagura were faithfully reconstructed based on historical records. A statue of Tōdō Takatora was also erected in the Ninomaru.

In 2006, Imabari Castle was selected as entry no. 79 in the list of the Japan’s Top 100 Castles.