Nakagusuku Castle

Nakagusuku Castle (Nakagusuku-jō), located on the border of Nakagusuku Village and Kitanakagusuku Village in central Okinawa Island, is a famous gusuku (Ryukyuan castle) from the Ryukyu Kingdom era. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu” and is also listed among the Japan’s Top 100 Castles. The fortress was constructed in the 15th century and is closely associated with Lord Gosamaru, a renowned general who served King Shō Taikyū.

The castle stands on a hill about 160 meters above sea level, taking advantage of its natural topography as a stronghold. From its stone ramparts, one can view the East China Sea to the west and Nakagusuku Bay and the Pacific Ocean to the east, with vistas extending to the offshore islands. Thanks to its exceptional preservation, Nakagusuku Castle is often praised as “the most complete surviving gusuku ruins.”

The origins of the castle are uncertain, but it is believed to have been founded in the late 14th century by the Aji (local lord) of Nakagusuku. Around 1440, Gosamaru moved here from Zakimi Castle and expanded the fortress by adding the North and Third Enclosures, shaping it into its present scale. The stone walls employ multiple masonry techniques, including nozura-zumi (rough piling), nuno-zumi (coursed piling), and the highly refined aikata-zumi (turtleback patterned masonry), demonstrating the advanced stonecraft of the period. Some of the gates are built in the rare style of stone arches.

In 1458, Gosamaru committed suicide following political conflicts. Although it lost its lord, the castle continued to serve as a strategic site for the royal government. During the Satsuma Domain’s rule over Ryukyu, it is said that officials sometimes hid here to avoid detection by Chinese envoys. In the 19th century, Commodore Perry of the United States visited the site, admiring the wall construction and documenting it in detail in his Narrative of the Expedition of an American Squadron to the China Seas and Japan.

Unlike many Okinawan cultural properties that were destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa, Nakagusuku Castle sustained relatively little damage and much of its structure survived. It was designated a National Historic Site in 1972 when Okinawa was returned to Japan, and in 2000 it was inscribed as a World Cultural Heritage Site. Today, the castle continues to undergo preservation and is also famous for its seasonal floral scenery, especially in autumn and winter when the grounds are covered with bright yellow tsuwabuki (Far East leopard’s bane) blossoms, adding elegance to the ancient ruins.