Saiki castle

• Location: Bungo province

Stairs leading to the former location of the Honmaru.

Mori Takamasa built Saiki Castle in 1606. The Wakamiya Shrine (originally built in 1180) was moved from the top of the mountain in 1604 to accomodate the building of the castle. The residents of the surrounding town were greatly angered by the moving of the shrine.

For a fiefdom of 20,000 koku, Mori's castle was rather large. Centered around a 3 story donjon it was fortified by 5 two story yagura, a one story yagura, and 7 gates. The donjon burned down in 1617 not long after it was completed after being struck by lightning. Besides one gate, the only remnants of the castle are some stone walls, the donjon foundation, and two castle wells. 12 Generations of Mori ruled from Saiki Castle until the coming of the Meiji Period.

The remains of a WWII anti-aircraft gun emplacement sit on the outer edge of the San no Maru.

Sources

• On-site research by C.West
• Guide to Japanese Castles (Used with permission)