Changes

Some repairs were made to Shuri castle in 1930, but the castle - which hid a major military command post below it by this time - was destroyed in 1945. The University of the Ryukyus had its main campus on the castle site for many years after the war, until, after decades of popular movements and pushes to see the castle rebuilt, the university moved and reconstruction finally began on the castle in 1992, on the 20th anniversary of the reversion of Okinawa to Japanese sovereignty following the US Occupation. The grounds beneath and around the reconstructed castle were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, and the reconstructed castle became the site of regular reenactments of royal court ceremonies and numerous other cultural performances, as well as regularly-cycling temporary exhibits of artworks and other treasures related to the kingdom.

Some repairs were made to Shuri castle in 1930, but the castle - which hid a major military command post below it by this time - was destroyed in 1945. The University of the Ryukyus had its main campus on the castle site for many years after the war, until, after decades of popular movements and pushes to see the castle rebuilt, the university moved and reconstruction finally began on the castle in 1992, on the 20th anniversary of the reversion of Okinawa to Japanese sovereignty following the US Occupation. The grounds beneath and around the reconstructed castle were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, and the reconstructed castle became the site of regular reenactments of royal court ceremonies and numerous other cultural performances, as well as regularly-cycling temporary exhibits of artworks and other treasures related to the kingdom.

The Seiden caught fire early in the morning on Oct 31, 2019; the fire soon spread, and by the time it was put out in the early afternoon that same day, the Seiden and Hokuden had been completely destroyed, with the Nanden and four other structures (for a total of seven structures) suffering severe damage. Some number of historical treasures were lost in the fire. There are plans to rebuild the lost structures, however it is unclear how long this will take, or the extent of the losses of irreplaceable cultural artifacts and the like.<ref>"[https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20191031/amp/k10012157881000.html 首里城で火災「正殿」などが全焼 那覇]," NHK News Web, 31 Oct 2019.</ref>

The Seiden caught fire early in the morning on Oct 31, 2019; the fire soon spread, and by the time it was put out in the early afternoon that same day, the Seiden and Hokuden had been completely destroyed, with the Nanden and four other structures (for a total of seven structures) suffering severe damage. Some number of historical treasures were lost in the fire. There are plans to rebuild the lost structures, however it is unclear how long this will take, or the extent of the losses of irreplaceable cultural artifacts and the like.<ref name=nhkfire>"[https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20191031/amp/k10012157881000.html 首里城で火災「正殿」などが全焼 那覇]," NHK News Web, 31 Oct 2019.</ref>

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