Changes

The castle was designed as a [[hirayamajiro]]. The honmaru was located on the summit of the hill with the ninomaru, sannomaru, and other fortifications laid out below. Kato’s structure was laid out to take full advantage of the natural formations of the landscape and would have been extremely difficult to attack. There is a ring of earthworks and [[ishigaki]] halfway down the hill and also at the bottom. The main tenshu has 3 exterior and 4 interior stories, including a basement. It uses traditional tile roofing and has striking black wooden walls. The layout of the rectangular tenshu complex somewhat resembles that of Himeji castle, albeit on a reduced scale. It has the main tenshu along with three other towers at the remaining corners. Typical of late [[Edo period]] castles, it uses a very straightforward and functional design with little enhancement or ornamentation. The tenshu ishigaki are built using the [[uchikomihagi]] method with the outer ishigaki using the [[ransekizumi]] method. The outer stone walls are much higher than the norm for a castle of this size (being similar to the walls built at other castles by another famous Kato, [[Kato Kiyomasa]]-but Kato Yoshiaki was not related to him). The castle now functions as a public park.

The castle was designed as a [[hirayamajiro]]. The honmaru was located on the summit of the hill with the ninomaru, sannomaru, and other fortifications laid out below. Kato’s structure was laid out to take full advantage of the natural formations of the landscape and would have been extremely difficult to attack. There is a ring of earthworks and [[ishigaki]] halfway down the hill and also at the bottom. The main tenshu has 3 exterior and 4 interior stories, including a basement. It uses traditional tile roofing and has striking black wooden walls. The layout of the rectangular tenshu complex somewhat resembles that of Himeji castle, albeit on a reduced scale. It has the main tenshu along with three other towers at the remaining corners. Typical of late [[Edo period]] castles, it uses a very straightforward and functional design with little enhancement or ornamentation. The tenshu ishigaki are built using the [[uchikomihagi]] method with the outer ishigaki using the [[ransekizumi]] method. The outer stone walls are much higher than the norm for a castle of this size (being similar to the walls built at other castles by another famous Kato, [[Kato Kiyomasa]]-but Kato Yoshiaki was not related to him). The castle now functions as a public park.

   

   

==References==

==References==

*Kodama Kota & Tsuboi Kiyotari, editors ''Nihon Joukaku Taikei''-20 Volumes Tokyo:Shinjimbutsu oraisha, 1981

*Kodama Kota & Tsuboi Kiyotari, editors ''Nihon Joukaku Taikei''-20 Volumes Tokyo:Shinjimbutsu oraisha, 1981