Monuments

Marugamejo AtoMarugame Castle Site

  • 写真01：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 1

    Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 1

  • 写真02：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 2

    Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 2

  • 写真03：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north (panorama)

    Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north (panorama)

  • 写真04：Marugame Plains sprawling behind Marugame Castle Ruins, from the north

    Marugame Plains sprawling behind Marugame Castle Ruins, from the north

  • 写真05：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the east

    Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the east

  • 写真06：The castle keep viewed from the first and second front castle gate

    The castle keep viewed from the first and second front castle gate

  • 写真07：Northern high stone wall

    Northern high stone wall

  • 写真08：Castle keep viewed from Genkansaki Gomon Gate

    Castle keep viewed from Genkansaki Gomon Gate

  • 写真09：High stone wall north of the outermost part of the castle

    High stone wall north of the outermost part of the castle

  • 写真10：Castle keep built atop a high stone wall

    Castle keep built atop a high stone wall

  • 写真01：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 1
  • 写真02：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north 2
  • 写真03：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the north (panorama)
  • 写真04：Marugame Plains sprawling behind Marugame Castle Ruins, from the north
  • 写真05：Bird’s eye view of Marugame Castle Ruins from the east
  • 写真06：The castle keep viewed from the first and second front castle gate
  • 写真07：Northern high stone wall
  • 写真08：Castle keep viewed from Genkansaki Gomon Gate
  • 写真09：High stone wall north of the outermost part of the castle
  • 写真10：Castle keep built atop a high stone wall
District Monuments Period ー
Set Content/Set Date Historical Site・西暦1953.03.31
Owner Marugame City, others Location Ichibancho, Marugame, Kagawa

　Marugame Castle is built on a hill in the city of Kameyama called Kizan. Multiple stone walls are layered to a height of 60 meters from the main gate at the foot of the hill to the fortress on the top, creating a beautiful appearance of a famous stone-walled castle. In particular, the 20-meter stone wall on the north side of the outer ring of the castle is the tallest, and the spectacular way the incline curves when viewed from the side earned the wall the name Folding Fan Incline (Ogi no Kobai). The Folding Fan Incline prevents enemy invasion by growing steeper the farther up it goes.
The castle was built by Ikoma Chikamasa, the feudal lord of Sanuki Province (currently Kagawa Prefecture), starting in 1597 (Keicho 2) in the Azuchi-Momoyama Period. The castle reached its current form through reconstruction by Yamazaki Ieharu, the feudal lord who took charge after Ikoma in 1641 (Kanei 18) in the Edo Period.
Edo-era architecture, such as the three-storied castle keep and the main gate (Important Cultural Property), still remains within the castle. The castle keep in particular is one of twelve remaining castle keeps from the Edo Period (1603-1867) nationwide. Its small stature pairs with the tall stone walls to create a graceful appearance. The fortress atop the mountain overlooks the beautiful islands of the Seto Inland Sea and the Sanuki Plain.