Maruoka Castle

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About Maruoka Castle

Maruoka Castle sits on a small hill in central Maruoka, in the city of Sakai, about 15 km north of Fukui. It was built at the end of the 16th century, and the main keep is one of the twelve surviving towers from the Edo period. Some studies long considered it the oldest; recent research dates it to the early 17th century. It is an Important Cultural Property.

The tower is small, with two eaves and three internal floors, set on a high piled-stone base. What distinguishes it is the roof: instead of ceramic tiles, the shingles are local stone slabs, shakudani, which resisted the cold and snow of the region. In 1948 an earthquake toppled the tower, which was rebuilt in 1955 using the original pieces.

Inside, the stairways are narrow and almost vertical, with ropes to assist climbing, and the top floor offers views over the Fukui plain and surrounding mountains. At the foot of the hill, a small museum highlights a short letter from a vassal to his wife—advice about fire, their son and the horses—that made the castle famous and inspired an annual short-letter contest.

In spring, the park’s roughly 400 cherry trees usually bloom in April and are lit at night with lanterns. In the autumn mornings, fog is common and the tower can seem to float, which is why the castle is also called the “castle of mist.”