Takamatsu Castle and Tamamo Park: A Castle Shaped by Seawater
Takamatsu Castle faced the Seto Inland Sea and drew seawater into its moats. Today, the remains are preserved in Tamamo Park, where the castle lords, surviving buildings, and postwar restoration place several different eras in one walk.
At Tamamo Park, the moats, Mizutegomon, and Tsukimi-yagura make the castle’s relationship with the sea tangible. Instead of relying on a mountain slope, Takamatsu Castle incorporated seawater and its coastal position into the structure of the castle.
The story does not end with the original builder. The transfer from the Ikoma family to the Matsudaira family, the later use of buildings, and Sakura Gate’s reconstruction after wartime loss all show how one castle site has been carried through different chapters.
A castle supplied by the sea
Takamatsu Castle faced the sea and used seawater in its inner, middle, and outer moats.
Takamatsu Castle
Takamatsu Castle was built facing the Seto Inland Sea, with seawater drawn into its moats. Takamatsu City describes inner, middle, and outer moats, showing that the water was part of the castle’s structure and defense, not merely a decorative feature beside the walls.
Tamamo Park
Tamamo Park is the Takamatsu municipal park where the Takamatsu Castle ruins are preserved and opened to residents and visitors. Because the ruins are encountered as a public park, the moats, stonework, and Important Cultural Property buildings can be read alongside the city’s present-day life rather than as an isolated monument.
From the Ikoma family to the Matsudaira family
Ikoma Chikamasa built Takamatsu Castle, and Matsudaira Yorishige later entered Takamatsu as lord of East Sanuki.
Ikoma Chikamasa
Ikoma Chikamasa is identified on Takamatsu City’s history page with the building of Takamatsu Castle. The same account says that the place name Nohara was changed to Takamatsu at the time, linking the castle’s construction to the place-name history of the city.
Matsudaira Yorishige
Matsudaira Yorishige entered Takamatsu as the lord of East Sanuki and became the first head of the Takamatsu Matsudaira family. The city’s list of lords makes his arrival a useful starting point for following the Matsudaira succession that shaped the castle’s later history.
Buildings that carry the castle’s later memories
Tamamo Mausoleum and Hiunkaku show that the site continued to be used and remembered after the castle’s original role changed.
Tamamo Mausoleum
After Takamatsu Castle was returned to the Matsudaira family, Tamamo Mausoleum was built on the former keep platform. The location therefore shifted from a defensive structure to a place of family remembrance, a change that makes the castle site a record of changing uses rather than a single frozen moment.
Source:Takamatsu Castle chronology
Hiunkaku
Hiunkaku was built in 1917 as a villa for the Takamatsu Matsudaira family and also served as a guesthouse for important visitors to Kagawa. It is now introduced as an Important Cultural Property, but its normal access is limited, so visitors should check the city’s usage and viewing information before planning an interior visit.
Source:Important Cultural Property Hiunkaku: usage information
Sakura Gate and the work of restoration
Sakura Gate was lost in the Takamatsu air raid and reconstructed through research and construction completed in 2022.
Sakura Gate
Sakura Gate once connected the second and third baileys of Takamatsu Castle. It was destroyed in the Takamatsu air raid in 1945, then reconstructed using historical photographs and other records; Takamatsu City records the restoration as completed in June 2022. The gate is therefore both a historic form and a modern act of recovery.
Source:About Sakura Gate
Takamatsu Castle chronology
The Takamatsu Castle chronology places the keep’s completion and dismantling, the transfer to Takamatsu City, the National Historic Site designation, and the opening of Tamamo Park in sequence. It is a compact way to see how the site moved from domain castle to public heritage park without reducing the story to a single date.
Source:Takamatsu Castle chronology
FAQ
Is Takamatsu Castle a mountain castle?
No. It is a sea-facing castle whose moats were supplied with seawater. In Tamamo Park, the closeness of the water and the remains makes that coastal design easier to picture.
Are Tamamo Park and Takamatsu Castle separate places?
Tamamo Park is the municipal park that preserves and opens the Takamatsu Castle ruins. The park is the present-day setting; the castle ruins are the historic asset visitors are seeing there.
Is Sakura Gate an untouched original?
It is a reconstruction. The original gate was lost in the Takamatsu air raid, and the city records restoration work beginning in fiscal 2019 and completion in June 2022.
Can visitors always enter Hiunkaku?
Hiunkaku is not normally open at all times. The city’s information lists conditions for rental use and public viewing periods such as January 1–3 and May 5, so check the current guidance before visiting.