Shibata Castle is a castle

Castle

A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 in Shibata

Shibata, Niigata

is a city located in Niigata, Japan.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 103,101 and the density of 194 persons per km². The total area is 532.82 km².The city was founded on January 1, 1947....

, Niigata Prefecture

Niigata Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. It was the government office of Shibata Clan (Shibata Han) during the Edo period

Edo period

The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....

.Construction of Shibata Castle was started in 1598 by the first clan leader, Mizoguchi　Hidekatsu, and was completed in 1654. After that, Shibata‟s politics, economy and culture flourished. The Omote mon gate and Sumi yagura turret　remain from the old days and are designated as important national properties. The wall outside the turret, called Namako kabe, is waterproof. The stone wall is made of regularly piled stones in the manner of Kirikomihagi. In recent years, requests to restore Shibata castle to its original state increased. As a result, the Tatsumi yagura turret and Sangai yagura turret were restored in 2004. Only one of the turrets is open to the public.

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