Yuzuki Castle Ruins

Matsuyama, Japan, Japan

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Yuzuki Castle Ruins are the remains of a medieval flatland‑mountain castle in Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, on Shikoku, Japan, which served as the political, military, and cultural center of Iyo Province for about 250 years from the first half of the 14th century until the late 16th century under the Kōno clan, governors of the province.

Built around 1335 on a gentle hill near what is now Dōgo Onsen, the castle used a distinctive “double‑moat” layout with an outer moat around the park and an inner moat at the base of the hill, plus earthworks and baileys that were typical of early‑modern castle design, and it was constructed about 40 years before Azuchi Castle, making it an important example of large‑scale moat and mound structures from the Muromachi and Sengoku periods.

The castle was abandoned in 1585 during Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s campaigns, and because it was not subsequently used as a major base, its earthworks and moats survived largely intact, leading to its designation as a National Historic Site and its selection as one of Japan’s 100 Best Castles.