page_title: Matsumoto Castle
section_title: Preservation
hierarchical_section_title: Matsumoto Castle / Preservation
caption_attribution_description: 松本城古写真。明治時代に撮影された天守閣写真。 Old photo of Matsumoto Castle: the keep (tenshukaku), taken during the Meiji Period.
context_page_description: Matsumoto Castle is one of Japan's premier historic castles, along with Himeji and Kumamoto castles. The building is also known as the "Crow Castle" due to its black exterior. It was the seat of the Matsumoto domain. It is located in the city of Matsumoto, in Nagano Prefecture and is within easy reach of Tokyo by road or rail.
  The keep, which was completed in the late sixteenth century, maintains its original wooden interiors and external stonework. It is listed as a National Treasure of Japan.
  Matsumoto Castle is a flatland castle because it is not built on a hilltop or amid rivers, but on a plain. Its complete defences would have included an extensive system of inter-connecting walls, moats, and gatehouses.
context_section_description: In 1872, following the Meiji Restoration, the site, along with many former daimyōs' castles, was sold at auction for redevelopment. When news broke that the keep was going to be demolished, however, an influential figure from Matsumoto, Ichikawa Ryōzō, along with residents from Matsumoto, started a campaign to save the building. Their efforts were rewarded when the tower was acquired by the city government.
  In the late Meiji period the keep started to lean to one side. An old picture (seen at right) clearly shows how the keep looked then. It was because of neglect coupled with a structural defect, but many people believed the tower leaned due to the curse of Tada Kasuke.  He had been caught and executed for attempting to appeal unfair tax laws (Jōkyō uprising).
  A local high school principal, Kobayashi Unari, decided to renovate the castle and appealed for funds. The castle underwent "the great Meiji renovation" between 1903-1913. It underwent another renovation "the great Shōwa renovation" during the period 1950-1955.
  In 1952 the keep, Inui-ko-tenshu (small northern tower), Watari-yagura (roofed passage), Tatsumi-tsuke-yagura (southern wing), and Tsukimi-yagura (moon-viewing room) were designated as national treasures.
  In 1990, the Kuromon-Ninomon (second gate of the Black Gate) and sodebei (side wall) were reconstructed. The square drum gate was reconstructed in 2002.
  Matsumoto Castle was damaged in a 5.4 magnitude earthquake on June 30, 2011. The quake caused approximately ten cracks in the inner wall of the main tower.
  There is a plan for restoring the soto-bori (outer moat), which was reclaimed for a residential zone.
  The second floor of the main keep features a gun museum, Teppo Gura, with a collection of guns, armor, and other weapons.
caption: The keep, leaning, prior to 1904
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