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The main keep (right) and small keep (left) of Iga Ueno Castle, February 2020. Built in wood in 1935 by Kawasaki Katsu at his own expense on the Todo family's keep base.
Asturio CantabrioCC BY-SA 4.0Wikimedia Commons

Mie · Iga

Iga Ueno Castle

伊賀上野城

Iga, Mie

CastleHilltop castle (hirayamajiro)Japan's 100 Fine Castles No. 42

What makes this castle distinctive

This castle has had three keeps: Tsutsui Sadatsugu's three-tiered one, Todo Takatora's five-tiered keep toppled by a storm just before completion, and a wooden keep built in the Showa era by a local politician with his own money.

Why?

Tsutsui Sadatsugu's keep collapsed in the early Edo period, and the five-tiered keep Todo Takatora was building blew down in a great storm in 1612. Because the shogunate then banned new castle building, only the stone keep base remained for over 300 years. Today's keep was built in 1935 by Kawasaki Katsu, a member of the national Diet from Iga, using his own fortune; officially it is called the "revival keep" or the Iga Culture and Industry Castle.[1][7]

Three things not to miss

01
The towering west wall of the main enclosure rising from the inner moat, April 2022. Todo Takatora built this wall, about 30 m high.inunamiCC BY 2.0Wikimedia Commons

The 30-meter high stone wall

Where
The west side of the main enclosure (honmaru), seen across the inner moat.
What to look at
The sheer height of the wall rising from the moat, and how the corner stones are stacked.
Why it's interesting
In 1611, to face the Toyotomi forces in Osaka, Todo Takatora extended the honmaru westward and surrounded it with stone walls about 30 m high. The official site says they rival those of Osaka Castle as the tallest in Japan. The walls have appeared in films such as Akira Kurosawa's Kagemusha.[1][2]
Can you see it?
Visible from outsideFree to view from outside.
02

Forty-six painted panels on the top-floor ceiling

Where
The coffered ceiling of the main keep's third (top) floor.
What to look at
Square panels about 1 m across with calligraphy and paintings by artists, calligraphers and politicians, including the painter Yokoyama Taikan.
Why it's interesting
These were donated by prominent figures of the day to celebrate the keep's completion. They reflect the connections of Kawasaki Katsu, who paid for the keep, and its purpose as a Showa-era castle for culture and industry.[2][1]
Can you see it?
Visible from outsideVisible with a keep ticket.
03

The Todo keep base and the site of the Tsutsui keep

Where
The Todo keep base where today's keep stands, and the site of the Tsutsui-era keep toward the east, marked by a stone monument.
What to look at
The stone base built by the Todo, and the stone walls on the side of the Tsutsui keep.
Why it's interesting
Iga Ueno Castle began as Tsutsui Sadatsugu's castle of 1585 and was greatly expanded westward by Todo Takatora after 1608. Within one castle you can find where each of these two lords placed his keep.[1][7]
Can you see it?
Partly visibleThe grounds are open to walk. The area around the Tsutsui keep site has been altered by water-supply reservoirs.

At a glance for visitors

Nearest station
8 min walk from Iga Railway Uenoshi Station
Climb
Not confirmed
Time neededEditors' estimate
Allow about an hour for the keep and the high stone walls.
Admission
Adults (high school and up) 600 yen, children (elementary and junior high) 300 yen. Groups of 30+ 500 / 250 yen; disability discount 400 / 200 yen. Cash only (plus coupons from contracted travel agencies).
Hours
9:00–17:00 (last entry 16:45)
Access
Open to visitors

The castle grounds (Ueno Park) are free to walk. The keep requires a ticket. Pets may enter the keep if carried or in a carrier.

Checked:

View on mapOpen in Google MapsIga Ueno Castle official siteIga Ueno Castle (English)

The story of this castle

01
Historical record

Why here?

The castle stands on a hill 160–180 m above sea level, near the center of the Ueno Basin. Temples such as Heirakuji once stood here. In 1585 Tsutsui Sadatsugu, transferred from Koriyama in Yamato, put his main enclosure on the hilltop, built a three-tiered keep toward its east side, and laid out a castle town to the north.[1][7]

02
Historical record

Todo Takatora turns it to face Osaka

In 1608 Tsutsui Sadatsugu was stripped of his domain (han), and Tokugawa Ieyasu gave Iga and other lands to Todo Takatora, a master castle builder. Where Tsutsui's castle had been laid out to protect Osaka, Takatora rebuilt it to confront the Toyotomi in Osaka. In 1611 he extended the honmaru westward, ringed it with stone walls about 30 m high, and made the south its main front.[1][7]

03
Historical record

A five-tiered keep falls before completion

The five-tiered keep Takatora was building blew down in a great storm on September 2, 1612, just before completion. Ten turrets, large gates and a palace were built, but after the Toyotomi were defeated in the Osaka campaigns the shogunate banned castle building, so the keep was never rebuilt. A senior Todo retainer governed Iga from here as castle warden until the end of the shogunate.[1][7]

04
Historical record

Abolished in Meiji, then a park

When the castle was abolished in 1873, the warden's residence and other buildings are thought to have been torn down, and the grounds fell into neglect. They became a park in 1886, and full-scale landscaping began in the Showa era. The high walls, inner moat and keep base survived, and because the honmaru and its surroundings remain close to their original form, the site was designated a National Historic Site in 1967.[7][5]

05
Historical record

A keep paid for by a Diet member

Today's keep was built on the Todo keep base by Kawasaki Katsu, a member of the House of Representatives from Iga, who spent his own fortune with help from many supporters. Work began in 1932 and finished on October 18, 1935. It combines a three-tiered wooden main keep with a two-tiered small keep, and was named the Iga Culture and Industry Castle as a base for promoting the region's culture and industry. It was designated a municipal cultural property in 1985.[1][5]

People of this castle

Timeline

  1. Tsutsui Sadatsugu builds the castle with a three-tiered keep[1][7]

  2. Tsutsui Sadatsugu is dispossessed; Todo Takatora takes over[1]

  3. Todo Takatora extends the honmaru west and builds the high walls[1]

  4. The five-tiered keep under construction falls in a great storm[1][7]

  5. Kawasaki Katsu's privately funded keep, the Iga Culture and Industry Castle, is completed[1]

  6. Designated a National Historic Site[5][7]

Buildings and remains

The keep today

Mock keep

A wooden keep built in 1935 by Kawasaki Katsu at his own expense on the Todo keep base. The official site, Iga City and the Japan Castle Foundation call it a "revival keep" (fukko tenshu), and it was named the Iga Culture and Industry Castle. Because Todo Takatora's five-tiered keep collapsed before completion and the Tsutsui three-tiered keep stood elsewhere, today's keep does not reproduce either one.

The site today

The castle site is Ueno Park. The keep (built 1935) stands in the main enclosure and is run by the Iga Culture and Industry Association. The Haiseiden hall also stands within the castle grounds. Water reservoirs have been built on part of the Tsutsui-era main enclosure.

Main buildings

Modern reconstructionIga City Tangible Cultural Property

Keep (main and small keeps)

A wooden keep completed in 1935, designated a municipal cultural property in 1985.[1][5]

Original

High stone walls

Walls about 30 m high built by Todo Takatora in 1611.[1][2]

OriginalImportant Cultural Property

Haiseiden

A hall built in 1942 by Kawasaki Katsu to honor the poet Matsuo Basho; not a castle building.[1]

Key facts

Type
Castle
Setting
Hilltop castle (hirayamajiro)built on a low hill rising from the plainEditorial article
Period
Early modern (1570s–1871), ModernEditorial article
Keep (tenshu)
Mock keepa keep-shaped building where no keep existed, or where its appearance is unknownEditorial article
Built by
Todo Takatora, Tsutsui SadatsuguJapan Castle Foundation
Built
1585Japan Castle Foundation
Main lords
Tsutsui Sadatsugu, Wakisaka Yasuharu, Tsutsui clan, Tōdō clan, Nitsuki clanJapan Castle Foundation
Abandoned
1871Wikipedia (ja)
Remains to see
Stone walls, Moats, Keep base (tenshudai), Baileys / enclosures (kuruwa)Editorial article
Designation
National Historic Site (Ueno Castle ruins) (1967); Iga City Tangible Cultural Property (keep) (1985)Editorial article
Selection
Japan's 100 Fine Castles No. 42Japan Castle Foundation

Visiting

Access

Open to visitors

The castle grounds (Ueno Park) are free to walk. The keep requires a ticket. Pets may enter the keep if carried or in a carrier.

Address

106 Ueno-Marunouchi, Iga, Mie 518-0873[5][10]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Nearest stations and how to get there

Iga Railway Uenoshi StationIga Railway

about 8 min walk · Not confirmed

About 8 minutes on foot. Uenoshi Station is about 7 minutes from JR Iga-Ueno Station, or about 25 minutes from Kintetsu Iga-Kambe Station.[4]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Hours and admission

Iga Ueno Castle keep
Hours
9:00–17:00 (last entry 16:45)
Closed
December 29–31
Admission
Adults (high school and up) 600 yen, children (elementary and junior high) 300 yen. Groups of 30+ 500 / 250 yen; disability discount 400 / 200 yen. Cash only (plus coupons from contracted travel agencies).[3]
Checked: 2026-10-03

By car / parking

About 10 minutes from Nakaze IC (from Nagoya) or Ueno IC (from Osaka) on the Meihan Highway. Paid parking at Ueno Park, among others.[4][8]

Checked: 2026-10-03
Grounds opening hours
Not confirmedChecked: 2026-10-03
Time neededEditors' estimate
Allow about an hour for the keep and the high stone walls.
Steps, slopes and footing
The castle sits on a hill 160–180 m above sea level. Details on slopes and steps are not confirmed.[7]
Wheelchairs and strollers
Not confirmedChecked: 2026-10-03
Toilets and rest
Not confirmed
English signs / audio guide
The official site has brief English and Chinese pages.[10]
Seasons
Every October 12, the Basho Festival is held in front of the Haiseiden hall in the castle grounds.[1]
Photography
Not confirmed
Works, closures and restrictions
The Tokan-nari helmet (a Mie Prefecture cultural property) inside the keep was off display until March 20, 2026, for conservation; check the official notices for its current status.[6]Checked: 2026-10-03

Around the castle

Castle town

Haiseiden

A hall built in 1942 within the castle grounds by Kawasaki Katsu to honor the poet Matsuo Basho, now an Important Cultural Property. The Basho Festival is held in its forecourt every October 12.[1]

Checked: 2026-10-03

Editors' guide

An editorial guide based on sources and confirmed information — not a first-hand visit report.

Who will enjoy it

For anyone who wants to feel the power of a towering stone wall, or who is curious about the unusual story of a Showa-era wooden keep.

What makes it interesting

First look up at the high wall across the inner moat, then go inside the keep for items linked to Todo Takatora and the painted panels on the top-floor ceiling. Knowing the story of the three keeps makes the keep base far more meaningful.

Before you go

Today's keep dates from 1935 and does not reproduce an Edo-period keep. Payment is cash only.

Ways to enjoy it

The high wall has served as a film location. After the keep, stop by the Haiseiden hall in the grounds to trace what Kawasaki Katsu built for the castle and town.

Photos

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Open questions

Sources

  1. 1
    伊賀上野城について(三つの天守閣)伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  2. 2
    見どころ(高石垣と宝もの)伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  3. 3
    ご利用案内伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  4. 4
    アクセス伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  5. 5
    伊賀上野城 トップページ(指定文化財)伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  6. 6
    唐冠形兜の非公開期間設定のお知らせ伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  7. 7
    国史跡上野城跡・城代屋敷跡(PDF)伊賀市教育委員会municipalChecked:
  8. 8
    伊賀上野城伊賀上野観光協会tourismChecked:
  9. 9
    日本100名城 一覧公益財団法人日本城郭協会jokakuChecked:
  10. 10
    Iga Ueno Castle (English)伊賀上野城(公益財団法人伊賀文化産業協会)officialChecked:
  11. 11
    List of Japan's 100 Fine Castles and the Next 100公益財団法人日本城郭協会jokakuChecked:
  12. 12
    Wikipedia「上野城」Wikipedia日本語版wikipediaChecked:
  13. 13
    Wikidata Q1333693WikidatawikidataChecked:
  14. 14
    OpenStreetMap node/3961802645© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)osmChecked:

Listing status

  1. Candidate foundChecked
  2. Confirmed as a castle siteChecked
  3. Basic informationChecked
  4. In-depth articleChecked
  5. Photo rights checkedChecked
  6. Visit info checkedChecked

Castles nearby

Chigachishi Castle7.1 km · Not yet confirmedMaruyama Castle8.2 km · Not yet confirmedFukuchi Castle13.3 km · Not yet confirmedYagyū Castle16.3 km · Not yet confirmedYagyū Jin'ya16.5 km · Not yet confirmedKashiwabara Castle19.9 km · Not yet confirmed

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