was a castle structure in Hioki,

Kagoshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,527,019 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 9,187 Square kilometre, km2 (3,547 Square m ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The date of the castle's construction is unknown, but it is believed that the castle was built by Shimazu Hisanaga in the thirteenth century. It was the original seat of power for the

Shimazu clan The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan. The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in contr ...

until 1536, when

Shimazu Takahisa , a son of Shimazu Tadayoshi, was a ''daimyō'' during Japan's Sengoku period. He was the fifteenth head of the Shimazu clan. Biography In 1514, he is said to have been born in Izaku Castle. On 1526, Takahisa was adopted as the successor to ...

relocated the clan leadership to

Ichiuji Castle is a castle structure in Hioki, Kagoshima, Hioki, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.　Ichiuji Castle is also called Ijūin Castle. History Ichiuji Castle was built by the Ijuin clan and was later controlled by the Shimazu clan. In 1536, Shimazu Takah ...

. It was famously the birthplace of the warlords

Shimazu Tadayoshi was a ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of Satsuma Province during Japan's Sengoku period. He was born into the Mimasaka Shimazu family (伊作島津家), which was part of the Shimazu clan, but after his father Shimazu Yoshihisa died, his mother m ...

Shimazu Yoshihisa was a powerful ''daimyō'' and the 16th Chief of Shimazu clan of Satsuma Province, the eldest son of Shimazu Takahisa. He was renowned as a great general, who managed to subjugate Kyushu through the deft maneuvering of his three brothers. Eventu ...

and

Shimazu Yoshihiro was the second son of Shimazu Takahisa and the younger brother of Shimazu Yoshihisa. Traditionally believed to be the 17th head of the Shimazu clan, he was a skilled general during the Sengoku period who greatly contributed to the unificatio ...

. Owing to its significance to the clan, Izaku castle was retained as a stronghold until 1615. The castle is now only ruins, with nothing but some moats and earthworks remaining.

Gallery

File:Map of Izaku Castle.jpg, Map of Izaku Castle File:Earthen wall of Kamemaru jo compound.jpg, Earthen wall of Kamemaru jo compound

References

{{Reflist Castles in Kagoshima Prefecture Former castles in Japan Ruined castles in Japan Shimazu clan 13th-century establishments in Japan Designated historic sites of Kagoshima Prefecture