Chiran Castle, Historic castle ruins in Minamikyūshū, Japan.

Chiran Castle is a medieval mountain castle in Minamikyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture, built on a shirasu pumice plateau. Its core is a 50-meter square central bailey at the east edge of the northern half, with a masugata-style gate and clay walls. Over ten terraces of varying size, about 250 meters across, are separated by deep double dry moats and vertical cliffs.

The castle was first built around the late 12th century by Chiran Tadanobu, a local district governor. In the Muromachi period the Sata clan, a cadet branch of the Shimazu, took over the site; the Ijuin clan held it briefly until Shimazu Hisatoyo retook it in 1420. The Sata remained lords of Chiran until the castle burned down in 1615 and was abandoned before the one-castle-per-domain edict.

The castle town below the ruins kept its Edo-period layout, with the main street bent at the centre for defence. High-ranking retainers of the Satsuma domain lived there in samurai residences that still stand, behind stone walls and hedges, with Japanese gardens. The site is also on the Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles list, chosen in 2017.

The site can be explored along uneven, hillside paths with several viewpoints overlooking the mountain landscape from different elevations. Visitors should wear sturdy footwear and prepare for slippery conditions after rain, as the terrain is quite steep.

Archaeological excavations at the site have uncovered Chinese pottery and iron objects from different periods, revealing trade connections and cultural contact with the mainland. These findings show the location was used by different societies across several centuries.