Okayama Castle, Japanese castle in Okayama, Japan
Okayama Castle stands in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, on the site of the 1590–1597 Ukita rebuild. Its keep, a 1966 concrete reconstruction, has black lower walls, white upper walls and tiered dark roofs with gold ornaments at the gable ends; a small white-and-gold roofed tower tops it.
Ukita Naoie seized Ishiyama Castle in 1570 and began rebuilding it; his son Hideie completed the new keep in 1597. After Hideie's defeat at Sekigahara in 1600, the Kobayakawa and then the Ikeda clan held the castle until 1869. The keep burned in the air raid of 29 June 1945; the Tsukimi Tower, built between 1615 and 1632, survived.
The castle is nicknamed Crow Castle (U-jō) for its black-lacquered exterior, contrasted with Himeji's white Egret Castle. Before Sekigahara its keep had gilded roof tiles, earning the name Golden Crow Castle (Kin-U-jō); today only a few roof parts, including the fish-shaped gargoyles, are gilded.
An elevator runs through all six floors to the top observation level, which opens views over the neighboring Korakuen Garden. Interior rooms display armor and weapons from the samurai era, with each floor dedicated to a different theme.
The Tsukimi Tower takes its name from the tradition of gathering there during the full moon to view the lunar disk. This small structure with its timber beams and curved roofs shows the building style that once defined the entire complex before the modern reconstruction.
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