JAPAN ALMANAC
Interpretive illustrated fallback for Karatsu Castle; not a site photograph.

Castle Atlas / No. 185

Karatsu Castle

Karatsu Castle is Foundation list no. 185, recorded in 佐賀県唐津市 as a 平山城 site associated with 寺沢広高 and 寺沢氏、大久保氏、松平氏、土井氏、水野氏、小笠原氏.

Open in Google MapsOfficial visitor source

History

What historically stood here

The Japan Castle Foundation records 唐津城 as a 平山城 site in 唐津市, with the founding label 慶長13年（1608）. The listed builder or associated clan is 寺沢広高; principal lords are 寺沢氏、大久保氏、松平氏、土井氏、水野氏、小笠原氏.

Today

What you are actually seeing today

The atlas currently classifies the visible condition as mountain castle ruins. Check the linked operator page for current hours, fees and restoration details.

Current condition
Rebuilt or replica keep
Terrain
Hirayamajiro: hill-on-plain castle
Condition note
Keep built after 1868: 5重5階地下1階／1966年築／RC造模擬. Classified 2026-09-24 from the structured fields at https://cmeg.jp/w/castles/9283.

Architecture And Defense

How to read the place

This record still needs feature-level reporting. For now, do not assume the most visible modern structure is the most historically important part of the castle.

Visit

Present-day visitor information

Foundation-linked visitor source available; current hours, fees, closures and restoration information have not been republished in this first atlas pass.

Address or access location
佐賀県唐津市東城内8-1
Coordinates
33.453543, 129.978209
Nearest useful station
See official visitor information.
Estimated visit duration
See official visitor information.
Opening hours
Check the official visitor source.
Admission
Check the official visitor source.

Nearby

Castles close enough to compare

Sources

Source and correction context

Identity, list membership, Foundation list number, municipality, basic classification and cultural-property notes are source-verified. Site-level visitor details require additional review unless this record is publishable. Foundation numbers are official list identifiers, not rankings. Coordinates use the Foundation-linked position-data KML and should be treated as visitor-planning coordinates rather than archaeological survey points.

Sources

  1. Continued Top 100 Japanese Castles, Japan Castle Foundation. Accessed 2026-09-04. Used for the official identity, list number, list membership, location municipality, castle type, founding label, builders, principal lords, and cultural-property notes for the continued 100-castle selection.
  2. Japan's Top 100 and Continued Top 100 Castle Position Data, Japan Castle Foundation / Nippon Castle. Accessed 2026-09-04. Used for the 200 castle addresses and coordinates exposed through the public map linked from the Japan Castle Foundation castle-search page.
  3. 100 Fine Castles of Japan and Continued 100 Fine Castles of Japan, Wikipedia contributors. Accessed 2026-09-04. Used only as a secondary cross-check for common English castle names; Japan Castle Foundation records remain the corpus source of truth.
  4. Nippon Shiro Meguri castle records: keep structure, remains and rebuilt structures, Nippon Shiro Meguri (cmeg.jp). Accessed 2026-09-24. Structured fields for each of the 200 castles, used to classify what stands at each site today. The linked record for each castle is its coordinate source.