Hikone-jo Castle and its Castle Town

Hikone prospered as the castle town of the Ii family who belonged to the Hikone feudal clan and the representative feudal lord (daimyo) who assumed the heavy responsibility for the Tokugawa Shogunate. The Hikone castle marked the 400th anniversary of construction in 2007. In the whole neighborhood of the Hikone castle which was composed of such low damp ground as a small arable land and a marshy place, hills were cut through and marshes were reclaimed. The peasants were removed and the residential area for such as vassals and tradesmen were disposed according to plan. And thus the city was arranged. Nowadays still remain the rows of old houses and the alleys which have an appearance of the castle town.

15 min. walk to the west from Hikone Sta. (JR Lake Biwa-ko Line)