The Matsumoto Castle is a historic castle in the city of Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. It was built of stone and wood and is surrounded by a moat filled with water. Due to its black exterior and the “spreading wings”, the Matsumoto Castle (Japanese: 松本城, Matsumoto-jō) is also know as “Crow Castle” (烏城, Karasu-jō).
Along with Himeji Castle in the Hyōgo Prefecture and Kumamoto Castle in the Kumamoto Prefecture, the castle is considered one of Japan’s three premier castles.
The origin of the castle dates back to 1504. At that year in the Sengoku period Shimadachi Sadanaga of the Ogasawara clan started building a fort on the site. The original name for the fort was “Fukashi Castle”.
The castle has six floors, but only five can easily be seen from the outside. The third floor, unlike the other floors, has no windows. That is why it was called “Dark Floor” or “Hidden Floor”. This level was mainly used as a warehouse.
