Karatsu, Saga
Due to its proximity to mainland Asia, Karatsu has long been known as a stopover to Korea and China.Under ritsuryō, the current city area was part of the Hizen Province. In 1591, on the coast of the northern part of the city (formerly the town of Chinzei), Nagoya Castle was constructed. The following year, it became the location from which the Imjin War was launched by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In the middle of 1593, Terasawa Hirotaka created the Karatsu domain and began governing it. In 1602, replacing Nagoya Castle, Karatsu Castle was constructed in what is now the heart of Karatsu. The tower of Karatsu Castle was built in 1966 .
Nochiseyama Castle
Following Nobunaga's assassination, Niwa Nagahide continued to serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi. However, upon his death, Hideyoshi dispossessed his son and heir, and assigned the castle to Asano Nagamasa (1587-1593) followed by Kinoshita Katsutoshi (1593-1600). After the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Kyōgoku Takatsugu was made "daimyō" of Obama Domain by the Tokugawa shogunate. Within a year, he decided to relocate and construct a new castle, Obama Castle, at the river delta of the Kitagawa and Minamigawa to better control the town and port areas. However, the new castle took so long to construct that he was transferred to Izumo Province before it was finished. Obama Castle was eventually completed by the Sakai clan, and Nochiseyama castle was then abandoned.