Hikone Castle

Hikone Castle (Hikone-jo) was built over a twenty-year period by the daimyo Ii Naomasa beginning in 1602. It was subsequently taken over by his heirs. As it stands on Konki-san, a hill of 136 m, it is also called Konki Castle. The castle retains its original form to this day and the three-tiered donjon is designated a National Treasure. The castle became the home to successive generations of the Ii family, and its moat was also used for boating by daimyo by ingeniously utilizing the lake waters of Biwa-ko.