Kumamoto — Samurai and Volcanoes of Kyushu

When you arrive in Kumamoto, the first thing that catches your eye is the color black. The lacquered black facade of the castle’s wooden walls, the deep shadows cast on the steep stone ramparts. Kato Kiyomasa completed the construction of this castle in 1607, in an era when the embers of the Time of Troubles still smoldered.

After the castle’s black facades, the greenery of Suizenji Garden appears especially vivid and lush. By the pond, which embodies the fifty-three stations of the Tokaido, a hill quietly rises, modeled after Mount Fuji. Completed in 1671 under the third Hosokawa lord, Tsunanori, this garden became a reflection of the clan’s history—one that survived an age of war and brought the refined culture of Kyoto to the land of Higo.

In 1877, the castle withstood Saigo Takamori’s army for over fifty days, becoming the stage for Japan’s last civil war. The black castle burned, but the green garden remained. The moment when the era of warriors ended and a new age began is imprinted on this city in two colors.

In Kumamoto, where the underground waters of Aso nourish the entire city, the memory of the volcano is felt everywhere—even in daily life. And at the end of the day, you find yourself at the crater of Naka-dake, the source of this natural power. 

The black castle, the green garden, and the white smoke of the volcano—three images that reveal the spirit of samurai Kyushu.