Hiroshima Castle is a 5 story castle originally built in 1592 and named a National Treasure in 1931 it was destroyed by the atomic bomb of 1945 but a replica was rebuilt in 1958.
Hiroshima Castle is also known as carp castle from the abundant supply of carp in its surrounding moat, carp or Koi as they are known in Japanese are considered lucky and are closely related to gold fish were favored by Japanese royalty as an ornamental fish for their moats, the fish is still popular today with even the local Hiroshima baseball team taking on the name the Hiroshima Carp.
The castle house a museum and a small gift shop and its beautiful gardens are a classic example of a Japanese garden that make a good rest spot away from the city especially in April when the 350 cherry trees come into bloom. The Castle museum has a great range of interesting ancient relics from the edo period as well as a viewing platform on the 5th level.
Hiroshima castle is only a few minutes walk from either the Hiroshima CBD and the A Bomb Dome.
