Shuri Castle

Feel the stone under your feet. It is pale, slightly rough, and often warm from the Okinawan sun. This is Ryukyuan limestone, a rock formed from ancient coral, and it is everywhere here. Listen too. You may hear birds in the trees on the slopes, the murmur of other visitors, and somewhere below, the soft hum of Naha spreading toward the sea. You are standing on Shuri hill, the old royal heart of these islands.

Shuri Castle was the palace and government seat of the Ryukyu Kingdom. That kingdom was an independent island state that ruled Okinawa and the surrounding chain for several centuries. In the early fifteenth century, a ruler named Sho Hashi unified the island's rival kingdoms, and Shuri became the capital. From this hilltop, kings governed, received foreign envoys, and held the religious ceremonies that bound the kingdom together.

The word you will see on signs here is gusuku. It is often translated as castle, but the meaning is wider. A gusuku could be a fortress, a sacred site, or a place of power, and often it was all three at once. Okinawa has many gusuku ruins scattered across its hills. Shuri was the greatest of them, the one that stood at the centre of royal life.

You likely began your walk at Shureimon, the elegant gate with red lacquered wood and a roof of terracotta tiles. Here is a small surprise. This gate appears on Japan's 2,000 yen note, a banknote that is rarely seen in daily use outside Okinawa. The tablet above the gate carries characters that mean roughly land of courtesy, or land of propriety. It was a message to visitors, especially to envoys from China, about how the kingdom saw itself.

That Chinese connection matters. The Ryukyu Kingdom paid tribute to the Chinese imperial court for centuries, and Chinese envoys travelled here on official missions. At the same time, the kingdom traded with Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia. Ships from Naha's harbour carried goods between these worlds. So the architecture around you mixes influences. You will notice Chinese elements, Japanese elements, and forms that are purely Ryukyuan.

As you climb, look closely at the outer walls. They do not run in straight, hard lines like many castle walls in mainland Japan. Instead they curve, rising and falling with the shape of the hill. The limestone blocks are fitted tightly together. These curved walls are one of the most distinctive features of Okinawan gusuku, and many visitors find them the most beautiful part of the site.

Near Shureimon, keep an eye out for a small stone gate standing a little apart. This is the Sonohyan-utaki stone gate, a place of worship. The king would pray here before leaving the castle on a journey. It is easy to walk past, but it is part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing. In 2000, the castle remains and related sites of the Ryukyu Kingdom were inscribed together on that list.

There is an important detail in that listing — and most visitors miss it. The World Heritage status covers the original stone foundations and remains, not the red halls rebuilt above them. The reason is painful. In 1945, during the Battle of Okinawa, the Japanese army placed a headquarters in tunnels beneath this hill. The castle was destroyed in the fighting, along with much of the city around it.

This was not the first loss. Over its long life, the palace burned and was rebuilt several times. After the Battle of Okinawa, the site was used for a university for some years. Then, in the late twentieth century, a careful reconstruction began, using old records, photographs, and surviving knowledge. The rebuilt main hall opened to the public in 1992, and Shuri became a place of pride again.

Then, in October 2019, a fire broke out in the night. The main hall and several neighbouring buildings burned down. For many Okinawans, the images were heartbreaking. Afterward, reconstruction started once more. This time, much of the work was made visible to visitors, so people could watch craftspeople restore the hall. The new main hall was scheduled for completion around 2026, so what you see today depends on the exact stage of that work.

When it stands complete, the main hall is called the Seiden. Its walls are lacquered in a deep red, and dragons appear again and again — on pillars, on the roof, on decorations around the throne. In front of it lies a large courtyard paved in striped bands. Officials stood in ranks along these lines during ceremonies, facing the king. If the courtyard is open, stand in the middle and imagine those rows of officials in court robes.

The kingdom itself ended in 1879, when Japan annexed the islands and made them Okinawa Prefecture. The last king left Shuri for Tokyo. Yet Ryukyuan culture did not disappear. You may hear the sanshin, a three-stringed instrument covered with snakeskin, or see classical Ryukyuan dance performed near the castle on some days. Look also for the small spring with a stone dragon's head spout on your way up. Water has flowed from it for centuries.

Before you leave, find a spot along the walls where the view opens out. Below you, Naha runs down toward the East China Sea, all concrete roofs and green hills. Kings once looked out from this same height. Notice the coral stone under your hand, the warm air, the red roofs behind you, whether finished or still under repair. As you walk back down the curving paths, you are walking a route the kingdom walked for centuries.