Tsurugajo (Aizu-Wakamatsu Castle) Museum

The Wakamatsu Castle Keep Prefectural Museum (Tsurugajo Keep), located in the keep of Tsurugajo—known as the largest hirayamajiro (flatland-mountain castle) in the Tohoku region—is a museum facility dedicated to collecting and displaying the history and culture of the Aizu Domain (Matsudaira and Hoshina clans). Tsurugajo stands as the historic site where the siege warfare of the Boshin War of 1868 and the tragic fate of the Byakkotai (White Tiger Unit) are commemorated together; the museum within its keep functions as the core repository of the Aizu Domain's samurai culture and military historical materials.

In its sword and armor collection, the Tsurugajo Museum ranks among the finest in the Tohoku region. Throughout the Edo period, the Aizu Domain served as a shinpan (close relative domain) supporting the Tokugawa shogunate, and its lords received numerous swords and armor granted by successive shoguns, which have been transmitted down to the present day. The collection includes swords and armor designated as Fukushima Prefectural Cultural Properties, spanning the Kamakura through Edo periods.

Particularly notable among the holdings are works by Muramasa—the swordsmith of Ise Kuwana, known for his "demon swords"—associated with the Aizu Domain, as well as swords and armor actually used by the Byakkotai and domain retainers during the Boshin War (1868-1869). The museum is one of Japan's most direct venues where visitors can experience the Japanese sword as a "witness to history" rather than purely as art.

Set against the backdrop of the Byakkotai, Boshin War, and Aizu Domain history, the museum attracts considerable interest from inbound foreign tourists and has become increasingly important as a facility addressing "inbound" search demand for terms such as "aizu sword" and "samurai castle japan." Located approximately 2 hours from Tokyo by Shinkansen (with transfer at Koriyama), it offers excellent access from the greater Tokyo metropolitan area.