Kirk here. A couple of days ago I posted a little Reuters.com piece about the castle:

https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid0hruoCPjtjrMRsGygL8neCETZRXvvXzZaLGiUkBpKwv97JFk5hVERXK8DkKfvMEQXl

Here’s a more extensive piece by Stuart Iles that I know history buffs and castle fans will enjoy:

https://rekishinihon.com/2015/07/26/kumamoto-castle-kyushu/?fbclid=IwAR3SwRQ6A-LSDVgAAL7jRLCjV1_cYqNantKXUFZFrLTmkIJrHLw6YMHGtW8