Japan Heritage story
The Murakami Kaizoku: sea lords of the Geiyo Islands
“日本最大の海賊”の本拠地：芸予諸島
The Murakami Kaizoku were not robbers but sea lords. From island castles between Onomichi and Imabari, they guarded ships through some of Japan's fiercest currents, fought for warlords and kept order on the Seto Inland Sea.
Key facts
- Theme
- Castles, Sea and waterside, Festivals and rituals, Food and sake
- Era
- Muromachi, Azuchi-Momoyama
- Region
- Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu & Okinawa
- Official name in Japanese
- “日本最大の海賊”の本拠地：芸予諸島
- Official subtitle in Japanese
- よみがえる村上海賊“Murakami KAIZOKU”の記憶
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 愛媛県（今治市）・広島県（尾道市）
The story
In 1586 the missionary Luis Frois, sailing west through the Seto Inland Sea, wrote that "the greatest pirate in Japan" lived on an island here, in a large castle with many men and ships. These were the Murakami, three related families based on Innoshima, Noshima and Kurushima. Their islands sit across the sea's main routes, where tides rise and fall over 3 m and currents reach 10 knots.
Rather than raiding at random, the Murakami sold safe passage. Frois's party was given a silk flag with their crest to show to any suspicious ship. They first appear in records in 1349, escorting ships, and in the Warring States period they beat Oda Nobunaga's fleet at Kizugawaguchi with fire weapons called horoku-hiya. They were also cultured men, who wrote linked poems for the gods of Oyamazumi shrine on Omishima.
What to see
- Noshima: a tiny island that was a sea castle, ringed by fast currents.Google Maps 能島城跡 (opens in a new tab)
- Sea castles: look for rows of post holes cut in the rock, used to moor boats at any tide.
- Oyamazumi shrine: the sea-guardian shrine on Omishima that the Murakami revered.Google Maps 大山祇神社 (opens in a new tab)
- Island food: horaku-yaki and suigun nabe, seafood dishes said to date back to the Murakami.
Plan your trip with the Ehime and Hiroshima guides, and see more castles and history and heritage.
Good to know
- The islands lie between Onomichi and Imabari, so you can hop between them on the way.
- Watch the currents from the shore at spring tide to see why sailors needed the Murakami.
- Innoshima keeps the horaku odori, a dance said to have been performed to pray for and celebrate victory.
Questions travellers ask
Were the Murakami real pirates?
Not in the usual sense. They guaranteed safe passage under their own rules, escorted ships and fought for warlords, keeping order on the sea routes.
Who called them Japan's greatest pirates?
The Portuguese missionary Luis Frois, who passed through in 1586.
Where it comes from
More heritage stories from the same area
- Fukiya: the birthplace of Japan Red
- Hakone Hachiri: walking the Edo stone road over Hakone
- Hizen: the birthplace of Japanese porcelain
- Iki, Tsushima and Goto: Japan's border islands
- Iwami kagura: gods and demons dance the old myths
- Kitamaebune: the merchant ships that made Japan's port towns rich
- Onomichi: a hillside port town of temples and lanes
- Sakura, Narita, Sawara and Choshi: the Edo closest to the airport
- The Shikoku pilgrimage: 88 temples around an island
- The Sugar Road: sweets along the Nagasaki Kaido
- Tomonoura: Japan's best-kept Edo-era port town
- Yatsushiro's stonemasons: the bridge builders of Japan
Local foods from the same area
Crafts from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.