Nijojo Castle was built in 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu who intended it as his official residence in Kyoto. His grandson Iemitsu added some structure from Fushimi Castle in 1623.
Its ostentatious Momoyama style was meant for the shogun to supersede the emperor in prestige.
The Ninomaru Palace (lit. "secondary palace") is divided into five buildings occupying a land area of 7,300m2. These are further partitioned in 33 chambers.
Tokugawa Iemitsu constructed the adjoining Honmaru Palace ("main palace"), but it burnt to the ground in the 18th century and the present bulding is a 1893 reconstruction.