Takada Castle was built in 1614 as a Tenka Bushin, a nationwide construction project ordered by the Tokugawa shogunate in which major lords contributed labor. Uesugi Kagekatsu is said to have taken part, and tradition holds that his chief administrator Naoe Kanetsugu helped direct the Uesugi's contribution. As primary sources on Kanetsugu's specific role are limited, this is best treated as tradition, yet it reflects the position of the Uesugi and Kanetsugu within the early Tokugawa order after Sekigahara.