Every Hyrule Castle In The Legend of Zelda Series (& How They Change)
One of the most frequently recurring locations in The Legend of Zelda is the iconic Hyrule Castle, home to the royal family and seat of the Hyrulean monarchy. As a symbol of power, and a monument representing the kingdom of Hyrule itself, the castle is frequently targeted and conquered by Ganon or subjected to some other magical phenomenon as part of his plot. Even in Zelda games where Ganon isn't the main villain, Hyrule Castle is sometimes plunged into crisis. Despite the extremely varied art design throughout the series, Hyrule Castle has remained surprisingly consistent in its aesthetic and architecture.
Although it's one of many locations practically synonymous with the series, Hyrule Castle doesn't actually appear in the original The Legend of Zelda. Very few named locations actually appear in the first game, with even the dungeons just being numbered labyrinths. Even though Hyrule is named in the original's instruction booklet, the actual game world hardly depicts an actual kingdom, more or less containing only monster-filled tracts of wilderness without many prominent landmarks. Notable exceptions are The Legend of Zelda's Lake Hylia, Death Mountain, and Spectacle Rock.
Related: The Legend of Zelda's Death Mountain: How It Changes In Each Game
The first stronghold resembling Hyrule Caste — both in appearance and spirit — is the North Castle in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. This is the location in which the player starts the game; it houses the slumbering Princess Zelda, and is where Impa sends Link on his quest to obtain the Triforce. Nintendo's instruction booklet for Zelda II shows North Castle with noticeably different features than what Hyrule Castle would eventually have, namely brownish bronze roofing
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