Tsuruga has a good natural port, and was the gateway between the Kinai region and the Korean Peninsula and Asian continent since ancient times.

The actual foundation of the shrine predates written history, and its first mention in national chronicles is from around 692 AD during the reign of Empress Jito.

In the Heian and Kamakura period, the shrine commanded vast estates extending from Echizen to Echigo and Sado Province.

The shrine supported the Asakura clan during the Sengoku period and was thus largely destroyed by the forces of Oda Nobunaga.

One surviving structure is the shrine's 11-meter-tall torii gate, which was built in 1902 and which is registered as a National [Important Cultural Property.