is an ancient castle town and the center of

Kitakyushu is a Cities of Japan, city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fuku ...

, Japan, guarding the

Straits of Shimonoseki The or the Straits of Shimonoseki is the stretch of water separating Honshu and Kyushu, two of Japan's four main islands. On the Honshu side of the strait is Shimonoseki (, which contributed "Kan" () to the name of the strait) and on the Kyushu ...

between Honshu and

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

with its suburb

Moji Moji may refer to: * ''Onji'' or ''hyōon moji'' (表音文字), phonic characters used in counting beats in Japanese poetry * Moji-ku, Kitakyūshū, ward (district) of the city of Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan ** Moji Station in that wa ...

. Kokura is also the name of the penultimate station on the southbound San'yō Shinkansen line, which is owned by JR West. Ferries connect Kokura with Matsuyama on Shikoku, and Busan in South Korea.

History

Edo period

The Ogasawara and

Hosokawa Hosokawa (typically ja, 細川, meaning "narrow river" or "little river") is a Japanese surname. People with the name include: *Bill Hosokawa (1915–2007), Japanese American author and journalist *Chieko Hosokawa (born 1929), a Japanese manga a ...

clans were '' daimyō'' at

Kokura Castle is a castle in Kitakyushu, Japan. It was built by Hosokawa Tadaoki starting in 1602, with construction completed in 1608. History Construction of Kokura Castle began in 1602 and was completed in 1608. It was the property of the Ogasawara clan ...

during the Edo period (1603–1868). Miyamoto Musashi, samurai swordsman, author of '' The Book of Five Rings'' and founder of the Hyoho Niten Ichi-ryū, famous for its use of two swords, lived in the Kokura castle under the patronage of the Ogasawara and Hosokawa clans briefly during 1634.

Meiji period

After the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Kokura was the seat of government for Kokura Prefecture. When the municipal system of cities, towns and villages was introduced, Kokura Town was one of 25 towns in the prefecture, which later merged with Fukuoka Prefecture. Kokura was upgraded to city status in 1900.

World War II

Kokura was the primary target for the " Fat Man" bomb on August 9, 1945, but on the morning of the raid, the city was obscured by morning fog. Kokura had also been mistaken for the neighboring city of

Yahata was a city in Japan until it was absorbed into the newly created city of Kitakyushu is a Cities of Japan, city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-l ...

the day before by the reconnaissance missions. Since the mission commander Major Charles Sweeney had orders to drop the bomb visually and not by radar, he diverted to the secondary target, Nagasaki.

Post-war

When the city of

was created in 1963, Kokura was divided into

Kokura Kita is an ancient Jōkamachi, castle town and the center of Kitakyushu, Japan, guarding the Kanmon Straits, Straits of Shimonoseki between Honshu and Kyushu with its suburb Moji-ku, Kitakyushu, Moji. Kokura is also the name of the Kokura Station ...

ward in the north, and

Kokura Minami is an ancient castle town and the center of Kitakyushu, Japan, guarding the Straits of Shimonoseki between Honshu and Kyushu with its suburb Moji. Kokura is also the name of the penultimate station on the southbound San'yō Shinkansen lin ...

ward in the south.

Notable residents

* Matsumoto Seichō – writer * Miyamoto Musashi – swordsman and rōnin * Mori Ōgai – physician, translator, novelist and poet * Tetsuya Theodore Fujita – Meteorologist

Notable figures born in Kokura

* Tsukasa Hojo,

mangaka A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist bef ...

* Leiji Matsumoto,

Masumi Mitsui Masumi Mitsui, (7 October 1887 – 22 April 1987), was a Japanese-born Canadian veteran of World War I who had his property confiscated and was detained during World War II as part of the Japanese-Canadian internment. In World ...

, 10th Battalion, CEF. * Linda Yamamoto, singer and J-pop idol * Satoru Nomura, Yakuza godfather, leader of the Kudo-kai

Festivals

The Gion Festival of Kokura is called the "Gion of

Drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

s" and celebrates the life of local folk-hero Muhomatsu.

Notable facts

The city is the site of the main

dojo A is a hall or place for immersive learning or meditation. This is traditionally in the field of martial arts, but has been seen increasingly in other fields, such as meditation and software development. The term literally means "place of the ...

(honbu) of Miyamoto Musashi's

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

school, Hyoho Niten Ichi-ryū.

References

{{Authority control Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Kitakyushu