other · Korea and Japan

Kokura Domain

1600 CE – 1871 CE · capital Kokura

The domain guarding the Kanmon Straits in northern Kyushu, held by the Hosokawa and then by the Ogasawara, and defeated by Choshu in 1866.

Origins

After Sekigahara, Hosokawa Tadaoki received Buzen province and built Kokura castle from 1602 on the southern shore of the Kanmon Straits. In 1632 the Hosokawa were moved to Kumamoto, and Ogasawara Tadazane, a relative of the Tokugawa, took over Kokura with 150,000 koku.

Rule and society

The Ogasawara, a hereditary vassal family, ruled until the end of the period with a mission to watch over the outside lords of Kyushu and the sea route between Honshu and Kyushu. Kokura lay at the end of the Nagasaki road, where Dutch missions travelling to Edo crossed the straits to Honshu.

Decline and legacy

In the second shogunate expedition against Choshu in 1866, Choshu forces under Takasugi Shinsaku crossed the straits; Kokura burned its castle and withdrew inland to Kawara. After abolition in 1871 the area became part of Fukuoka Prefecture.

Lineage

Kokura DomainEmpire of Japan 1868 CE – 1945 CE

Connections (1)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kokura Domain. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kokura-domain
MLA
“Kokura Domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kokura-domain. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Kokura Domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kokura-domain.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kokura Domain’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kokura-domain (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻