Please add new issuer: Japan › Japanese feudal domains › Kokura Domain (小倉領)
This for a new hansatsu note I've added here: N#574168
- Name of the new issuer in English (and if possible also in French and Spanish):
- English - Kokura Domain
- French - Domaine de Kokura
- Spanish - Dominio de Kokura
- Japanese - 小倉領
- Wikidata code: Q1140943 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1140943)
- Link to an auction site or a reference catalogue presenting at least one coin or banknote from this issuer: https://www.ebay.com/itm/336341727465
- A brief introduction presenting the history of this issuer with any numismatic considerations useful to the reader:
Kindly provided by the seller of the note on eBay:
Kokura Domain
- Basic Information
- Established: 1600, after the Battle of Sekigahara
- Ruling Clans: Hosokawa clan → Ogasawara clan
- Stipend (Kokudaka): About 390,000 koku under the Hosokawa; later 150,000 koku under the Ogasawara
- Location: Centered in Buzen Province, corresponding to modern-day Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture
- Historical Overview
- Hosokawa Period (1600–1632)
- Hosokawa Tadaoki was granted most of Buzen Province and ruled from Kokura.
- The clan expanded and renovated Kokura Castle, fostering the growth of the castle town.
- In 1632, the Hosokawa were transferred to Kumamoto.
- Ogasawara Period (1632–1871)
- Ogasawara Tadazane became lord of the domain, and his descendants ruled until the Meiji era.
- Although the domain was reduced to 150,000 koku, it remained a strategic point in northern Kyushu.
- The domain struggled with chronic financial difficulties, partly due to castle maintenance and sankin-kōtai expenses.
- Hosokawa Period (1600–1632)
- Economy and Finances
- Key industries: Rice production, salt, and marine products; coastal shipping and port activity (Moji, Wakamatsu) supported the economy.
- Frequent fiscal problems led to the issuance of domain notes (hansatsu) and repeated financial reforms.
- Late Edo Period
- The domain clashed with Chōshū during the Kinmon Incident (1864), which later escalated into the Chōshū Expedition.
- During the Boshin War, the domain sided with the imperial (Meiji) government.
- After the abolition of feudal domains in 1871, Kokura became Kokura Prefecture.
- Culture and Characteristics
- Kokura Castle served as the political and cultural center of the region.
- Both the Hosokawa and Ogasawara families patronized arts, martial culture, and scholarship.
- The Ogasawara clan is especially known for its traditions in etiquette and martial arts (Ogasawara-ryū).