• View
• Edit
• History
• Print

Kyûshû Japan

INTRODUCTION

Kyushu, said to be the birthplace of Japanese civilization, is the southern most of Japans’ main islands, and includes several islets off the south coast, leading into the region of Okinawa. The mostly mountain covered island supports several lush valleys ideal for agriculture.

HISTORY

Kyushu was the site of the first Mongol invasions, at Hakata Bay. A castle town evolved around the defenses, in the area now known as the city of Fukuoka.

Kagoshima became the base for the Shimazu forces, descendants of the Seiwa Gengi.

In the 1500s, Nagasaki was founded. The village grew into a prominent port, and established trade with the west. The import industry quickly drew the crowds and the city grew.

In 1587, the warlord Toyotomi came to the island, seeking to unify the nation and end civil war. His contact with Christian missionaries on Kyushu led to his now infamous expulsion of foreign missionaries, and the deaths of dozens of Christians.

By the 1600s, the Portuguese were the only foreign nation allowed to trade through Kyushu.

In the early 1600s, Hosokawa Tadaoki built the now historic landmark Kokura Castle. The castle was fully restored in the 1990s, and now houses the Matsumoto Seicho museum.

Christian persecution was revived in 1616, when Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu reinforced the ban of the faith. Those who did not leave the country were executed. The persecution would last until 1637, culminating in the Shimabara Rebellion. While the rebellion was largely a peasant revolt and not religious based, it was an opportunity to finally remove the influence of the foreign religion.

During the Edo period, Nagasaki closed its doors to all foreigners except the Chinese. The city became a hotbed of foreign education.

In the 1700s, Dutch traders established a base at Nagasaki.

In the 1800s, the cities of Fukuoka and Hakata merged into the city of Fukuoka. After the shogunate was defeated in the mid 1800s, the island opened its doors to trade, in particular through the port city of Nagasaki, and the city grew.

In 1828, legendary samurai Saigo Takamori was born in Kagoshima. Saigo was instrumental in defeating the ailing Tokugawa shogunate and restoring power to the Imperial family, but would meet his end fighting western influence over Imperial rule in his home province of Satsuma in 1877. The events of Saigo’s Satsuma Rebellion are the inspiration for the Tom Cruise epic The Last Samurai.

Kagoshima became a city in 1889.

Historic Mori Ogai house was built at the base of the castle in the late 1900s.

In 1924, in response to the increased interest in Kyushu hot springs, the city of Beppu was founded. The city maintains literally thousands of onsen, including nine major springs known as the Nine Hells of Beppu.

In 1936, Japan built the Kanmon Pedestrian Tunnel, connecting Honshu and Kyushu by way of a 2.25 mile (3.5 km) underwater tunnel. The walk takes about ten minutes.

Tragedy struck the island in 1945, when Allied forces dropped the atomic bomb known as Fat Man on Nagasaki, killing 70,000 and destroying much of the city. The city rebuilt, and began welcoming Christianity once again.

In the 1980s, Beppu opened its now infamous Sex Museum, exploring the history of sexual interests and the sex industry.

In 1990, Space World theme park opened as Japan’s first interactive, educational space experience.

Modern Nagasaki is primarily a port city, but has a wealth of historic sites that have created a growing tourism industry. The Shinkansen super train now travels to the island.