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67-801: The company was founded in 1915, and its head office is located in Kitakyushu , Fukuoka Prefecture . Yaskawa applied for a trademark on the term " Mechatronics " in 1969, it was approved in 1972. The head-office, in Kitakyushu, was designed by the American architect Antonin Raymond in 1954. The company is listed on the Tokyo and Fukuoka Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the Nikkei 225 stock index . YASKAWA has business hubs in 29 countries around

134-625: A Portuguese sponge-cake called castellas ) were assimilated into popular Japanese culture. Tempura derived from a popular Portuguese recipe originally known as peixinhos da horta , and takes its name from the Portuguese word, 'tempero,' seasoning, and refers to the tempora quadragesima, forty days of Lent during which eating meat was forbidden, another example of the enduring effects of this cultural exchange. The Portuguese also brought with them many goods from other Asian countries such as China. The value of Portuguese exports from Nagasaki during

201-821: A grand parade and finale near City Hall in Kokura Kita ward . Kitakyushu was formed by the merging of Kokura, Yahata, Wakamatsu, Moji, and Tobata. As a result, the city began, on its tenth anniversary, to combine these local festivals into one. On the 25th anniversary, it was renamed Wasshoi Hyakuman because the city population had reached one million. There are over 200 shops. The Center for Contemporary Art opened in May 1997 by former Japan Foundation chief curator Nobuo Nakamura and Akiko Miyake. The centre has shown works of internationally renowned artists such as Maurizio Cattelan and Anri Sala , and runs an internationally acclaimed studio programme for emerging artists. Kitakyushu

268-529: A number of incidents involving wokou piracy in the South China Sea , with the Portuguese now serving as intermediaries between the two East Asian neighbors. Despite the mutual advantages derived from these trading contacts, which would soon be acknowledged by all parties involved, the lack of a proper seaport in Kyūshū for the purpose of harboring foreign ships posed a major problem for both merchants and

335-538: A number of people, principally school children, were evacuated to rural areas for safety, consequently reducing the population in the city at the time of the atomic attack. On the day of the nuclear strike (August 9, 1945) the population in Nagasaki was estimated to be 263,000, which consisted of 240,000 Japanese residents, 10,000 Korean residents, 2,500 conscripted Korean workers, 9,000 Japanese soldiers, 600 conscripted Chinese workers, and 400 Allied POWs . That day,

402-595: A plant in Kitakyushu to produce large and ultralarge off-the-road radial tires for construction and mining vehicles. The GDP in Greater Kitakyushu, Kitakyushu Metropolitan Employment Area was US$ 55.7 billion in 2010. Located at a strategic position on the south side of the Kanmon Straits , Kitakyushu is an important transport hub for traffic between Honshu and Kyushu and has a large port. The Kitakyushu Airport opened on March 16, 2006. It

469-468: A plutonium bomb. The first combat use of a nuclear weapon was the " Little Boy " bomb, which was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The first plutonium bomb was tested in central New Mexico , United States, on July 16, 1945. The Fat Man bomb was more powerful than the one dropped over Hiroshima, but because of Nagasaki's more uneven terrain, there was less damage. The city

536-562: A raid of August 1, 1945, was the most effective, with a few of the bombs hitting the shipyards and dock areas in the southwest portion of the city, several hitting the Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works, and six bombs landing at the Nagasaki Medical School and Hospital, with three direct hits on buildings there. While the damage from these few bombs was relatively small, it created considerable concern in Nagasaki and

603-528: A single day, whilst the driest month has been September 1967, with 1.8 millimetres (0.07 in). Precipitation occurs year-round, though winter is the driest season; rainfall peaks sharply in June and July. August is the warmest month of the year. On January 24, 2016, a snowfall of 17 centimetres (6.7 in) was recorded. The nearest airport is Nagasaki Airport in the nearby city of Ōmura . The Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) provides rail transportation on

670-415: A small plain near the end of the bay. Two rivers divided by a mountain spur form the two main valleys in which the city lies. The heavily built-up area of the city is confined by the terrain to less than 4 square miles (10 km ). Nagasaki has the typical humid subtropical climate of Kyūshū and Honshū, characterized by mild winters and long, hot, and humid summers. Apart from Kanazawa and Shizuoka it

737-456: A total area of 491.95 km (189.94 sq mi). The average population density is 1,922 persons /km (4,980/sq mi). It is now the country's 15th most populated city. It has a much larger total area than that of Fukuoka which is only 343.39 km (132.58 sq mi). Kitakyushu has seven wards ( ku ): The city of Nakama, Fukuoka was to become the eighth ward of Kitakyushu in 2005 (to be called Nakama-ku). However,

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804-659: A volcanic eruption, and parts of the city are completely covered in lava. There are festivals (matsuri) held in the summer in the city, including the Tobata Gion Yamagasa festival in Tobata-ku, Kitakyūshū . It has been designated as an intangible cultural asset of Fukuoka Prefecture. People spin highly decorated "battle floats" as they pull them through the streets. People carry yamagasa (tiered floats decorated with flags by day and lanterns by night) on their shoulders. People pull yamagasa parade floats along

871-489: Is a 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 Fukuoka . It is one of Japan's 20 designated cities , one of three on Kyushu, and is divided into seven wards . Kitakyushu was formed in 1963 from a merger of municipalities centered on

938-502: Is based on a local folk hero of Kokura called Muhomatsu or "Wild Pine" and has been called the Japanese "Desperado". He is celebrated in the Kokura Gion Yamagasa festival. Toshiro Mifune plays the taiko drum in this movie. Kitakyushu is featured in the late 2012 Call of Duty: Black Ops II game developed by Treyarch and published by Activision as a DLC map called Magma . In the map the city has been abandoned due to

1005-553: Is covered by the Kitakyushu Expressway , which has five routes serving the city, totaling 53 kilometers of four-lane expressways. Some of these expressways are elevated, especially around the city center. Route 1 serves the city center, while route 2 serves the port area. Route 3 is a short connector between routes 1 and 2, and route 4 is the longest of the Kitakyushu Expressway network, serving most of

1072-828: Is headquartered on the grounds of Kitakyushu Airport in Kokuraminami-ku, Kitakyūshū . Previously the airline's headquarters were in the Shin Kokura Building ( 新小倉ビル , Shin-Kokura Biru ) in Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyūshū . A smaller scale shopping center known as Cha Cha Town, next to the Sunatsu bus depot in Kokura Kita ward, was created by the Nishi-Nippon Railroad and bus company. In 2009 Bridgestone Corporation opened

1139-466: Is larger than the previous Kokura Airport and supports 24-hour operations thanks to its location on an artificial island in the Seto Inland Sea . It will eventually be connected with Kokura Station by a new fast rail link. A new airline based in the city called StarFlyer began operations when the airport opened. Kokura Station , the city's central train station, is the penultimate stop on

1206-435: Is only 7 km (4.3 mi) west of Kokura and had air raids on the previous day, preventing him from identifying the target clearly. Additionally, a smoke screen was created by industrial workers burning barrels of coal tar and/or electric plant workers releasing steam. The bomb was ultimately dropped on the city of Nagasaki , the secondary target, at 11:02 JST. The city of Kitakyushu was founded on February 10, 1963, and

1273-607: Is the wettest sizeable city in Japan. In the summer, the combination of persistent heat and high humidity results in unpleasant conditions, with wet-bulb temperatures sometimes reaching 26 °C (79 °F). In the winter, however, Nagasaki is drier and sunnier than Gotō to the west, and temperatures are slightly milder than further inland in Kyūshū. Since records began in 1878, the wettest month has been July 1982, with 1,178 millimetres (46 in) including 555 millimetres (21.9 in) in

1340-523: Is twinned with Kitakyushu; Nagasaki This is an accepted version of this page Nagasaki ( Japanese : 長崎 , Hepburn : Nagasaki ) ( IPA: [naɡaꜜsaki] ; lit. "Long Cape") , officially known as Nagasaki City ( 長崎市 , Nagasaki-shi ), is the capital and the largest city of the Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan . Founded by

1407-525: The Boeing B-29 Superfortress Bockscar , commanded by Major Charles Sweeney , departed from Tinian 's North Field just before dawn, this time carrying a plutonium bomb , code named " Fat Man ". The primary target for the bomb was Kokura , with the secondary target being Nagasaki, if the primary target was too cloudy to make a visual sighting. When the plane reached Kokura at 9:44 a.m. (10:44 am. Tinian Time),

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1474-614: The Fukuoka-Kitakyushu Greater Metropolitan Region , which, with a population of 5,738,977 (2005-2006), is the largest metropolitan area in Japan west of the Keihanshin region. Kokura Prefecture was founded separately from Fukuoka Prefecture in 1871 when the clan system was abolished. The old wooden-built Kokura Prefectural Office is still standing and is being restored. It is opposite Riverwalk Kitakyūshū . In 1876, Kokura Prefecture

1541-857: The JR West Sanyō Shinkansen before the Fukuoka terminus and all Shinkansen services stop here. It is served by local and express trains on JR Kyushu 's Kagoshima and Nippō Main Lines. In the city, transport is provided the Kitakyushu Monorail and buses. Mojikō Station in Moji-ku is the northern terminus of the Kagoshima Main Line, the most important line in the JR Kyushu network. A tram network operated by

1608-533: The Meiji period , Nagasaki became a center of heavy industry . Its main industry was ship-building , with the dockyards under control of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries becoming one of the prime contractors for the Imperial Japanese Navy , and with Nagasaki harbor used as an anchorage under the control of nearby Sasebo Naval District . During World War II , at the time of the nuclear attack, Nagasaki

1675-630: The Nagasaki bugyō . With the Meiji Restoration , Japan opened its doors once again to foreign trade and diplomatic relations. Nagasaki became a treaty port in 1859 and modernization began in earnest in 1868. Nagasaki was officially proclaimed a city on April 1, 1889. With Christianity legalized and the Kakure Kirishitan coming out of hiding, Nagasaki regained its earlier role as a center for Roman Catholicism in Japan. During

1742-606: The Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen and Nagasaki Main Line , whose terminal is at Nagasaki Station . In addition, the Nagasaki Electric Tramway operates five routes in the city. The Nagasaki Expressway serves vehicular traffic with interchanges at Nagasaki and Susukizuka. In addition, six national highways crisscross the city: Route 34 , 202 , 206 , 251 , 324 , and 499 . On August 9, 1945,

1809-541: The Nishi-Nippon Railroad known as the Kitakyushu Line once operated in the city; after dwindling passenger numbers in the 1970s the line was shut down in stages between 1980 and 2000. A railway using tram cars, the Chikuhō Electric Railroad , runs between Kurosaki-Ekimae and Chikuhō-Nōgata stations, serving Yahatanishi-ku and the neighboring city of Nōgata . The metropolitan area of Kitakyushu

1876-567: The 16th century were estimated to ascend to over 1,000,000 cruzados , reaching as many as 3,000,000 in 1637. Due to the instability during the Sengoku period , Sumitada and Jesuit leader Alexandro Valignano conceived a plan to pass administrative control over to the Society of Jesus rather than see the Catholic city taken over by a non-Catholic daimyō . Thus, for a brief period after 1580,

1943-474: The 35,000 deaths were 150 Japanese soldiers, 6,200 out of the 7,500 employees of the Mitsubishi Munitions plant, and 24,000 others (including 2,000 Koreans ). The industrial damage in Nagasaki was high, leaving 68‍–‍80% of the non-dock industrial production destroyed. It was the second and, to date, the last use of a nuclear weapon in combat , and also the second detonation of

2010-541: The Kyushu daimyōs (feudal lords) who expected to collect great advantages from the trade with the Portuguese. In the meantime, Spanish Jesuit missionary St. Francis Xavier arrived in Kagoshima , South Kyūshū, in 1549. After a somewhat fruitful two-year sojourn in Japan, he left for China in 1552 but died soon afterwards. His followers who remained behind converted a number of daimyōs . The most notable among them

2077-624: The Portuguese, the port of Nagasaki became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region have been recognized and included in the UNESCO World Heritage List . Part of Nagasaki was home to a major Imperial Japanese Navy base during the First Sino-Japanese War and Russo-Japanese War . Near

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2144-844: The Tokugawa dominance was assured. In addition, the Dutch and English presence allowed trade without religious strings attached. Thus, in 1614, Catholicism was officially banned and all missionaries ordered to leave. Most Catholic daimyo apostatized , and forced their subjects to do so, although a few would not renounce the religion and left the country for Macau , Luzon and Japantowns in Southeast Asia. A brutal campaign of persecution followed, with thousands of converts across Kyūshū and other parts of Japan killed, tortured, or forced to renounce their religion. Many Japanese and foreign Christians were executed by public crucifixion and burning at

2211-611: The Yogun Plain. Some of the limestone caverns are open to the public. The area contains the Sugao and Nanae Waterfalls. Sugao is about 20 meters. Nanae means "seven stages". The 1986 family movie Koneko Monogatari was filmed here. The English version of the film, which is the story of the friendship of a kitten and a pug dog, was released in America in 1989 as The Adventures of Milo and Otis . The 1958 comedy Rickshaw Man

2278-600: The archipelago altogether. They had previously been living on a specially constructed artificial island in Nagasaki harbour that served as a trading post , called Dejima . The Dutch were then moved from their base at Hirado onto the artificial island. The Great Fire of Nagasaki destroyed much of the city in 1663, including the Mazu shrine at the Kofuku Temple patronized by the Chinese sailors and merchants visiting

2345-504: The bomb on the city's Urakami Valley midway between the Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works in the south, and the Mitsubishi-Urakami Ordnance Works in the north. The bomb exploded 53 seconds after its release, at 11:02 a.m. at an approximate altitude of 1,800 feet. Less than a second after the detonation, the north of the city was destroyed and more than 10% of the city's population were killed. Among

2412-619: The city from north to south. Route 5 is a short link serving the inner port area. In addition, Kitakyushu is bypassed by the Kyushu Expressway , the main north–south route on the island of Kyushu. The new Higashikyushu Expressway begins in Kitakyushu and runs along the eastern coast of Kyushu. North of Kitakyushu, the Kyushu Expressway crosses the six-lane Kanmonkyo Bridge and turns into the Chūgoku Expressway ,

2479-673: The city limits. The main ferry port is at Shin-Moji, and there are ferries at Moji and near Kokura Station . In the Kanmon-Kitakyushu area, there are three commuter lines: the Wakato Ferry, the Kanmon Straits Ferry, and the Kanmon Straits Liner. The limestone outcroppings on Hiraodai are said to resemble grazing sheep, so the plateau, the highest in Kyushu at 400–600 meters, is also known as

2546-430: The city of Nagasaki was a Jesuit colony, under their administrative and military control. It became a refuge for Christians escaping maltreatment in other regions of Japan. In 1587, however, Toyotomi Hideyoshi 's campaign to unify the country arrived in Kyūshū. Concerned with the large Christian influence in Kyūshū, Hideyoshi ordered the expulsion of all missionaries , and placed the city under his direct control. However,

2613-476: The city was obscured by clouds and smoke, as the nearby city of Yahata had been firebombed on the previous day – the steel plant in Yahata had also instructed their workforce to intentionally set fire to containers of coal tar , to produce target-obscuring black smoke. Unable to make a bombing attack 'on visual' because of the clouds and smoke, and with limited fuel, the plane left the city at 10:30 a.m. for

2680-476: The city's industry. These connections with the Japanese war effort made Nagasaki a major target for strategic bombing by the Allies during the war. In the 12 months prior to the nuclear attack, Nagasaki had experienced five small-scale air attacks by an aggregate of 136 U.S. planes which dropped a total of 270 tons of high explosives , 53 tons of incendiaries , and 20 tons of fragmentation bombs . Of these,

2747-707: The city. On September 30, 2005, ownership of the Wakato Bridge was transferred from Japan Highway Public Corporation to Kitakyushu; on April 1, 2006, the bridge was transferred to the control of the Kitakyushu City Road Public Corporation . Kitakyushu is the largest ferry port in Kyushu , Chūgoku , and Shikoku . Ferry services operate between Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki , Matsuyama , Tokushima , Kōbe , Ōsaka , Tokyo , Ulsan (Korea), Busan (Korea) and isolated islands in

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2814-459: The end of World War II , the American atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki made Nagasaki the second city in the world to experience a nuclear attack. The city was rebuilt. As of February 1, 2024 , Nagasaki has an estimated population of 392,281 and a population density of 966 people per km . The total area is 405.86 km (156.70 sq mi). The first contact with Portuguese explorers occurred in 1543. An early visitor

2881-575: The expulsion order went largely unenforced, and the fact remained that most of Nagasaki's population remained openly practicing Catholic . In 1596, the Spanish ship San Felipe was wrecked off the coast of Shikoku , and Hideyoshi learned from its pilot that the Spanish Franciscans were the vanguard of an Iberian invasion of Japan. In response, Hideyoshi ordered the crucifixions of twenty-six Catholics in Nagasaki on February 5 of

2948-585: The historic city of Kokura , and its name literally means "North Kyushu City" in Japanese. It is located at the northernmost point of Kyushu on the Kanmon Straits , separating the island from Honshu , across from the city of Shimonoseki . Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki are connected by numerous transport links including the Kanmon Bridge and the Kanmon Tunnels ( Roadway , Railway , and Shin-Kanmon ). Kitakyushu's Urban Employment Area forms part of

3015-418: The merger was rejected on December 24, 2004 by Nakama's city council, despite having been initiated by Nakama City. Nippon Steel Corporation is a major employer, but the Yahata and Tobata plants are much reduced from their heyday of the 1960s. The Zenrin company known for its mapping and navigation software is based here and so is Toto Ltd. and Yaskawa Electric Corporation . StarFlyer , an airline,

3082-576: The next year (i.e. the " Twenty-six Martyrs of Japan "). Portuguese traders were not ostracized, however, and so the city continued to thrive. In 1602, Augustinian missionaries also arrived in Japan, and when Tokugawa Ieyasu took power in 1603, Catholicism was still tolerated. Many Catholic daimyōs had been critical allies at the Battle of Sekigahara , and the Tokugawa position was not strong enough to move against them. Once Osaka Castle had been taken and Toyotomi Hideyoshi 's offspring killed, though,

3149-411: The population was estimated to be 263,000. As of March 1, 2017, the city had population of 505,723 and a population density of 1,000 persons per km . Nagasaki is represented in the J. League of football with its local club, V-Varen Nagasaki . The Nagasaki Lantern Festival is celebrated annually over the first 15 days of Chinese New Year and is the largest of its kind in all of Japan. Kunchi ,

3216-577: The port. In 1720 the ban on Dutch books was lifted, causing hundreds of scholars to flood into Nagasaki to study European science and art. Consequently, Nagasaki became a major center of what was called rangaku , or "Dutch learning". During the Edo period , the Tokugawa shogunate governed the city, appointing a hatamoto , the Nagasaki bugyō , as its chief administrator. During this period, Nagasaki

3283-568: The presence of Christianity. Some of the rubble was left as a memorial, such as a one-legged torii at Sannō Shrine and an arch near ground zero . New structures were also raised as memorials, such as the Atomic Bomb Museum . Nagasaki remains primarily a port city, supporting a rich shipbuilding industry. On January 4, 2005, the towns of Iōjima , Kōyagi , Nomozaki , Sanwa , Sotome and Takashima (all from Nishisonogi District ) were officially merged into Nagasaki along with

3350-439: The rebels adopted many Portuguese motifs and Christian icons . Consequently, in Tokugawa society the word "Shimabara" solidified the connection between Christianity and disloyalty, constantly used again and again in Tokugawa propaganda. The Shimabara Rebellion also convinced many policy-makers that foreign influences were more trouble than they were worth, leading to the national isolation policy . The Portuguese were expelled from

3417-422: The roles of merchant and artist such as 18th century Yi Hai . It is believed that as much as one-third of the population of Nagasaki at this time may have been Chinese. The Chinese traders at Nagasaki were confined to a walled compound ( Tōjin yashiki ) which was located in the same vicinity as Dejima island; and the activities of the Chinese, though less strictly controlled than the Dutch, were closely monitored by

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3484-599: The second longest in Japan, serving western Honshu. There are several bridges in Kitakyushu and between the city and other places. The largest ones are the Kanmonkyo Bridge linking Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki (on Kyushu and Honshū respectively) via the Kanmon Straits and the Wakato Bridge linking the wards of Tobata and Wakamatsu. There are smaller bridges over the Onga River on the western border of

3551-419: The secondary target. After 20 minutes, the plane arrived at 10:50 a.m. over Nagasaki, but the city was also concealed by clouds. Desperately short of fuel and after making a couple of bombing runs without obtaining any visual target, the crew was forced to use radar to drop the bomb. At the last minute, the opening of the clouds allowed them to make visual contact with a racetrack in Nagasaki, and they dropped

3618-545: The stake in Nagasaki. They became known as the Martyrs of Japan and were later venerated by several Popes . Catholicism's last gasp as an open religion and the last major military action in Japan until the Meiji Restoration was the Shimabara Rebellion of 1637. While there is no evidence that Europeans directly incited the rebellion, Shimabara Domain had been a Christian han for several decades, and

3685-413: The street. All the Gion festivals date back about 400 years. They were instituted to celebrate surviving an epidemic. This port-city festival involves colorfully costumed people pulling floats through the streets. This port-city festival celebrates fire, drums, and kappa (mythical amphibious creatures who love cucumbers). The Wasshoi Hyakuman Natsumatsuri brings all the festivals together for

3752-410: The town of Kinkai the following year. Nagasaki and Nishisonogi Peninsulas are located within the city limits. The city is surrounded by the cities of Isahaya and Saikai , and the towns of Togitsu and Nagayo in Nishisonogi District . Nagasaki lies at the head of a long bay that forms the best natural harbor on the island of Kyūshū. The main commercial and residential area of the city lies on

3819-422: The wake of this incident strengthening coastal defenses, threatening death to intruding foreigners, and prompting the training of English and Russian translators. The Tōjinyashiki (唐人屋敷) or Chinese Factory in Nagasaki was also an important conduit for Chinese goods and information for the Japanese market. Various Chinese merchants and artists sailed between the Chinese mainland and Nagasaki. Some actually combined

3886-511: The world and with production bases in 12 countries including Japan. There are 81 subsidiaries and 24 affiliate companies across the globe. Some of these are: This article about a Japanese corporation- or company-related topic is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a technological corporation or company is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Kitakyushu ( Japanese : 北九州市 , Hepburn : Kitakyūshū-shi )

3953-480: Was Ōmura Sumitada . In 1569, Ōmura granted a permit for the establishment of a port with the purpose of harboring Portuguese ships in Nagasaki, which was set up in 1571, under the supervision of the Jesuit missionary Gaspar Vilela and Portuguese Captain-Major Tristão Vaz de Veiga , with Ōmura's personal assistance. The little harbor village quickly grew into a diverse port city, and Portuguese products imported through Nagasaki (such as tobacco, bread, textiles and

4020-482: Was absorbed by Fukuoka Prefecture. The city of Kokura was founded in 1900. Yahata in Kitakyushu was the target for the beginning of the US bombing raids on the home islands on June 16, 1944, when 75 Boeing B-29 Superfortresses flew out from mainland China. Kokura was the primary target of the nuclear weapon " Fat Man " on August 9, 1945. Major Charles Sweeney had orders to drop the bomb visually. All three attempts failed due to clouds and smoke from Yahata , which

4087-414: Was an important industrial city, containing both plants of the Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works, the Akunoura Engine Works, Mitsubishi Arms Plant, Mitsubishi Electric Shipyards, Mitsubishi Steel and Arms Works, Mitsubishi-Urakami Ordnance Works, several other small factories, and most of the ports storage and trans-shipment facilities, which employed about 90% of the city's labor force, and accounted for 90% of

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4154-421: Was depicted in contemporary art and literature as a cosmopolitan port brimming with exotic curiosities from the Western world. In 1808, during the Napoleonic Wars , the Royal Navy frigate HMS Phaeton entered Nagasaki Harbor in search of Dutch trading ships. The local magistrate was unable to resist the crew’s demand for food, fuel, and water, later committing seppuku as a result. Laws were passed in

4221-494: Was designated a "shogunal city". The number of such cities rose from three to eleven under Tokugawa administration. Consensus among historians was once that Nagasaki was Japan's only window on the world during its time as a closed country in the Tokugawa era. However, nowadays it is generally accepted that this was not the case, since Japan interacted and traded with the Ryūkyū Kingdom , Korea and Russia through Satsuma , Tsushima and Matsumae respectively. Nevertheless, Nagasaki

4288-452: Was designated on April 1, 1963, by government ordinance . The city was born from the merger of five municipalities (Moji, Kokura, Tobata, Yahata and Wakamatsu) centered around the ancient feudal city of Kokura. The city's symbol mark is a flower with the character "north" ( 北 , kita ) in the middle and five petals representing the towns that merged. As of 1 October 2018 , the city had an estimated population of 945,595 and

4355-459: Was rebuilt after the war, albeit dramatically changed. The pace of reconstruction was slow. The first simple emergency dwellings were not provided until 1946. The focus of redevelopment was the replacement of war industries with foreign trade, shipbuilding and fishing. This was formally declared when the Nagasaki International Culture City Reconstruction Law was passed in May 1949. New temples were built, as well as new churches, owing to an increase in

4422-447: Was selected as the host of the 2021 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships and the 2021 Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships , both of which will take place in October 2021. The artistic gymnastics championship will take place in Kitakyushu City General Gymnasium , while the rhythmic competition will be contested in the West Japan Exhibition Centre. Kitakyushu is twinned with the following cities outside Japan. One city in Japan

4489-423: Was supposedly Fernão Mendes Pinto , who came from Sagres on a Portuguese ship which landed nearby in Tanegashima . Soon after, Portuguese ships started sailing to Japan as regular trade freighters , thus increasing the contact and trade relations between Japan and the rest of the world, and particularly with mainland China , with whom Japan had previously severed its commercial and political ties, mainly due to

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