Early history During the
Kofun period, the area of Buzen had two main power centers: Toyouni in the northwest and Usa-kuni in the southeast (the area around what is now
Usa, each of which was ruled by a
kuni no miyatsuko. By the
Asuka period, the area had been consolidated into a single province called
Toyo Province, also called
Toyokuni no Michi no Shiri. After the
Taika Reforms and the establishment of the
Ritsuryō system in 701, Toyo Province was divided into Bungo and Buzen Provinces. The
kokufu of Buzen was located in
Toyotsu, now part of
Miyako, Fukuoka, and its ruins have been located and are now a National Historic Site. The
Buzen Kokubun-ji was also located in the same area. The of
ichinomiya of Buzen Province is
Usa Jingū, commonly known as "Usa Hachimangū", located in
Usa.
Edo Period and early modern period Buzen was largely dominated by
Kokura Domain, ruled by the
Ogasawara clan under the
Tokugawa shogunate, with a smaller area under the rule of
Nakatsu Domain. During the
Boshin War, Kokura Castle was occupied by the forces of
Chōshū Domain, and the seat of Kokura Domain was transferred to . It was renamed in 1870. In 1869, Kokura Shinden Domain was renamed . The previous year,
hatamoto territory in the province was transferred to Hita Prefecture, followed by Usa Jingu territory and Chōshū Domain in 1869. On the other hand, former
tenryō in Shimoge District and Usa District became part of in January 1870. With the
abolition of the han system in August 1871, the former domains became Toyotsu, Senzoku, Nakatsu, and Izuhara prefectures, which were merged at the end of the year to form
Kokura Prefecture. In April 1876, Kokura Prefecture was incorporated into Fukuoka Prefecture, but in August of the same year, the two southernmost districts (Usa District and Shimoge District) of former Buzen Province were transferred to Ōita Prefecture. The name "Buzen" continued to persist for some purposes. For example, Buzen is explicitly recognized in the 1894 treaties with the
United States and the
United Kingdom. Per the early
Meiji period , an official government assessment of the nation's resources, Buzen Province had 776 villages with a total
kokudaka of 363,940
koku. Bungo Province consisted of: } || 77,483
koku || 241 villages ||
Tenryō, Nakatsu, Shimabara, Usa Jingū ||dissolved ==Gallery==