Nakatsu, Ōita 2.51

Nakatsu is a city on the northern border of Ōita Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan. The city is on the border with Fukuoka Prefecture. Nakatsu was founded on April 20, 1929.As of March 2017, the city has an estimated population of 84,701 and a population density of 170 people per km². The total area is 491.09 km².History1587: Kuroda Yoshitaka (Josui) built Nakatsu Castle as a flatland castle near the Yamaguni River.April 1925: The village of Ōe was merged with Toyoda to become the town of Nakatsu. April 1919: The village of Ogusu and the town of Nakatsu were merged to become the city of Nakatsu.August 1933: The villages of Tsurui, Ōhata and Josui were merged into Nakatsu. April 1951: The village of Miho was merged into Nakatsu.October 1954: The village of Wada was merged into Nakatsu.February 1955: The village of Imazu was merged into Nakatsu.March, 2005: The towns of Hon'yabakei, Yabakei and Yamakuni, and the village of Sankō (all from Shimoge District) were all merged into Nakatsu.TourismNakatsu is a castle town centered on Nakatsu Castle, which is open to visitors. The modernised interior comprises a museum with samurai armor, old maps and information about Rangaku (Dutch studies), for which Nakatsu was an important center in the Edo era. There are views from the top of the castle keep.