Hosokawa Tadaoki
At the start of the Edo period, the territory which became Kitsuki (then spelled 木付) was part of the Nakatsu domain (later called Kokura), the 399,000 "koku" territory ruled by Hosokawa Tadaoki. The territory's name came from the family, the relatives of the Ōtomo clan, who had once resided there. However, in 1593, Ōtomo Yoshimune incurred the disfavor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and had his territory confiscated; the Kitsuki lost their lands at the same time. The land was then passed to Sugiwara Nagafusa, Hayakawa Nagamasa, and finally to Hosokawa Tadaoki in 1599, upon his move from the 120,000 "koku" fief of Miyazu, in Tango Province. The Kitsuki region, valued at 60,000 koku, was ruled on Tadaoki's behalf by castle wardens (Matsui Yasuyuki, Ariyoshi Tatsuyuki, and others) posted to its central castle. For his distinguished service at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Tadaoki was granted the entire province of Bizen, and moved his seat of government first to Nakatsu Castle, then to Kokura Castle. The Hosokawa remained in Bizen until 1632, when Tadaoki's son Hosokawa Tadatoshi was transferred to the Kumamoto Domain in neighboring Higo Province.