Fukui (city)

Fukui (福井市) is the capital city of Fukui Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 255,332 in 107,553 households. Its total area is 536.41 sqkm and its population density is about 476 persons per km2. Most of the population lives in a small central area; the city limits include rural plains, mountainous areas, and suburban sprawl along the Route 8 bypass.

Geography
Fukui is located in the coastal plain in north-central part of the prefecture. It is bordered by the Sea of Japan to the west and the Ryōhaku Mountains to the east. The Kuzuryū River flows through the city.

Climate
Fukui has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot, humid summers and cool winters. Precipitation is high throughout the year, and is especially heavy in December and January.

Neighbouring municipalities

 * Fukui Prefecture
 * Sakai
 * Ōno
 * Katsuyama
 * Sabae
 * Ikeda
 * Eiheiji
 * Echizen (town)

Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Fukui has remained relatively steady over the past 40 years.

Origins
Fukui originally consisted of the old provinces of Wakasa and Echizen, before the prefecture was formed in 1871.

During the Edo period, the daimyō of the region was surnamed Matsudaira, and was a descendant of Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Sengoku Period
In 1471, Asakura had displaced the Shiba clan as the shugo military commander of Echizen Province. The same year, Asakura Toshikage (1428–1481) fortified the Ichijōdani by constructing hilltop fortifications on the surrounding mountains and constructing walls and gates to seal off the northern and southern end of the valley. Within this area, he contracted a fortified mansion, surrounded by the homes of his relatives and retainers, and eventually by the residences of merchants and artisans, and Buddhist temples. He offered refuge to people of culture or skills from Kyoto attempting to escape the conflict of the Ōnin War, and the Ichijōdani became a major cultural, military, and population center, and by the time of Asakura Takakage (1493–1548) it had a peak population of over 10,000 inhabitants. Yoshikage succeeded his father as head of the Asakura clan and castle lord of Ichijōdani Castle in 1548.

The Asakura maintained good relations with the Ashikaga shogunate, and thus eventually came into conflict with Oda Nobunaga. Following Nobunaga's capture of Kyoto, Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshiaki appointed Asakura Yoshikage as regent and requested aid in driving Nobunaga out of the capital. As a result, Nobunaga launched an invasion of Echizen Province. Due to Yoshikage's lack of military skill, Nobunaga's forces were successful at the Siege of Kanegasaki and subsequent Battle of Anegawa in 1570, leaving the entire Asakura Domain open to invasion.

Ichijōdani was razed to the ground by Nobunaga during the 1573 Siege of Ichijōdani Castle.

Kitanosho Castle is known, though that it was built by Shibata Katsuie in 1575. Also, it appears that the tenshu (keep) was nine stories high, making it the largest of the time.

Edo Period
Castle town and centre of Fukui Domain during the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. Fukui Domain played a key role in the Meiji restoration. The modern city of Fukui was founded with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889.

Meiji, Taisho & Showa Period
During the pre-war period, Fukui grew to become an important industrial and railroad centre. Factories in the area produced aircraft parts, electrical equipment, machine motors, various metal products and textiles.

Fukui was largely destroyed on June 19, 1945 during the Bombing of Fukui during World War II. Of the city's 1.9 sqmi at the time, 84.8% of Fukui was destroyed, per the United States Army Air Forces's Strategic Bombing Survey.

Modern Fukui
Fukui was again devastated by a major earthquake in 1948.

On February 1, 2006, the town of Miyama (from Asuwa District), the town of Shimizu, and the village of Koshino (both from Nyū District) were merged into Fukui.

Fukui's city status was designated a core city on April 1, 2019.

Government
Fukui has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 32 members. The city also contributes 12 members to the Fukui Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, Fukui forms part of Fukui 1st district, a single-member constituency of the House of Representatives in the national Diet of Japan.

International
Fukui is twinned with:
 * Sister Cities
 * Friendship Cities

National

 * Sister Cities
 * Friendship cities
 * Partnership cities

Economy
The economy of Fukui is mixed. The city is a regional commercial and finance centre; however, manufacturing, agriculture and commercial fishing also are contributors to the local economy.

Agriculture

 * Japan Agricultural Cooperatives (JA)
 * Fukui Prefecture Agricultural Cooperatives (JA FukuiPrefecture)

Fishing industry

 * Japan Fisheries cooperative (JF)
 * FukuiCity Fisheries cooperative (JF FukuiCity)

Manufacturing industry
Fukui is home to several companies, including:
 * Matsuura Machinery, an international heavy machinery manufacturing company
 * Morinaga Hokuriku Dairy, a dairy products subsidiary of Morinaga Milk Industry
 * Kumagai Gumi, a large general construction company, was founded and has its registered head office in the city.

Service industry

 * Emori Shoji, a trading house with strong ties to China
 * Keifuku Bus

Universities and colleges

 * Fukui Prefectural University
 * University of Fukui
 * Fukui University of Technology
 * Jin-ai Women's College
 * Fukui College of Health Sciences

Secondary schools

 * Fujishima Senior High School
 * Koshi Senior High School
 * Fukui Commercial Senior High School
 * Usui Senior High School
 * Asuwa Senior High School
 * Michimori Senior High School
 * Kagaku-Gijutsu Senior High School
 * Fukui Norin Senior High School
 * Hokuriku Senior High School
 * Fukui University of Technology - Fukui Senior High School
 * Jin-ai Girl's Senior High School
 * Keishin Senior High School
 * Fukui Minami Senior High School

Other schools

 * Fukui Prefectural School for the Blind
 * Fukui Prefectural School for the Deaf
 * A North Korean school: Hokuriku Korean Elementary and Junior High School (北陸朝鮮初中級学校).

High-speed rail
Shinkansen service began on 16 March 2024.
 * JR logo (west).svg West Japan Railway Company (JR West)
 * Hokuriku Shinkansen

Conventional lines
Hapi Line Fukui
 * JR logo (west).svg West Japan Railway Company (JR West)
 * Etsumi-Hoku Line (Kuzuryū Line): Echizen-Hanandō - Rokujō - Asuwa - Echizen-Tōgō - Ichijōdani - Echizen-Takada - Ichinami - Kowashōzu -  Miyama -  Echizen-Yakushi - Echizen-Ōmiya - Hakariishi
 * Fukutetsu Logomark.svg Fukui Railway
 * Fukubu Line: Sanjūhassha - Taichō no Sato - Asōzu - Harmony Hall - Seimei - Ebata - Bell-mae - Hanandō - Sekijūjimae - Shokokaigisho-mae - Asuwayama-Koenguchi - Fukui Castle Ruins-daimyomachi - Jin'ai Joshikōkō - Tawaramachi
 * Echitetsu Logomark.svg Echizen Railway
 * Mikuni Awara: Fukui - Shin-Fukui - Fukuiguchi - Matsumoto Machiya - Nishi-Betsuin - Tawaramachi - Fukudaimae-Nishi-Fukui - Nikkakagaku-Mae - Yatsushima - Nittazuka - Nakatsuno - Jin'ai Ground-Mae - Washizuka-Haribara
 * Katsuyama Eiheiji Line: Fukui - Shin-Fukui - Fukuiguchi - Echizen-Kaihotsu - Echizen-Shinbo - Oiwakeguchi - Higashi-Fujishima - Echizen-Shimabashi

Service on the third-sector line formerly belonging to JR West began operations on 16 March 2024 when the Hokuriku Shinkansen was extended to Tsuruga.


 * Ōdoro - Echizen-Hanandō - Fukui - Morita

Expressways

 * JP Expressway E8.svg Hokuriku Expressway

Sea Port

 * Port of Takasu

Visitor attractions

 * Ichijōdani Asakura Family Historic Ruins, one of the most important cultural heritage sites in Japan
 * Yōkōkan Garden
 * Fukui Castle
 * Fukui Fine Arts Museum
 * Kitanosho Castle
 * Asuwa River
 * Harmony Hall Fukui
 * Fukui International Activities Plaza
 * "Yoroppaken", creator of Fukui's trademark dish, sauce katsudon (ソースカツ丼)
 * Peace Pagoda, the second of its kind in the world, inaugurated in 1959

Baseball

 * Fukui Wild Raptors (BC.League)

Handball

 * Hokuriku Electric Power Company Blue Thunder (JHL)

Soccer

 * Fukui United FC (Hokushinetsu Football League)