Finally, the direct rule of the Muromachi regime that emerged in the 1360s was limited geographically to the western and central provinces in contrast to the previous Kamakura regime based in the Kantō. Outside "shugo" lords (tozama) unrelated to the Ashikaga like the Takeda, Chiba, Yuki, Satake, Oyama, Utsunomiya, Shoni, Otomo, Aso, and the Shimazu families, all of whom were concentrated in or near the Kantō and Kyūshū regions did not participate in the "kanrei" council system, and were semi-independent of the regime. They were tacitly recognized and given "shugo" titles by the Ashikaga, because of their predominant positions in areas that were not easily controlled from Kyoto.