Due to its location dominating the San'yōdō highway connecting the Kinai region with western Japan, Himeji was a major stronghold of the Tokugawa shogunate through the Bakumatsu period.

After the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, the Japanese government reportedly considered moving the nation's capital from Tokyo to Himeji.

During World War II, Himeji was a target for the United States' XXI Bomber Command as it was an important rail terminal and contained two large military zones.

The first air raid occurred o June 22, 1945 at 0950, in which 60 B-29 Superfortress bombers centered on Andrea containing a Kawanishi Aircraft Company factory.

The second attack occurred on July 3, 1945, at 16:23, 107 aircraft dropped 767 tons of incendiary bombs on Himeji, destroying 63.3% of the built up areas of the city.

[5] However, the famous Himeji Castle, although blackened by smoke from the burning city, remained unscathed, even with one firebomb being dropped on it.

The coastal region is heavily industrialized, with steel mills, chemical plants, semiconductor and automobile electronics predominating.

The northern two-thirds of the city is mainly agricultural and commercial fishing off the southern seacoast also plays a role in the economy.

Additionally, the Youth Ambassador Exchange Program allows for both Japanese and American high school students to experience the cultures and languages of their respective countries for 3 weeks.