History of Tokyo

At Yayoi-zaka near modern Nezu Station, Yayoi period grains of charred rice and chaff were found, making it the oldest agricultural site in Tokyo.

Sensō-ji was firebombed during World War II; when the main hall's remains were excavated, 7th and 8th-century "religious implements and tiles of continental Asian origin" were found.

The construction of water systems and roads around the city eased the movement of "officials, merchants, and goods", and allowed more people to take pilgrimages to holy sites.

3,000 ships carried the earth to the dock, and dragged to its proper location by teams of laborers using ox carts, aided by placing the rocks on seaweed and entertainers.

Meat was not usually eaten due to Buddhist beliefs, but was used as a supposed elixir, and could be bought at the Yotsuya hunter's market, or at butcher's shops near "Komadome Bridge".

From 1660 to 1790, Dutch traders, restricted to Nagasaki's Dejima island, were forced to make annual delegatory trips to Edo, and perform certain ceremonies when they arrived.

[61] After the Meireki Fire, the city attempted to dissolve theaters and the Yoshiwara red light district ("venues of moral degeneration") by moving them from Asakusa, east of the castle, to the northeast.

[71] Edo's lead in social change and economic growth impacted all of Japan during the Tokugawa era, attracted immigrants, and created new markets and a higher standard of living.

These included theater performers, the writer Napa Oto, popular novels with satirical prose called sen-ryu, and painters like Hokusai.

[73] At Mukojima, on the Sumida's east bank, "private gardens, teahouses and temples" were visited by the era's leading artists, including Kameda Hosai, Sakai Hoitsu, and Tani Buncho.

[85]On July 8, 1853, American Commodore Matthew C. Perry and his four steam-powered metal ships sailed into Edo Bay, and demanded Japan open their port for trade.

Rice was distributed to the people, but it did not stop yaonoshi ("reform the world") beliefs, which theorized a systematic attempt by outsiders to destroy Japan.

In 1859, Townsend Harris opened an American consulate at Hiro-o's Zenpuku-ji temple, which was burned to the ground by imperialists who wanted to restore the monarchy's power.

On 3 January 1868, middle- and lower-ranking samurai from Chōshū, Satsuma, and Tosa seized the palace in Kyoto and declared an Imperial restoration, ending the shogunate.

[115] Western standards also influenced two notable parks: a hill in the northern district was used for celebrations, and a parade ground next to the palace was turned into a recreational space.

Worshipping him was mandated (a part of increasing Japanese nationalism), and at Shinto shrines, people listened to rites that linked his ancestors to the Son of Heaven.

On September 5, 30,000 protesters in Hibiya Park held a short rally, and nearby, 2,000 marched towards the Imperial Palace, causing damage and committing violence.

He made political parties a primary institution of Japan, and, notable to his death, wanted to reduce the military's size, and opposed the Japanese intervention in Siberia.

During previous urbanization, traditional waste disposal methods in the northern and western districts of the city collapsed, and the earthquake exaggerated those conditions.

[155][156] Okada resigned, blaming himself for the troubles that occurred under his administration, but he continued as a politician who had a major influence on Japanese politics until the end of World War II.

The American James H. Doolittle and 16 B-25 bombers from the U.S. aircraft carrier Hornet made a surprise attack on Tokyo that boosted Allied morale.

During Operation Meethinghouse on March 9–10, 1945, LeMay sent pathfinder aircraft ahead of an armada of B-29 bombers to mark the target area in Tokyo with napalm bombs.

Rapid social changes, thematically staged in the Olympic ceremonies, let Japan display a new national pride, their re-entry into the circle of developed industrial countries, and their disavowment of imperialist militarism.

A 17-year-old rightist named Otoya Yamaguchi stabbed Asanuma on stage, in front of 1,000 people (including Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda).

[213] Yamaguchi had a note in his pocket explaining he killed Asanuma for his left-wing policies, remarks he made during a speech in China, and for his supporters storming the National Diet building.

[214] In 1960, Chuo Karan magazine published a satire story in which left-wing revolutionaries storm the Imperial Palace and behead Crown Prince Akihito and Princess Michiko.

On November 25, 1970, Mishima seized the commanding general's office at a military headquarters in downtown Tokyo, with four members of the Shield Society student army.

to preserve the profitability of real estate schemes, developers used several means of action to increase building density, such as urban renewal.

[242][243] His death was announced by the Grand Steward of Japan's Imperial Household Agency, Shōichi Fujimori, who revealed details about his cancer for the first time.

Five members on five different lines heading towards Tsukiji Station dropped bags containing a large of amount of sarin, an "odourless, colourless and highly toxic nerve gas", in different subway cars.