History History

The discovery of pottery with rope decoration, used by semi-sedentary hunter-gatherers, made it possible to identify the Neolithic period in Japan, which is called the "Jōmon" period. During this long period, humans evolved into sedentary agricultural societies. In recent years, the Japanese look back on the Jōmon era with a certain nostalgia for a lost paradise, as the island would have lived 10,000 years in relative peace and developed an advanced culture, particularly in terms of cuisine

During the Yayoi period, which owes its name to the archaeological site of Yayoi-chō, the islands of Kyushu and Honshu evolved towards a sedentary lifestyle. Irrigated rice cultivation developed, as well as metallurgy and innovations such as the potter's wheel were introduced. This is the period of the first known relations with the mainland, notably through the arrival of new populations.

Powerful clans from four countries emerge in the era of the "great tombs", the kofun, monumental keyhole-shaped burials. The Yamato dynasty extended its power over the southern part of the archipelago. It was also at this time that Chinese culture and Buddhism were introduced to Japan through links with kingdoms in southern Korea. At the end of the kofun era, the four countries are federated by a single state that is built around the capital Asuka. Prince Shōtoku Taishi (574-622) chooses Buddhism as the national religion and enacts a constitution with 17 articles.

State centralization is being reinforced, based on the Chinese model. The capital, Nara, is drawn according to the checkerboard layout of the Tang capital in China. Cultural exchanges with the latter are developing. This period of Nara (710-794) is considered to be the first golden age of Japanese art. To avoid the influence of the Buddhist clergy of Nara, however, Emperor Kammu decided in 794 to move his capital to Heian, now Kyōto. Buddhism is flourishing. Two monks, Saichō and Kūkai, founded the two great sects Tendai and Shingon on their return from China.

After a war between the Minamoto and Taira clans, Minamoto no Yoritomo is awarded by the court the title of Sei-i-tai-shōgun, generalissimo for the submission of the barbarians. A new regime called bakufu (tent administration) settles in Kamakura and eclipses the court of Heian. In the Kamakura period, which lasted until about 1333, a warrior class developed, with warriors from the peasant world. Zen Buddhist doctrine makes its appearance in the country. It is characterized by a sober aesthetic, self-control and a personal quest for salvation.

The powerful army of the Mongolian Emperor Kublai tried to invade Japan, but was overwhelmed by a typhoon, the "kamikaze" or divine wind. The word would meet a new destiny a few centuries later.

Emperor Go-daigo wants to oust the bakufu of Kamakura with the help of the soldier-monks of Mount Hiei, but Ashikaga Takauji, a former ally of the emperor, is named shōgun and settles in the Muromachi district at Kyōto, which gives its name to this turbulent period. The power is divided between the court loyal to Emperor Go-daigo and that of Ashikaga. The latter has less and less control over the warrior group that is gaining power. Numerous conflicts take place, culminating in the Sengoku Wars, wars that span a period of about 150 years, during which anarchy reigns, with lords fighting for the control of entire regions.

This short period is called "Momoyama" after the hill where Toyotomi Hideyoshi built his last castle. During this period, three essential figures emerge who will pacify Japan by imposing their power. Oda Nobunaga with the help of his two generals Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Ieyasu Tokugawa, and new weapons of war such as muskets, controlled central Japan. After Nobunaga was forced to commit suicide in 1582, Toyotomi Hideyoshi continued his unifying work, but failed in his attempt to attack Korea and died in 1598.

Tokugawa Ieyasu and the allied clans won the battle of Sekigahara. It becomes shōgun and settles its capital in Edo. During the following years, he implements reforms to ensure the pre-eminence of Tokugawa. They will also stabilize the country and allow to establish a peace that will last until the middle of the 19th century.

During the 16th century, Jesuit missionaries settled in Japan and began a work of conversion. They were soon seen as a threat to the unified power that Ieyasu was trying to establish and were expelled or persecuted in 1615. As early as 1635, Japan closed its borders to foreigners, especially Westerners, and controlled the movement of its citizens. Portuguese and Spaniards were expelled, but Dutch ships would continue to dock at Dejima, a small island off the coast of Nagasaki.

Tokugawa Ieyasu reorganized the fiefdoms and established the sankin system kōtai. The lords, called daimyō, have to spend every other year in Edo, and part of their families are held hostage there. This is an effective way to ensure peace by controlling and impoverishing the regional lords. Edo, which was a simple village at the beginning of the 17th century, developed to the point of becoming one of the largest cities in the world in the 18th century. The society gradually organized itself into four categories. The warriors, who became rather administrators of estates, the merchants, whom the period of peace favoured as the state lords became indebted to them, the craftsmen and the peasants. There is also a whole category of "non-caste" people who are involved in so-called "impure" trades, such as leather work or burials.

Reforms of the Era Kyōhō. At the turn of the 18th century, the shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune tries to breathe new life into an ageing administration. He encouraged Confucian and Dutch studies, introduced a merit-based selection system for civil servants and other reforms to make his administration more efficient. The system of petition boxes (meyasu bako) to encourage people to express their complaints or suggestions was quickly adopted by the lords of the estates.

Commodore Perry landed on the Japanese coast and demanded that Japan open its ports to American ships.

After the forced opening of the country, two factions were formed, between samurai loyal to the Tokugawas and those who demanded the return of the emperor. The latter won during Boshin's war. Once in power, they established a new regime, called the "Meiji Restoration", headed by the Emperor, and set up a programme of reform of the country inspired by Western models.

A few years after a movement for freedom and the rights of peoples that shook the country between 1878 and 1882 or so, Japan adopted a modern constitution inspired by Germany.

Japan wins the war against China, which it perceives as dominated by a corrupt administration and underhanded by the British colonizers.

Japan's victory over the Russians was a thunderous blow. It marked Japan's entry among the great world powers and the beginning of the country's colonial expansion.

A terrible earthquake killed more than 150,000 people. It causes fires and devastates part of Tokyo. Against a backdrop of social unrest and economic hardship, martial law is declared. Anti-Communists and anti-Koreans are unleashed in riots that claim several thousand lives.

Beginning of the invasion of Manchuria by the Japanese army. In 1932, the Japanese created a puppet state, Manchukuo, headed by Puyi, the last emperor of China.

The Marco Polo Bridge incident between the Japanese Imperial Army and the Chinese National Revolutionary Army marks the beginning of a brutal invasion of China. The terrible massacre in the capital Nanjing continues today to disrupt diplomatic relations between the two countries. For some historians, the Second World War really began in Asia at that time.

On December 7, Japanese naval air forces attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor. The Americans enter the war.

Like many other Japanese cities, Tokyo is entirely bombed by American troops. On August 6 and 9, 1945, the Americans dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, while on August 8, the USSR declared war on Japan in blood. On August 15, the emperor announces the surrender of the country.

The Olympic Games are held in Tokyo for the first time. It is an opportunity for the city to show itself in a new light after the wounds of war. Major infrastructure works are undertaken, the most famous of which is the shinkansen, the high-speed train.

Economic bubble burst. Between the 1960s and the 1980s, Japan experienced a period of exceptional growth. The country became a world power, particularly in the fields of automobile manufacturing and information technology. But in February 1991, however, abnormally high stock market prices collapsed and growth plummeted. This was the beginning of the "Heisei" era.

On 17 January, a major earthquake killed more than 6,000 people in Kobe and on 20 March, a sarin gas attack was carried out by members of the Aum Shinrikyo sect in the Tokyo subway system. In the same year, the inexorable demographic decline began. The time is ripe for doubt.

A major earthquake followed by a tsunami and a nuclear accident in northeast Japan left more than 23,000 people dead and missing.

Tokyo was preparing to host the summer Olympics, but the epidemic of coronavirus decided otherwise. After many hesitations, the Games were postponed. They finally took place behind closed doors in July 2021, on the background of protest of a part of the population which feared that they involve a new wave of infections.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe resigned on August 8, 2020 for health reasons, after 8 years at the head of the country. Yoshihide Suga replaced him as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (due to the LDP's political weight, he became de facto Prime Minister). He did not stand for re-election in September 2021, as his management of Covid-19 was strongly criticized. He was succeeded by Fumio Kishida. Former Prime Minister Sinzo Abe was assassinated on July 8, 2022 during an election rally in Nara.

Because of the epidemic, Japan closed its borders early on after the first cases of infection, and is only gradually reopening them. The country dropped sharply from 32 million foreign visitors in 2019 to 250,000 in 2021. The first accompanied tourists were admitted in June 2022, but it was not until April 2023 that all restrictions on travelers and Japanese were lifted.