# Timeline of Tokyo

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] The following is a timeline of the history of Tokyo, Japan.

## Prior to 19th century

Part of a series on the :
History of Japan :
PeriodsPaleolithicbefore 14,000 BCJōmon14,000–1000 BCYayoi
1000 BC – 300 ADKofun
300–538 ADAsuka
538–710Nara
710–794HeianFormer Nine Years' WarLater Three-Year WarGenpei War 794–1185KamakuraJōkyū WarMongol invasionsGenkō WarKenmu Restoration 1185–1333MuromachiNanboku-chō periodSengoku period 1336–1573Azuchi–Momoyama
Nanban tradeImjin WarBattle of Sekigahara 1573–1603Edo (Tokugawa)
Tokugawa shogunateInvasion of RyukyuSiege of OsakaSakokuPerry ExpeditionConvention of KanagawaBakumatsuMeiji RestorationBoshin War 1603–1868Meiji
Ryūkyū DispositionInvasion of Taiwan (1874)Satsuma RebellionFirst Sino-Japanese WarTreaty of ShimonosekiTriple InterventionInvasion of Taiwan (1895)Colonization of TaiwanBoxer RebellionRusso-Japanese WarTreaty of PortsmouthJapan–Korea TreatyColonization of Korea 1868–1912Taishō
World War IIntervention in SiberiaGreat Kantō earthquake 1912–1926Shōwa
MilitarismFinancial crisisNanking incidentMukden IncidentInvasion of ManchuriaMay 15 incidentFebruary 26 incidentAnti-Comintern PactTripartite PactSecond Sino-Japanese WarWorld War IIAttack on Pearl HarborPacific WarAtomic bombingsSoviet–Japanese WarSurrender of JapanOccupation of JapanPostwar JapanAnpo protestsEconomic miracleAsset price bubble1926–1989Heisei
Lost DecadesGreat Hanshin earthquakeCool JapanTōhoku earthquakeImperial transition 1989–2019ReiwaCOVID-19 pandemicAbe assassinationNoto earthquake 2019–present :
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vte :
* 1457 - Edo Castle built.
* 1617 - Yoshiwara (prostitution district) begins operating.
* 1634 - Sankin-kōtai policy established.
* 1657 - March 2: Great Fire of Meireki occurs.
* 1682 - 1682 Edo fire [ja].
* 1698 - 1698 Edo fire [ja].
* 1707 - December: Eruption of Mount Fuji; ash falls on Edo.
* 1721 - "First population census conducted (Edo’s population about 1.3 million)."

## 19th century

* 1853
** July 8: American Perry Expedition arrives in Edo Bay.
** Odaiba island forts built in Edo Bay.
** Hanayashiki garden opens.
* 1855 - November 11: 1855 Edo earthquake occurs.
* 1856 - Hiroshige's One Hundred Famous Views of Edo published.
* 1868 - Edo renamed "Tokyo."
* 1869
** Japanese imperial capital relocated to Tokyo from Kyoto.
** Tokyo Shôkonsha (shrine) established.
** Yokohama-Tokyo telegraph begins operating.
* 1871 - Esaki Reiji photo studio in business.
* 1872
** Yushima Seido Exposition is held
** October: Yokohama-Tokyo railroad begins operating.
** Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun (newspaper) begins publication.
** "Ordinances aimed at the civilizing of the populace are enacted in Tokyo."
** Imperial Library headquartered in Tokyo.
* 1873 - Dai-Ichi Bank established.
* 1874 - Aoyama Gakuin school and Saint Paul's school established.
* 1877
** University of Tokyo and Fifteen Bank [ja] established.
** National Industrial Exhibition held.
* 1880 - Mitsubishi Bank and Yasuda Bank established.
* 1881
** Tokyo Imperial Museum built.
** Tokyo Vocational School founded.
* 1882
** Bank of Japan headquartered in city.
** Ueno Zoo opens.
* 1884 - Railway Yamanote Line begins operating.
* 1886 - "First fixed advertising billboard in Tokyo" installed.
* 1887 - Tokyo School of Art [ja] founded.
* 1888
** Tokyo Asahi Shimbun (newspaper) begins publication.
** Tokyo Observatory [ja] established.
* 1889
** "Tokyo City and 15 wards established."
** Kabuki-za (theatre) opens.
* 1890
** Telephone begins operating.
** Population: 1,155,290.
* 1894 - Tokyo-fu Government Building constructed in Marunouchi.
* 1897 - March: Motion picture first shown.

## 20th century
### 1900s-1940s

* 1901 - Tokyo Photography Circle (club) formed.
* 1902 - Industrial Bank of Japan headquartered in city.
* 1903
** Electric tram begins operating.
** Electric Hall (cinema) opens.
* 1905 - September 5: Hibiya Incendiary Incident occurs.
* 1906 - Harajuku Station opens.
* 1907 - Tokyo Industrial Exhibition held.
* 1910 - Luna Park opens.
* 1911 - Imperial Theatre opens.
* 1914
** December: Central Station opens.
** Taisho Exposition held.
* 1916 - Tokyo Photographers Guild established.
* 1917 - Asakusa Opera [ja] active.
* 1918
** Rice riot occurs.
** Neon light installed in Ginza.
* 1920
** Meiji Shrine built.
** Population: 3,699,428.
* 1921 - November 4: Japanese prime minister Takashi Hara assassinated.
* 1923 - September 1: 1923 Great Kantō earthquake occurs.
* 1925 - Tokyo Broadcasting Station [ja] begins operating.
* 1926
** "Public apartment housing" built.
** NHK Symphony Orchestra and Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum established.
* 1927 - Tokyo Underground Railway begins operating between Asakusa and Ueno.
* 1928 - Daiba Park [ja] opens in Tokyo Bay.
* 1929 - Tokyo March song/film become popular.
* 1930 - Population: 4,986,913.
* 1931 - Haneda Airport begins operating.
* 1933 - Dai-Ichi Seimei Building constructed.
* 1934
** Yomiuri Giants baseball team formed.
** Hibiya Theatre [ja] opens.
* 1936
** Konishiroku Honten in business.
** Japanese Folk Crafts Museum founded.
* 1937 - Korakuen Stadium opens.
* 1938 - Rikugi-en (park) opens.
* 1940 - Population: 6,778,804.
* 1941
** Port of Tokyo opens.
** Italian Cultural Institute in Tokyo opens.
* 1942 - April: Bombing of Tokyo by US forces begins.
* 1943 - "Metropolitan administration system established."
* 1945
** 10 March: A major air attack kills 90,000 to 100,000 people and destroys a quarter of the city's buildings
** August: Bombing of Tokyo by US forces ends.
** Japan Savings Bank [ja] established.
** Population: 3,488,284.
* 1946 - Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal begins.
* 1947
** Seiichirō Yasui elected governor.
** 23 Special wards of Tokyo created.
* 1948 - National Diet Library headquartered in Tokyo.

### 1950s-1990s

* 1950 - Population: 6,277,500.
* 1955
** Tokyo International Trade Fair begins.
** Population: 6,966,499.
* 1956 - City hosts the 1956 World Judo Championships.
* 1958
** Japanese National Stadium opens.
** May: 1958 Asian Games held in Tokyo.
** November: City hosts the 1958 World Judo Championships.
* 1961
** Suntory Art Museum [ja] opens.
** Higashi-Ikebukuro Taishôken ramen shop in business.
* 1964
** Tōkaidō Shinkansen (hi-speed train) begins operating;
** October: 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo.
** Tokyo 12 Channel TV begins broadcasting.
** Hotel New Otani Tokyo built.
* 1967
** January: City hosts the 1967 FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship.
** Yoyogi Park created.
* 1968
** Kasumigaseki Building (hi-rise) built.
** Ramen Jiro eatery in business.
* 1969 - "Tokyo Metropolitan Pollution Control Ordinance [ja] enacted."
* 1971 - Keio Plaza Hotel (hi-rise) built.
* 1971 - The Zengakuren demonstrate in Tokyo against terms for the return of Okinawa from US to Japanese control.
* 1972 - Nakagin Capsule Tower built.
* 1973 - Tokyo Metropolitan Library opens.
* 1975
** Ward mayoral election held.
** Population: 8,640,000 city; 11,622,651 urban agglomeration.
* 1979 - June: 5th G7 summit held in city.
* 1988
** Tokyo Dome (stadium) opens.
** Yumenoshima Tropical Greenhouse Dome established.
* 1989 - Bunkamura cultural venue opens.
* 1991 - Metropolitan government relocates to new building in Shinjuku.
* 1993
** Rainbow Bridge opens.
** DN Tower 21 built.
* 1995 - March 20: Tokyo subway sarin attack.
* 1996 - Tokyo Big Sight convention centre opens.
* 2000 - Population: 8,130,408.

## 21st century

* 2001
** 10 March: Tokyo Stadium open.
** October: Asian Network of Major Cities 21 meets in Tokyo.
* 2002 - Tokyo International Anime Fair begins.
* 2004 - ShinGinkō Tokyo [ja] bank established.
* 2005 - Tokyo Metropolitan University established.
* 2006 - Czech Centre in Tokyo opens.
* 2007
** Tokyo Marathon begins.
** Midtown Tower built.
** Shinjuku Wald 9 cinema in business.
* 2008 - C40 environmental group meets in Tokyo.
* 2010 - City hosts the 2010 World Judo Championships.
* 2011
** 11 March: 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami occurs and seriously Fukushima nuclear disaster.
** 17 November: Polish Institute in Tokyo founded (see also Japan–Poland relations).
* 2012
** Tokyo Gate Bridge opens.
** Tokyo Skytree tower built.
* 2013 - September: Tokyo chosen as site of the future 2020 Summer Olympics.
* 2014
** Toranomon Hills (hi-rise) built.
** Yoichi Masuzoe elected governor.
* 2016 - Yuriko Koike elected governor.
* 2017
** 25 November: Musashino Forest Sport Plaza open.
* 2019
** August: Oi Hockey Stadium open.
** August–September: City hosts the 2019 World Judo Championships.
** October: Ariake Gymnastics Centre open.
** 28 November-1 December: 2019 Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships held.
** New Japan National Stadium open.
** Hungarian Cultural Center in Tokyo opened (see also Hungary–Japan relations).
* 2020
** 24 January: First confirmed case relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in Tokyo.
** 3 February: Ariake Arena open.
** March: Ultimately postponement of 2020 Summer Olympics to July 2021 announced due to COVID-19 concerns.
** October: Tokyo Aquatics Centre open.
* 2021
** 2020 Summer Olympics held.
** 2020 Summer Paralympics held.