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Agoda® Hotels in Japan
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1,600 Hotels in Japan
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History of Japan
Although recorded history in Japan started in around 400AD, archaeological evidence suggests that the islands were inhabited as much as 10,000 years ago. Around 300-400AD the different clans of Japan were united for the first time when the Yamato clan gained control of the islands. The introduction of Buddhism from China Korea would lead to more power struggles in the 6th and 7th centuries until in 794 the capital city is moved from Nara to Kyoto and the Heian dynasty takes control over the country.
A new system is established stating that all land and property are ultimately the property of the Emperor. Buddhist monasteries and large land-holders as well as settlers who would expand the country's frontiers, were often given tax-exempt status. This system of government would continued for some decades until it started to crumble in the 9th century. The government's desire to expand its borders further and further from the capital, meant it became more and more difficult to manage the failing system. The glorious 400-year Heian period finally came to an end in the 12th century as the Imperial Court neglected and ultimately lost control over provincial areas. Bandits became widespread and local lords, who were able to build their own military forces, eventually started fighting among themselves. The eventual winner of these struggles, Minamoto Yoritomo, was granted the title of Shogun. This chief military commander, established military base and an administrative structure which included ministries controlling samurai warriors. Although the Emperor still had his Imperial Court, the real power of the country rested with the shogun. This remained the case, through the Kamakura, Muromachi and Momoyama period, up until 1the mid 19th century.
The period from 1600 to 1868 is referred to as the Edo period. An important part of Japan's history, many of the ways of thinking, the behaviour, and aspects of culture that emerged in this period still persist today. This period saw developments in many areas of Japanese life not least in art and commerce. In 1868, the shogunate system collapsed and power was returned to the Emperor. The capital was also at this time moved from Kyoto to Tokyo. During this time, contact with the West, from which Japan had been cut off for much of the Edo period, was renewed. The old feudal system was abolished and many western institutions and ideas were adopted. Between 1868 and 1941 several wars erupted between Japan and its neighbours, China and Russia and as well as Japan's involvement in WWI, this period is often seen as a period when Japan was trying to flex its military muscle.
However, after the disastrous end to WWII in 1945 when both Hiroshima and Nagasaki was virtually flattened by atomic bombs, Japan lost all of its foreign enclaves and for the first time since its unification was occupied by a foreign power. Since the end of WWII, Japan has been a key ally to the United States and has the country has seen almost continuous economic growth. Today, Japan is one of the most highly developed countries in the world.
