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July 24, 2026
 

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TOKUGAWA SHOGUNATE

A statue of Saint Francis Xavier in Hirado, Nagasaki Prefecture. Christianity spread rapidly in Kyushu before facing brutal suppression under the Tokugawa shogunate.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / The Living Past
Jan 16, 2026
How Tokugawa Japan learned to fear faith
The Shimabara Rebellion reveals how faith, fear and power converged in Tokugawa Japan, ending in martyrdom, massacre and historical memory.
A folding screen depicts a Dutch vessel allied with the Tokugawa shogunate in its efforts to quash a rebellion of local ronin and Catholic peasants led by Amakusa Shiro.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / The Living Past
Dec 20, 2025
Edo Japan¡¯s bloody legacy of Christian revolt
By the end of the 16th century, Kyushu was more Christian than Buddhist ¡ª setting the stage for one of the most violent clashes of the Edo Period (1603-1867).
UNESCO's executive board on Thursday added Buddhist scriptures kept at Tokyo's Zojoji Temple to its Memory of the World register.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Apr 18, 2025
Zojoji Buddhist scriptures added to UNESCO Memory of the World
The scriptures were collected by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan¡¯s Edo era, and donated to the temple.
A monuments of a plastic model of an armor worn by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, is seen in the city of Shizuoka on Dec. 6.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Society / FOCUS
Jan 6, 2025
In Shizuoka, plastic models are not just child¡¯s play
Monuments of plastic models are found throughout the city to showcase its model-making industry, which traces its roots to skilled craftsmen of the Tokugawa shogunate.
The first season of 'Shogun' wraps up just prior to the 1600 Battle of Sekigahara, where Tokugawa Ieyasu (Yoshii Toranaga in the TV show) faced off against Ishida Mitsunari (Ishido Kazunari) to determine the new ruler of Japan.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 17, 2024
The real-world inspirations behind ¡®Shogun¡¯ are a shinkansen away
¡°Shogun¡± has cleaned up at the Emmys, so why not pack a bag and see the real history behind the award-winning show?
Historian Frederik Cryns¡¯ ¡°In the Service of the Shogun¡± is a biography of William Adams, the inspiration for the character John Blackthorne (played by Cosmo Jarvis) in ¡°Shogun.¡± Cryns also served as a historical adviser on the FX TV series.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 4, 2024
¡®Shogun¡¯ adviser dives into main character¡¯s real-life counterpart for new book
After working on the FX TV series, historian Frederik Cryns explores the life of William Adams in detail for his biography, ¡°In the Service of the Shogun.¡±
Many moods come and go, inspiring our art. Though love could be fleeting, it proved the most inspirational of all.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / The Living Past
Nov 27, 2023
Tales of a Closed Country: Part 2
Even Japan¡¯s ¡°sakoku¡± policies couldn¡¯t deter the lovers, artists and poets from their muses. After all, we humans tend to look for beauty where we can.
Was Japan's "sakoku" a prison? What else, when rulers were absolute, and law a weapon in the hands of high against low.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / The Living Past
Nov 24, 2023
Tales of a Closed Country: Part 1
Long before COVID-19 was known, the gates to Japan slammed shut. It was an era of ¡°sakoku,¡± the closed country, but was it a prison?
In addition to directing ¡°Kubi,¡± Takeshi Kitano (second from left) plays Oda Nobunaga¡¯s successor, Hashiba (later Toyotomi) Hideyoshi, in the blood-soaked period film.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 23, 2023
Takeshi Kitano still has a head for provocation
The ¡°Kubi¡± director doesn¡¯t shy away from causing a commotion, whether it¡¯s in public or in his latest film about a pivotal moment in Japan¡¯s history.
Ryo Kase (top center) gives an audacious performance as warlord Oda Nobunaga in ¡°Kubi.¡±
CULTURE
Nov 23, 2023
Takeshi Kitano¡¯s ¡®Kubi¡¯ cuts great men of history down to size
The blood-drenched period epic offers a queer retelling of the 1582 Honnoji Incident with a ruthless and sadistic Oda Nobunaga at its center.
In 'Ooku: The Inner Chambers,' a secretly female shogun rules Japan and is attended to by a group of male concubines.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Aug 17, 2023
¡®Ooku: The Inner Chambers¡¯: Alternative history explores gender norms
The Netflix anime tells a complex love story in an alternate-reality Edo Japan in which an illness upends gender roles.
Japan Times
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / THE LIVING PAST
Feb 19, 2023
What makes a good priest ¡ª good looks or a knack for violence?
It was a time when the temples owned great tracts of land. The priests who managed them were armed and pugnacious, ready to defend and possibly extend.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 20, 2022
¡®The Samurai Castle Master¡¯: Long-maligned samurai gets overdue redemption
Chris Glenn¡¯s new book on Todo Takatora portrays him as an intelligent and honest warrior worthy of Tokugawa Ieyasu¡¯s trust, rather than the disloyal man his enemies made him out to be.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 7, 2021
About that ancient Japanese curse that looms over the Tokyo Olympics¡­
The ¡°phantom¡± 1940 Olympics, a haunted tunnel and scandals that rocked Tokyo 2020 ¡ª are the games cursed by the ghosts of Japan¡¯s feudal lords?
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / THE LIVING PAST
Aug 15, 2020
War ends and humanity remains resilient
Chaos, destruction u2026 humanity endures and yet, we seem stuck in repeating the same mistakes.
Japan Times
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / THE LIVING PAST
Apr 18, 2020
The dogs have their day in old Edo
The Laws of Compassion that Tokugawa Tsunayoshi issued trickled down to the lowest rungs of Edo Period (1603-1868) Japan, which included the capital¡¯s many feral dogs.
Japan Times
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / THE LIVING PAST
Mar 14, 2020
The Edo Period: An era of utter weirdness
The Edo Period (1603-1868) was a bizarre time that visitors to Japan could not help but comment on ¡ª the countless laws, the brutal punishments ... and the dogs.
Japan Times
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History / THE LIVING PAST
Feb 8, 2020
Engelbert Kaempfer on the old roads of Japan
¡®Japanese travel more often than other people,¡¯ wrote Engelbert Kaempfer, the 17th-century physician, scholar, naturalist and explorer whose ¡®History of Japan¡¯ (1712) was the first full-length foreign-language portrait of the nation.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / History
Oct 23, 2018
Historical jury still out on Japan¡¯s Meiji Restoration
On July 27, 1853, the Tokugawa shogunate was in crisis. Shogun Tokugawa Ieyoshi passed away from what today is believed to be heat exhaustion at Edo Castle in the heart of Edo, present-day Tokyo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR 51³Ô¹ÏÍøOPHILES
Oct 6, 2018
¡®Studies in Intellectual History of Tokugawa Japan¡¯: Chronicling the political theory of the Edo Period
In ¡°Studies in Intellectual History of Tokugawa Japan,¡± leading postwar political scientist Masao Maruyama chronicles the ideas and debates of scholars throughout the Edo Period (1603-1868).
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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