| 300s
bc |
Paddy rice cultivation
and metal-working techniques arrived in Japan from the Asian continent,
and the hunter-gatherer Jōmon culture began to give way to the
agricultural Yayoi culture. |
| AD 400s |
Chinese culture and
technology began arriving in Japan. New systems of thought such as
Confucianism and Buddhism spread quickly. |
| 794 |
The imperial capital was
established at Kyōto. |
| 858 |
The Fujiwara family
gained effective control of Japan through the imperial family. |
| 1192 |
Yoritomo was named
shogun by the emperor. His family (the Minamoto clan) governed
Japan. |
| 1274 |
A Mongol invasion of
Japan was repulsed. A second invasion in 1281 also failed. |
| 1338 |
The Ashikaga shogunate
gained power. |
| 1543 |
Portuguese sailors
reached Japan. Other Europeans soon arrived to trade and spread
Christianity. |
| 1603 |
Leyasu became shogun,
founding the Tokugawa shogunate. He established his capital at Edo
(modern Tokyo), away from the imperial court. |
| 1630s |
Japan cut ties with the
outside world and stopped the spread of Christianity through the
islands. |
| 1854 |
American commodore
Matthew Perry secured a treaty that opened Japan to foreign trade. |
| 1868 |
The Meiji Restoration
reestablished direct imperial rule. The capital moved from Kyōto to Edo,
which was renamed Tokyo. |
| 1867-1912 |
Japan pursued an
ambitious modernization program. |
| 1904-1905 |
Japan defeated Russia in
the Russo-Japanese War, establishing itself as a world power. |
| 1910 |
Japan annexed Korea. |
| 1931 |
Japan invaded Manchuria
and established the puppet state of Manchukuo. |
| 1937 |
Japan and China went to
war. Japan occupied most of China by the following year. |
| 1941 |
Japanese forces bombed
American military bases at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, drawing the United
States into World War II. Other victories in Asia and the Pacific
followed in the ensuing months. |
| 1945 |
Having turned the tide in
the war against Japan, the United States dropped atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan surrendered soon after. Emperor Hirohito
renounced his divine status as part of the terms of surrender. Japan
came under Allied occupation. |
| 1952 |
The Allied occupation of
Japan ended. |
| 1960s |
Japan's economy grew
rapidly, establishing the country as a leading world economic power by
the end of the decade. |
| 1970s |
The international oil
crisis and the end of a global system of fixed exchange slowed Japan's
economic growth. |
| 1985 |
A surge in the value of
the yen brought on a period of financial euphoria known as the "bubble,"
when stock and real estate prices soared and Japan's economy grew
rapidly. |
| 1988 |
The Recruit Scandal,
involving political bribery and influence peddling, shook the ruling
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). |
| 1989 |
Emperor Hirohito died and
was succeeded by his son Akihito. |
| 1990 |
Japan's economic "bubble"
collapsed when the government raised interest rates to dampen
speculation. Japan entered a prolonged economic slowdown. |
| 1993 |
The LDP lost its majority
in parliament and the first of a series of coalition governments came to
power. |
General Knowledge :: HISTORICAL EVENTS BY COUNTRY :: JAPAN