Tokyo Imperial Palace

Tokyo Imperial Palace

A Peaceful Place The city of Tokyo is very busy and modern. The Imperial Palace sits in the middle of that city. It is a peaceful place. The emperor and empress of Japan live there.

Where Is It? Tokyo is on the east coast of Japan. The Imperial Palace lies in the heart of Tokyo. It is near the Japanese National Theatre and Tokyo Disneyland.

History of the Palace A castle has stood on the site of the Imperial Palace for hundreds of years. In the early 1600s, a powerful lord built a grand castle called Edo Castle there. Sadly, its beautiful main tower burned down in 1657. Visitors can still see the stone base of that tower on the grounds of the Imperial Palace.

In the 1800s, the emperor decided to move his home to the site of Edo Castle. He ordered workers to build a new palace there. They finished building the new Imperial Palace in 1888. The new palace looked Japanese on the outside. Inside, though, there were many European decorations and furniture.

During World War II, the United States bombed the area around the palace. The palace was made of wood, so it was damaged by fires. After the war, Japan built the palace again. This time, workers used cement instead of wood. They finished in 1968. The building we can see today looks very much like it did before the war.