The Emperor of Japan

The Emperor of Japan is Japan's titular head of state and the head of the Japanese Imperial Family.

The role of the Emperor of Japan has alternated between that of a supreme-rank cleric with largely symbolic powers and that of an actual imperial ruler from the dawn of history until the mid-twentieth century. However, the main function of the Emperor for most of the last millennium has usually been merely to authorize and legitimize those in power. Under Japan's present constitution, the emperor is a largely ceremonial figurehead in its constitutional monarchy (see Politics of Japan).

The current Emperor is His Majesty, Emperor Akihito, who has been on the throne since his father Emperor Showa (Hirohito) died in 1989.

Since the mid-nineteenth century, the Imperial Palace has been called Ko¯kyo, and located on the site of Edo Castle in the heart of Tokyo. Earlier emperors resided in Kyoto for nearly eleven centuries.

Certain dates and details may be in dispute among Japanese historians. Many Emperors cited in the formal list of Japanese Emperors died at a very young age and can hardly be said to have "ruled" in any serious sense of the word. Others were overshadowed by their predecessors, who had ostensibly retired to a monastery but continued to exert influence in a process called "cloistered rule." It is nevertheless important to maintain the entire list, because, even today, dating by the reigns of emperors is the standard way of referencing Japanese history.

Cloistered Emperors have been known to come into conflict with their official counterparts from time to time; a notable example is the Hogen Rebellion of 1156, in which the former Emperor Sutoku attempted to seize power from the current Emperor Go-Shirakawa. Other instances, such as Go-Toba's 1221 rebellion against the Kamakura Shogunate and the 1336 Kenmu Restoration under Go-Daigo, clearly show the power struggle that has taken place between the Imperial House and the military governments of Japan.