{"id":22040,"date":"2018-11-30T12:12:25","date_gmt":"2018-11-30T12:12:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/?p=22040"},"modified":"2020-01-29T13:07:36","modified_gmt":"2020-01-29T13:07:36","slug":"history-of-the-imperial-palace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/2018\/11\/30\/history-of-the-imperial-palace\/","title":{"rendered":"History of Tokyo: From Edo Castle to the Imperial Palace"},"content":{"rendered":"<h4>Like this post? Help us by sharing it!<\/h4><ul class=\"wpfai-list\"><li class=\"wpfai-list-item facebook\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040&amp;t=\" title=\"Facebook\" class=\"wpfai-facebook wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-facebook fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item twitter\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Twitter\" class=\"wpfai-twitter wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-twitter fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li 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class=\"wpfai-list-item envelope\">\r\n      <a href=\"mailto:?subject=&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040%20-%20\" title=\"E-Mail\" class=\"wpfai-envelope wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-envelope fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item stumbleupon\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stumbleupon.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Stumble Upon\" class=\"wpfai-stumbleupon wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-stumbleupon fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item reddit\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Reddit\" class=\"wpfai-reddit wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-reddit fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><\/ul><p><strong>Having led countless tours in Tokyo, history buff and InsideJapan tour leader <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/about-us\/staff-profiles\/tour-leaders\/185\/mark-hobold\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Marky Hobold<\/a>\u00a0sets the record straight about Tokyo&#8217;s &#8216;Imperial Palace&#8217;.<\/strong><br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Tokyo history<\/h2>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-half-width wp-image-22048\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-720x480.jpg\" alt=\"Imperial Palace or Edo Castle, Tokyo\" width=\"720\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-720x480.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-564x376.jpg 564w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-1440x960.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-390x260.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-780x520.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5-510x340.jpg 510w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_area-5.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve got a bone to pick with guide books, TripAdvisor, and maybe even the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. My opinion on this matter has earned me loads of friends who understand where I\u2019m coming from, but it\u2019s also gotten me into trouble with ultranationalist right wingers who have no sense of humour.<\/p>\n<p>In a nutshell, people keep talking about \u2018the Imperial Palace in Tokyo\u2019, and this is something I don\u2019t think exists. It\u2019s a misnomer that betrays the growth of the capital from a tiny fishing village to an expansive feudal city to the most successful, sprawling metropolis the world has ever seen.<\/p>\n<p>You see, the city of Tokyo has only gone by this name since 1868. Before that \u2013 since time immemorial \u2013 the area near the castle was known as Edo.<\/p>\n<p>Castle town<\/p>\n<p>Wait what?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCastle?\u201d you say. \u201cIn Tokyo?\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Edo Castle<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22058\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22058\" style=\"width: 510px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-22058 size-medium-plus-size\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-510x637.jpg\" alt=\"Imperial Palace layout, Tokyo, Japan\" width=\"510\" height=\"637\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-510x637.jpg 510w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-768x959.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air.jpg 820w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-452x564.jpg 452w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-720x899.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-390x487.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_place_Japan_1979_air-780x974.jpg 780w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 510px) 100vw, 510px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22058\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Imperial Palace from above<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Yes. Edo, the largest city in the world in its heyday, was also home to the world\u2019s largest castle. The shogun\u2019s capital was a never-ending maze of tiny neighbourhoods and lordly palaces that spiralled out from the inner and outer moats of Edo Castle.<\/p>\n<p>This complex system of dead-end streets, endless alleys, and moated off neighbourhoods was confusing by design. The concept was born out of 100 years of domestic warfare known as the Warring States Period. The intention was to eliminate any direct route to the shogun\u2019s castle and his government.<\/p>\n<p>Maps and art of the day were censored to ensure attacking the city and its castle were impossible. Prior to the establishment of this feudal government and complex urban planning, the area was just a collection of farming and fishing villages.<\/p>\n<p>By the height of the Edo Period, the castle was a self-functioning city within the city. It was a military installation, but comprised of palaces, shrines, bureaucratic offices, and the finest gardens in the country. The city of Edo itself was the receptacle of art and culture from the outer domains, but also the center from which all these consolidated philosophies and ideas emanated out to the farthest reaches of the shogun\u2019s vast realm.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Fast forward to the Meiji restoration<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22052\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22052\" style=\"width: 330px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-22052\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/330px-Black_and_white_photo_of_emperor_Meiji_of_Japan.jpg\" alt=\"Emperor Meiji, Japan history\" width=\"330\" height=\"448\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/330px-Black_and_white_photo_of_emperor_Meiji_of_Japan.jpg 330w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/330px-Black_and_white_photo_of_emperor_Meiji_of_Japan-221x300.jpg 221w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 330px) 100vw, 330px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22052\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Emperor Meiji<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the early 1850s, Western foreign powers, most notably the Americans, forced Japan to open up its borders to trade, and come to terms with international maritime law, i.e. don\u2019t kill sailors who get stranded on your shores, and let non-Japanese vessels replenish their foodstuffs and whatnot before heading on to the next port of call.<\/p>\n<p>The last shogun handed power to the Emperor Meiji in 1868. It\u2019s at this time that the emperor and his court moved from Kyoto in the west to Edo in the east. They assumed control of Edo Castle and changed the name of the city from Edo to Tokyo (literally, the \u2018Eastern Capital\u2019). One could say, the imperial family are squatters living in a castle they didn\u2019t build, at the heart of a metropolis they didn\u2019t cultivate. But that was 150 years ago and a lot has changed since then.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22054\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22054\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-half-width wp-image-22054\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-720x158.jpg\" alt=\"Kanto earthquake, Japan\" width=\"720\" height=\"158\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-720x158.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-300x66.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-768x169.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-564x124.jpg 564w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-390x86.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-780x172.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake-510x112.jpg 510w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Desolation_of_Nihonbashi_and_Kanda_after_Kanto_Earthquake.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22054\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Kanto earthquake<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Since then, we\u2019ve seen the rise and fall of the Japanese Empire. We\u2019ve also seen the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, wherein most of the castle and the city it used to protect were lost to fire. Finally, the firebombing of Tokyo in 1945 burned down the few palatial structures that still remained.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22061\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22061\" style=\"width: 430px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-22061\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Main_Building_of_Meiji_Palace.jpg\" alt=\"Destroyed palace room in Edo Castle\" width=\"430\" height=\"396\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Main_Building_of_Meiji_Palace.jpg 430w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Main_Building_of_Meiji_Palace-300x276.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Main_Building_of_Meiji_Palace-390x359.jpg 390w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 430px) 100vw, 430px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22061\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>This palace room was destroyed during WWII<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the build-up to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, many of the outer moats were filled in or covered up and the former Edo Castle &#8211; later Tokyo Castle, later Imperial Castle, and finally renamed the Imperial Residence (usually rendered in English as \u2018Imperial Palace\u2019) &#8211; found itself in its current condition. For the average visitor, it\u2019s just a series of moats, but it still boasts the largest moats and most impressive stone walls of any Japanese castle and is dotted with sporadic medieval gates, turrets and bridges.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Edo Castle Today<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22060\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22060\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-half-width wp-image-22060\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-720x233.jpg\" alt=\"Imperial Palace, Tokyo, panorama\" width=\"720\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-720x233.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-300x97.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-768x249.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-564x183.jpg 564w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-900x292.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-390x126.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-780x253.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Imperial_Palace_Tokyo_Panorama-510x165.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22060\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Imperial Palace \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The area of Tokyo called the \u2018Imperial Palace\u2019 today is still massive \u2013 the pathway that follows the inner moat is one of the most popular jogging paths in the city. It\u2019s scenic, though not shaded, but the same route has a few famous cherry blossom viewing areas that blend nature, castle architecture, and the modern city in truly unique ways. However, don\u2019t expect to get a glimpse of the imperial family. They\u2019re sequestered off in a grouping of luxury apartments in the most wooded and secluded sections of the property.<\/p>\n<p>In recent years, there\u2019s been an active movement to rebuild the tower of Edo Castle. The problem is, giving tourists a bird\u2019s eye view of the imperial family is offensive to many people. Furthermore, for most of Edo Castle\u2019s history, there was no castle tower due to it never have being rebuilt after fires in the 1600s.<\/p>\n<h2>Why Edo Castle and not the Imperial Palace?<\/h2>\n<p>Why indeed.<\/p>\n<p>Most of this goes back to the name of the city. This part of the country has been called Edo for hundreds of years, longer than it\u2019s ever been called Tokyo. The first elite residence was built here by the Taira clan in the 12th century, but real fortification began in the mid-1400s. The first shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, began building the classic incarnation in the late 1580s.<\/p>\n<p>The largest expansion project, that made this castle the history-changing and city-changing behemoth that it became, was ordered by the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, and took place between 1593 and 1636. This made Edo Castle the largest castle in the world and the socio-political centre of the largest city in the world.<\/p>\n<p>For most of its history, it\u2019s been Edo Castle, even though it\u2019s marketed to foreigners as the Imperial Palace. That said, most Tokyoites will quickly acknowledge the \u2018Edo Castle\u2019 attribution with affection and nostalgia. And while it\u2019s most definitely the Imperial Palace today, to hardcore history nerds such as myself, the castle and city will forever be Edo \u2013 the city that unified Japan culturally and set the stage for Asia\u2019s first global superpower.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>When it comes to Japan, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/about-us\/staff-profiles\/all\/?scroll=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">each of our tour leaders and travel consultants<\/a> are experts. So, w<\/strong><strong>hether you&#8217;re fascinated by Edo-period history, or searching for the best place to find little-known retro Japanese video games, we&#8217;ll know just the thing!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/about-us\/contact-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Drop us a line<\/a> and we&#8217;ll get planning your perfect trip to Japan.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h4>Like this post? Help us by sharing it!<\/h4><ul class=\"wpfai-list\"><li class=\"wpfai-list-item facebook\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040&amp;t=\" title=\"Facebook\" class=\"wpfai-facebook wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-facebook fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item twitter\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Twitter\" class=\"wpfai-twitter wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-twitter fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item pinterest\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040&amp;description=&amp;media=\" title=\"Pinterest\" class=\"wpfai-pinterest wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-pinterest fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item linkedin\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040&amp;title=\" title=\"Linked In\" class=\"wpfai-linkedin wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-linkedin fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item envelope\">\r\n      <a href=\"mailto:?subject=&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040%20-%20\" title=\"E-Mail\" class=\"wpfai-envelope wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-envelope fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item stumbleupon\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stumbleupon.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Stumble Upon\" class=\"wpfai-stumbleupon wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-stumbleupon fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item reddit\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F22040\" title=\"Reddit\" class=\"wpfai-reddit wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-reddit fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Having led countless tours in Tokyo, history buff and InsideJapan tour leader Marky Hobold\u00a0sets the record straight about Tokyo&#8217;s &#8216;Imperial Palace&#8217;. Like this post? Help us by sharing it!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":65,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2367],"tags":[4028,4031,4034],"class_list":["post-22040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-japanese-culture-and-history","tag-history-of-tokyo","tag-imperial-palace-tokyo","tag-edo-castle-tokyo"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/65"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22040"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22040\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25440,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22040\/revisions\/25440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}