Tokyo Imperial Palace in the context of Fukiage Palace

Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital and most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes Tokyo and parts of six neighboring prefectures, is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with 41 million residents as of 2024.

Lying at the head of Tokyo Bay, Tokyo is part of the Kantō region, on the central coast of Honshu, Japan's largest island. It is Japan's economic center and the seat of the Japanese government and the Emperor of Japan. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government administers Tokyo's central 23 special wards, which formerly made up Tokyo City; various commuter towns and suburbs in its western area; and two outlying island chains, the Tokyo Islands. Although most of the world recognizes Tokyo as a city, since 1943 its governing structure has been more akin to that of a prefecture, with an accompanying Governor and Assembly taking precedence over the smaller municipal governments that make up the metropolis. Special wards in Tokyo include Chiyoda, the site of the National Diet Building and the Tokyo Imperial Palace; Shinjuku, the city's administrative center; and Shibuya, a hub of commerce and business.

Chiyoda (Japanese: 千代田区, Hepburn: Chiyoda-ku; IPA: [tɕijoda] ), a.k.a. Chiyoda City in English, is a special ward of Tokyo, Japan. Located in the heart of Tokyo's 23 special wards, Chiyoda consists of the Imperial Palace and a surrounding radius of about a kilometer (1000 yards), and is known as the political and financial center of Japan. As of October 2020, the ward has a population of 66,680, and a population density of 5,709 people per km (14,786 per sq. mi.), making it by far the least populated of the special wards. The residential part of Chiyoda is at the heart of Yamanote, Tokyo's traditional upper-class residential area, with Banchō, Kōjimachi, and Kioichō considered the most exclusive neighbourhoods in the entire city. The total area is 11.66 km (4½ sq. mi.), of which the Imperial Palace, Hibiya Park, National Museum of Modern Art, and Yasukuni Shrine take up approximately 2.6 km (1 sq. mi.), or 22%.

Chiyoda is known as the economic center of Japan; the districts of Otemachi, Marunouchi and Yurakucho east of the palace (an area colloquially known as "Daimaruyu") house the headquarters of 19 Fortune 500 companies, is the source of roughly 10% of the combined revenue of all Japanese companies, and produced the equivalent of around a quarter of the country's GDP in 2017. With a day population of around 850,000, its day/night population ratio is by far the highest of all municipalities in Japan. Tokyo Station, Tokyo's main inter-city rail terminal and the busiest train station in Japan in terms of scheduled trains, is also located in Chiyoda.

The Imperial Investiture (親任式, Shinninshiki) is an official inauguration ceremony whereby the Emperor of Japan formally appoints the Prime Minister of Japan or the Chief Justice of Japan to office. In practice, the Prime Minister is nominated by the Diet, while the Chief Justice is nominated by the Cabinet. The Emperor is constitutionally required to appoint the nominated person, without the right to decline appointment.

During the time period of the Empire of Japan, as the Emperor was the source of executive authority, there were also investitures held for military officials. Such appointees were called the Shinninkan (親任官).

Yamanote (山の手; Japanese pronunciation: [ja.ma.no(ꜜ).te]) and Shitamachi (下町; [ɕi̥.ta.ma.tɕi]) are traditional names for two areas of Tokyo, Japan.

Yamanote refers to the affluent, upper-class areas of Tokyo west of the Imperial Palace. While citizens once considered it as consisting of Hongo, Kōjimachi, Koishikawa, Ushigome, Yotsuya, Akasaka, Aoyama and Azabu in the Bunkyō, Chiyoda, Shinjuku, and Minato wards, in popular conception, the area extended westwards to include the Nakano, Suginami, and Meguro wards after the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923.

Banchō (番町) is an area in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, consisting of the six "-banchō" districts, Ichibanchō (一番町) to Rokubanchō (六番町), as well as parts of Kudanminami and Kudankita, and Fujimi.

The Banchō area is located to the west of the Imperial Palace. The historical area is roughly triangular in shape, Shinjuku Ave (新宿通り) forms its southern boundary. A rough line from Hanzō Moat (半蔵濠, Hanzō-bori) to Ushigome Mitsuke (牛込見附) forms its eastern boundary, and the railway of the Chūō Main Line along the outer moats of Ichigaya and Ushigome forms its northwestern boundary from Yotsuya to Ushigome Mitsuke.

Yūrakuchō (有楽町) is a business district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, situated in between the Ginza and Hibiya Park, southeast of the Tokyo Imperial Palace. The district takes its name from Oda Nagamasu (1547–1622), who was also known as Yūraku (有楽). Oda Nagamasu built his mansion here on land granted by Tokugawa Ieyasu near the Sukiya-bashi Gate of Edo Castle. The place name dates from the Meiji period.

Yūrakuchō is served by several train and subway stations, including Hibiya Station (Toei Subway and Tokyo Metro lines) and Yūrakuchō Station (JR East and Tokyo Metro lines).

Tokyo Station (Japanese: 東京駅, Hepburn: Tōkyō-eki; pronounced [to̞ːkʲo̞ːe̞kʲi]) is a major railway station in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The original station is located in Chiyoda's Marunouchi business district near the Imperial Palace grounds. The newer Eastern extension is not far from the Ginza commercial district. Due to the large area covered by the station, it is divided into the Marunouchi (west) and Yaesu (east) sides in its directional signage.

The station opened in 1914 as an integrated terminus for the present-day Tōkaidō Line, Tōhoku Line, and later the Chūō Line, which previously had separate termini in Tokyo. Since then, it has served as the main terminus for inter-city trains departing Tokyo westwards. The station was badly damaged during the Bombing of Tokyo on 25 May 1945 but soon resumed service. The Tōkaidō Shinkansen, the world’s first dedicated high-speed rail system, opened between the station and Osaka in 1964. With the extension of northbound Shinkansen lines from Ueno in 1991, the station also became a gateway to northeast Japan.

Chiyoda (千代田, Chiyoda) is a district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. In Japanese it translates as a "field of a thousand generations"

Chiyoda covers the grounds of the Imperial Palace, and nothing else. It does not have any subdivisions, and no chome or postal code designation. The address of the palace itself and of the Imperial Household Agency is Chiyoda 1-1, the address of the Hospital of the Imperial Household is Chiyoda 1-2, the Imperial Guard Headquarters is Chiyoda 1-3.

Edo Castle (江戸城, Edo-jō) is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan in Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. In modern times it is part of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is therefore also known as Chiyoda Castle (千代田城, Chiyoda-jō).Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate there, and it was the residence of the shōgun and the headquarters of the military government during the Edo period (1603–1867) in Japanese history. After the resignation of the shōgun and the Meiji Restoration, it became the Tokyo Imperial Palace. Some moats, walls and ramparts of the castle survive to this day. However, the grounds were more extensive during the Edo period, with Tokyo Station and the Marunouchi section of the city lying within the outermost moat. It also encompassed Kitanomaru Park, the Nippon Budokan Hall and other current landmarks of the surrounding area.

Gagaku (雅楽, lit. "elegant music") is a type of Japanese classical music that was historically used for imperial court music and dances. Gagaku was developed as court music of the Kyoto Imperial Palace, and its near-current form was established in the Heian period (794–1185) around the 10th century. Today, it is performed by the Board of Ceremonies in the Tokyo Imperial Palace. Gagaku is performed using wind, percussion, and string instruments. Each piece is based on a main melody which each instrument embellishes.

Gagaku consists of three primary repertoires:

Kasumigaseki (霞が関, 霞ヶ関 or 霞ケ関) is a district in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Most government ministries are located in the neighbourhood, making its name a metonym for the Japanese bureaucracy, while Nagatachō refers to the elected government or legislative branch. It faces the Imperial Palace to the north, Hibiya Park to the east, and Nagatachō to the west.

Hayabusachō (隼町, Hayabusa-chō) is a district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. As of April 1, 2007, the district's population is 483.

Hayabusachō is located of the western part of Chiyoda. It borders Kōjimachi to the north, the Tokyo Imperial Palace to the east, Nagatachō to the south, and Hirakawachō to the west.

The Chrysanthemum Throne (Japanese: 皇位, Hepburn: kōi; "imperial seat") is the throne of the Emperor of Japan. The term also can refer to very specific seating, such as the Takamikura (高御座) throne in the Shishin-den at Kyoto Imperial Palace.

Various other thrones or seats that are used by the Emperor during official functions, such as those used in the Tokyo Imperial Palace or the throne used in the Speech from the Throne ceremony in the National Diet, are, however, not known as the "Chrysanthemum Throne".

Okutama (奥多摩町, Oku-Tama-machi) is a town located in the western portion of Tokyo Prefecture, Japan, at a distance of roughly 60 kilometres (37 mi) west-northwest of Tokyo Imperial Palace. As of 1 April 2021, the town had an estimated population of 4,949, and a population density of 22 persons per km. The total area of the town is 225.53 square kilometres (87.08 sq mi).

Hongō (本郷) is a district of Tokyo located in Bunkyō, due north of the Tokyo Imperial Palace and west of Ueno.