Flag	Imperial Seal

Motto
八紘一宇
"Hakkō ichiu"
("Universal Brotherhood")
or
("All Eight Corners of the World") Anthem
君が代
"Kimigayo"
("May Your Reign Last Forever")
Officially translated:
("National Anthem") Capital Tokyo Languages Japanese Religion None (de jure) ^[1]
State Shinto (ex post facto)^[2] Government Absolute monarchy
Without the constitution
(1868–90)
With the constitution
(1890–1947)^[3]
Single-party state
(1940-1945) Emperor  -  1868–1912 Meiji  -  1912–1926 Taishō  -  1926–1947 Shōwa Prime Minister  -  1885–88 Itō Hirobumi (first)  -  1946–47 Shigeru Yoshida (last) Legislature Imperial Diet  -  Upper house House of Peers  -  Lower house House of Representatives Historical era Meiji, Taishō, Shōwa  -  Meiji Restoration 3 January^[4] 1868  -  Constitution adopted 29 November 1890  -  Russo-Japanese War 10 February 1904  -  Pacific War 1941–45  -  Surrender of Japan 2 September 1945  -  Reconstituted 3 May^[3] 1947 Area  -  1942 estimate 7,400,000 km² (2,857,156 sq mi) Currency Japanese yen,
Korean yen,
Taiwanese yen,
Japanese military yen

Preceded by	Succeeded by
Tokugawa Shogunate Ryūkyū Kingdom Republic of Ezo Qing Dynasty Russian Empire Korean Empire New Guinea United States Commonwealth of the Philippines Islands	Occupied Japan Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands Republic of China Military Government in Korea Soviet Civil Authority Soviet Union Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands United States Commonwealth of the Philippines Islands

Today part of

History of Japan
Battleship Asahi
Periods Paleolithic pre–14,000 BC Jōmon 14,000–300 BC Yayoi 300 BC–250 AD Kofun 250–538 Asuka 538–710 Nara 710–794 Heian 794–1185 Kamakura 1185–1333 Kenmu restoration 1333–1336 Muromachi (Ashikaga) 1336–1573 Nanboku-chō 1336–1392 Sengoku 1467–1573 Azuchi–Momoyama 1568–1603 Nanban trade Edo (Tokugawa) 1603–1868 Bakumatsu Meiji 1868–1912 Restoration Taishō 1912–1926 World War I Shōwa 1926–1989 Financial crisis Militarism Occupation Pacific War Post-occupation Heisei 1989–present Lost Decade
Topics Empire of Japan 1868–1945 Postwar Japan 1945–present Earthquakes Currency Economy Education Historiography Military Naval
Glossary Timeline

Empire of Japan
Japanese name
Shinjitai 大日本帝国 Kyūjitai 大日本帝國 Rōmaji Dai Nippon Teikoku
English translation
Official Term Empire of Japan Literal Translation Empire of Great Japan