“Tokyo Review 003”
In this review, I would like to explore Tokyo between the Meiji Era and the Taisho Era.
When the Meiji administration began, the former city area of Edo became the 15 Wards of Tokyo. The higher lands in the “Yamanote” area became exclusive residential zones and lower lands of “Shita-machi” in Yamanote’s vicinity became the commercial zones to serve the Yamanote’s inhabitants. This tendency can be seen in “Azabudai and Roppongi” and “Ban-cho, Kouji-machi, and Kagura-zaka”areas as Yamanote. As well as “Azabu-Juban and Tameike” and “Kudan and Kanda” areas as Shita-machi,.
“Ginza” was rather an area for craftsmen in the Edo Era. After the 1892 conflagration in Ginza, fireproof buildings were constructed, which is known as the “Brick Street”, and high end retailers gradually gathered in this area.
“Nihon-bashi” was the center of logistics and commercial transaction since the Edo Era, Therefore banks and department stores settled in the “Nihon-bashi” area after the Meiji Era.
Large plots in Edo which were mainly used to be Samurai’s houses such as “Han-tei” and “Buke-Yashiki” had transformed to become superblocks for universities, military lands, government’s facilities, and etc. Marunouchi which were covered by Han-tei (Local governors’ house in Edo), had been confiscated by the Meiji Government. It was then sold to the founding family of Mitsubishi group in 1890. This was the starting point of the Marunouchi Business District.
In Tokyo, we can find many places which reminds us of the good old days of the Meiji and the Taisho Eras.
