was a municipality

Cities of Japan

||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...

 in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 and part of Tokyo-Fu

Tokyo-Fu

is a former Japanese prefecture. It was disbanded in 1943 and its municipalities, including Tokyo City, became part of the newly formed ....

 which existed from May 1, 1889 until its merger with its prefecture on July 1, 1943. The historical boundaries of Tokyo City are now occupied by independent special wards

Special wards of Tokyo

The are 23 municipalities that together make up the core and the most populous part of Tokyo, Japan. Together, they occupy the land that was the city of Tokyo before it was abolished in 1943. The special wards' structure was established under the Japanese Local Autonomy Law and is unique to...

. The new merged government became known as Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, Tokyo Metropolis, or ambiguously Tokyo prefecture.

History

In 1868, the medieval city of Edo

Edo

, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...

, seat of the Tokugawa

Tokugawa shogunate

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...

 government, was renamed Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, and the offices of Tokyo Prefecture (-fu) were opened. The extent of Tokyo Prefecture was initially limited to the former Edo

Edo

, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...

 city (15 wards listed below), but rapidly augmented to be comparable with the present Tokyo Metropolis.

Tokyo City initially did not maintain a separate mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 or city council

City council

A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...

; instead, the governor of Tokyo Prefecture served as mayor of Tokyo, and each ward

Wards of Japan

A is a subdivision of one of the cities of Japan that is large enough to have been designated by government ordinance. Wards are used to subdivide each city designated by government ordinance...

 had its own assembly. Tokyo began electing its own mayor in 1898 but retained ward-level legislation, which continues to this day in the special ward system. The city hall of Tokyo was located in the Yūrakuchō

Yurakucho

is a neighborhood of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan situated in between the Ginza and Hibiya Park, near the neighborhood of Shinbashi. Unlike its tonier neighbor Ginza, Yūrakuchō provides a glimpse of Japanese life from the early postwar period, with its many izakaya and outdoor yakitori restaurants , many...

 district, on a site now occupied by the Tokyo International Forum

Tokyo International Forum

The is a multi-purpose center in Tokyo, Japan.One of its halls seats 5,000. In addition to seven other halls, it includes exhibition space, a lobby, restaurants, shops, and other facilities....

.

Tokyo became the second-largest city in the world (population 4.9 million) upon absorbing several outlying districts in July 1932, giving the city a total of 35 wards.

In 1943, the city was abolished and merged with Tokyo Prefecture to form the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which was functionally a part of the central government of Japan: the governor of Tokyo became a Cabinet

Cabinet of Japan

The of Japan is the executive branch of the government of Japan. It consists of the Prime Minister and up to fourteen other members, called Ministers of State. The Prime Minister is designated by the Diet, and the remaining ministers are appointed and dismissed by the Prime Minister...

 minister reporting directly to the Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

. This system remained in place until 1947 when the current structure of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was formed. This merger was similar to a consolidated city–county in the US.

Wards

1889 - 1920 (15 wards)		1920 - 1932 (15 wards)		1932 - 1936 (35 wards)	1936 - 1947 (35 wards)	23 special wards of Tokyo Metropolis
Kojimachi						Chiyoda
Kanda
Nihonbashi						Chuo
Kyobashi
Shiba						Minato
Azabu
Akasaka
Yotsuya		Yotsuya				Shinjuku
Naito-shinjuku Town, Toyotama District
Ushigome
Yodobashi town, Toyotama District				Yodobashi Yodobashi ward is one of the 35 former wards of Tokyo-Fu, Tokyo City. On October 1, 1932, the towns of Yodobashi, Okubo, Totsuka, and Ochiai town were merged into Yodobashi ward. In 1947, along with Yotsuya ward and another town, became part of present day Shinjuku ward...
Okubo Town, Toyotama District
Totsuka Town, Toyotama District
Ochiai Town, Toyotama District
Koishikawa						Bunkyo
Hongo
Shitaya						Taito
Asakusa
Honjo						Sumida
Terashima Town, Minami-Katsushika District				Mukojima
Azuma Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Sumida Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Fukagawa						Koto
Kameido Town, Minami-Katsushika District				Joto
Ojima Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Suna Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Shinagawa Town, Ebara District				Shinagawa		Shinagawa
Oi Town, Ebara District
Osaki Town, Ebara District
Ebara Town, Ebara District				Ebara
Meguro Town, Ebara District				Meguro
Hibusuma Town, Ebara District
Omori Town, Ebara District				Ōmori		Ōta
Iriarai Town, Ebara District
Magome Town, Ebara District
Ikegami Town, Ebara District
Higashi-Chofu Town, Ebara District
Kamata Town, Ebara District				Kamata
Yaguchi Town, Ebara District
Rokugo Town, Ebara District
Haneda Town, Ebara District
Setagaya Town, Ebara District				Setagaya	Setagaya
Komazawa Town, Ebara District
Matsuzawa Village, Ebara District
Tamagawa Village, Ebara District
Kinuta Village, Kita-Tama District
Chitose Village, Kita-Tama District
Shibuya Town, Toyotama District				Shibuya
Sendagaya Town, Toyotama District
Yoyohata Town, Toyotama District
Nakano Town, Toyotama District				Nakano
Nogata Town, Toyotama District
Suginami Town, Toyotama District				Suginami
Wadabori Town, Toyotama District
Iogi Town, Toyotama District
Takaido Town, Toyotama District
Sugamo Town, Kita-Toshima District				Toshima
Nishi-Sugamo Town, Kita-Toshima District
Nagasaki Town, Kita-Toshima District
Takada Town, Kita-Toshima District
Takinogawa Town, Kita-Toshima District				Takinogawa		Kita
Ouji Town, Kita-Toshima District				Oji
Iwabuchi Town, Kita-Toshima District
Minami-Senju Town, Kita-Toshima District				Arakawa
Mikawashima Town, Kita-Toshima District
Nippori Town, Kita-Toshima District
Ogu Town, Kita-Toshima District
Itabashi Town, Kita-Toshima District				Itabashi		Itabashi
Kami-Itabashi Village, Kita-Toshima District
Shimura Village, Kita-Toshima District
Akatsuka Village, Kita-Toshima District
Nerima Town, Kita-Toshima District						Nerima
Kami-Nerima Village, Kita-Toshima District
Nakaarai Village, Kita-Toshima District
Shakujii Village, Kita-Toshima District
Oizumi Village, Kita-Toshima District
Senju Town, Minami-Adachi District				Adachi
Umejima Town, Minami-Adachi District
Nishiarai Town, Minami-Adachi District
Kohoku Village, Minami-Adachi District
Toneri Village, Minami-Adachi District
Ikou Village, Minami-Adachi District
Fuchie Village, Minami-Adachi District
Higashi-Fuchie Village, Minami-Adachi District
Hanahata Village, Minami-Adachi District
Ayase Village, Minami-Adachi District
Honden Town, Minami-Katsushika District				Katsushika
Okudo Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Minami-Ayase Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Kameao Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Niijuku Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Kanamachi Town, Minami-Katsushika District
Mizumoto Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Komatsugawa Town, Minami-Katsushika District				Edogawa
Matsue Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Mizue Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Kasai Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Shikamoto Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Shinozaki Village, Minami-Katsushika District
Koiwa Town, Minami-Katsushika District