Emperor of Japan
The emperor 'of Japan' is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power". The Imperial Household Law governs the line of imperial succession. Pursuant to his constitutional role as a national symbol, and in accordance with rulings by the Supreme Court of Japan, the emperor is personally immune from prosecution. By virtue of his position as the head of the Imperial House, the emperor is also recognized as the head of the Shinto religion, which holds him to be the direct descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu. According to tradition, the office of emperor was created in the 7th century BC, but the first historically verifiable emperors appear around the 3rd or 4th centuries AD.
The role of the emperor of Japan has historically alternated between a largely ceremonial symbolic role and that of an actual imperial ruler. Since the establishment of the first shogunate in 1192, the emperors of Japan have rarely taken on a role as supreme battlefield commander, unlike many Western monarchs. Japanese emperors have nearly always been controlled by external political forces, to varying degrees. Between 1192 and 1867, the shōguns, or their shikken regents in Kamakura, were the de facto rulers of Japan, although they were nominally appointed by the emperor. After the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the emperor was the embodiment of all sovereign power in the realm, as enshrined in the Meiji Constitution of 1889; however, except for a period of parliamentary monarchy from approximately 1905 to 1932, the degree to which the Emperor exercised real power between the Restoration and the Surrender of Japan at the end of World War II is widely debated. Since the enactment of the 1947 constitution, the emperor has been relegated to an entirely ceremonial and representative role, without even nominal political powers. The emperor is the head of the Japanese honors system, conferring orders, decorations, medals, and awards in the name of the state and on behalf of its people in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet.
Since the mid-nineteenth century, the emperor and other members of the imperial family have resided at the Imperial Palace, located on the former site of Edo Castle in the heart of Tokyo, the current capital of Japan. Earlier, emperors resided in Kyoto, the ancient capital, for nearly eleven centuries. The Emperor's Birthday is a national holiday.
Naruhito is the current emperor of Japan. He acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne upon the abdication of his father, Emperor Akihito, on 1 May 2019. He is the only remaining monarch and head of state in the world who holds the title of Emperor.
Constitutional role
Most constitutional monarchies formally vest executive power in the reigning monarch in their capacity as head of state. In turn, these constitutional monarchs are bound by either convention or statute to exercise their prerogatives on the advice of ministers responsible to the duly elected parliament. Some monarchies codify this principle further by requiring royal acts to be countersigned by a minister in order to take effect, thus passing political and legal accountability from the reigning monarch to the minister tendering advice. By contrast, Japan is one of only two such sovereign states where the monarch is not even the nominal chief executive; the other is Sweden. Rather, Article 65 of the Constitution of Japan explicitly vests executive authority in the Cabinet, of which the prime minister is the leader. The emperor is also not the commander-in-chief of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Instead, the Japan Self-Defense Forces Act of 1954 explicitly vests supreme command and control in the prime minister. Nevertheless, the emperor remains Japan's internationally recognized head of state.The emperor's fundamental role within the machinery of the Japanese constitution is to perform important representational functions as "…the symbol of the State and of the unity of the People, deriving his position from the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power." He is limited to performing "acts in matters of state" as delineated by the Constitution, without even nominal powers related to government. Moreover, said acts are only exercised in accordance with the binding advice and consent of the Cabinet, which is collectively responsible to the Diet and thence to the electorate. Nevertheless, the emperor enjoys the following rights in the conduct of state business: the right to be consulted before acting on ministerial advice; the right to encourage a given policy or course of administrative action; and the right to warn the Cabinet against the same. In these respects, the emperor personifies the democratic state, sanctions legitimate authority, ensures the legality of his official acts, and guarantees the execution of the public will. These functions, when considered altogether, serve two purposes: foremost, to uphold the continuity and stability of Japanese democracy; and second, to foster a shared national identity and cultural heritage that transcends party politics. In order to maintain his institutional neutrality as Japan's national symbol, he is barred from making political statements.
It is the emperor's preeminent constitutional duty to appoint the prime minister as designated by the Diet and the chief justice as designated by the Cabinet. However, the emperor does not have the authority to decline the nominations. The emperor's other responsibilities, laid down in Article 7 of the Constitution, concern the basic functioning of the state. To this end, the emperor, on behalf of the Japanese people:
- Promulgates constitutional amendments, laws, cabinet orders, and treaties.
- Convokes sessions of the Diet.
- Dissolves the House of Representatives.
- Proclaims general elections for members of the Diet.
- Attests to the appointment and dismissal of ministers of state and other officials as provided for by law, and of full powers and credentials of ambassadors and ministers.
- Attests to general and special amnesty, commutation of punishment, reprieve, and restoration of rights.
- Awards state honors.
- Attests to instruments of ratification and other diplomatic documents as provided for by law.
- Receives the credentials of foreign diplomats.
- Performs ceremonial functions.
Cultural role
The Tennō is regarded as the foremost Shintō priest in terms of religion. This sacred duty dates back to the Niiname-sai imperial harvest festival. In this ritual, the emperor presents newly gathered rice to the gods. The celebration is known as Daijōsai and takes place in the first year after the emperor's accession to the throne. The historical text Nihonshoki, written in the year 720, has the first mention of this ceremony, whose beginnings are believed to date back even further. The event evolved through time to become the Day of Thanksgiving for Labour, a recognized official holiday today.The office of the emperor is also cultural bearer and steward of tradition and culture. For example, the Utakai Hajime is the annual poetry reading competition convened by the emperor. The emperor is supported in this function by the empress and other members of the imperial family, who have honorary patronages of many associations and organisations. They travel extensively throughout the year within the country to uphold these roles.
In sports, the Emperor's Cup is given to a number of competitions such as football, judo, volleyball, and the top division yūshō winner of a sumo tournament.
History
Although the emperor has been a symbol of continuity with the past, the degree of power exercised by the emperor has varied considerably throughout Japanese history.Origins
According to the traditional account of the Nihon Shoki, Japan was founded by Emperor Jimmu years ago. However, most modern scholars agree to regard Jimmu and the nine first emperors as mythical. Emperor Sujin, the 10th emperor, may have been a real historical figure. The emperors from Emperor Ōjin are considered as perhaps factual. As one argument, the reign of Emperor Kinmei, the 29th emperor, is the first for whom contemporary historiography is able to assign verifiable dates.Archaeological information about the earliest historical rulers of Japan may be contained in the ancient tombs known as kofun, constructed between the early 3rd century and the early 7th century AD. However, since the Meiji period, the Imperial Household Agency has refused to open the kofun to the public or to archaeologists, citing their desire not to disturb the spirits of the past emperors. Kofun period artefacts were also increasingly crucial in Japan as the Meiji government used them to reinforce their authority. In 2016, the Imperial Household Agency reversed its position and decided to allow researchers to enter some of the kofun with limited time and way.
In the early 7th century, the emperor had begun to be called the "Son of Heaven". The title of emperor was borrowed from China, being derived from Chinese characters, and was retroactively applied to the legendary Japanese rulers who reigned before the 7th–8th centuries AD.