History of Kyoto
Though archaeological evidence places the first human settlement on the islands of Japan to approximately 10,000 BC, the Kyoto area was not settled until the 7th century by the Hata clan from Korea.
During the 8th century, when the powerful Buddhist clergy became meddlesome in the affairs of the Imperial government, the Emperor chose to relocate the capital to a region far from Buddhist influence.
The new city, Heiankyō ("Heian capital") became the seat of Japan's imperial court in 794. Later, the city was renamed to Kyoto ("capital city"). Kyoto remained Japan's capital until the transfer of the government to Edo in 1868 at the time of the Imperial Restoration. After Edo was renamed to Tokyo ("Eastern Capital"), Kyoto was known for a short time as Saikyō ("Western Capital").
Although there was some consideration by the United States of targeting Kyoto with the atomic bomb at the end of World War II, in the end it was decided to remove the city from the list of targets. (See Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki)
Kyoto is the only large Japanese city that still has an abundance of prewar buildings, although modernization is continually breaking down the traditional Kyoto in favor of newer architecture, such as the controversial Kyoto Station complex.
The city was designated on September 1, 1956 by government ordinance. In 1997, Kyoto was the site of the Kyoto conference that resulted in the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
