was a of the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, after the '' Jōō'' era and before '' Manji'' era. This era's period spanned the years from April 1655 to July 1658. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh,

Change of era

* 1655 : The era name was changed to mark the enthronement of

Emperor Go-Sai , posthumously honored as , also known as , was the 111th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', pp. 116. Go-Sai's reign spanned the years from 1655 th ...

. The previous era ended and a new one commenced in ''Jōō'' 4, on the 13th day of the 4th month. The source of the new era name was: * From the ''

Book of Han The ''Book of Han'' is a history of China finished in 111 CE, covering the Western, or Former Han dynasty from the first emperor in 206 BCE to the fall of Wang Mang in 23 CE. The work was composed by Ban Gu (32–92 CE), ...

'': "With the Nine Chapters of the Great Law, the five eras will be known" (大法九章、而五紀明歴法) * From the ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...

'': "The

Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch, or Huangdi ( zh, t=黃帝, s=黄帝, first=t) in Chinese, is a mythical Chinese sovereign and culture hero included among the legendary Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. He is revered as ...

began the passing of time, so that is why the character 歴

assing of time Assing is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * David Assing (1787–1842), German physician and poet * Rosa Maria Assing, née Varnhagen (1783–1840), German writer ** Ottilie Assing (1819–1884), German writer ** Ludmilla ...

and 暦 hythmic cycleare used together" (黄帝造歴、歴与暦同作)

Events of the ''Meireki'' era

* 1655 (''Meireki 1''): The new ambassador of Korea, arrived in Japan. * 1655 (''Meireki 1''): The ex-Emperor went for the first time to

Shugakuin Rikyū The , or Shugaku-in Detached Palace, is a set of gardens and outbuildings (mostly teahouses) in the hills of the eastern suburbs of Kyoto, Japan (separate from the Kyoto Imperial Palace). It is one of Japan's most important large-scale cultura ...

.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1956). ''Kyoto: the Old Capital, 794-1869'', p. 318. * March 2–3, 1657 (''Meireki 3, 18th-19th days of the 1st month''): The city of

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

was devastated by the

Great Fire of Meireki The , also known as the Great Furisode Fire, destroyed 60–70% of Edo (now Tokyo), then ''de facto'' capital city of Japan, on 2 March 1657, the third year of the Meireki Era. The fire lasted for three days and, in combination with a severe b ...

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia''. Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

.
OCLC 48943301
* Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1956). ''Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794–1869''. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. * Screech, Timon. (2006)
''Secret Memoirs of the Shoguns: Isaac Titsingh and Japan, 1779-1822.''
London:

RoutledgeCurzon Routledge ( ) is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, a ...

.
OCLC 65177072
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''

Nihon Ōdai Ichiran , ', is a 17th-century chronicle of the serial reigns of Japanese emperors with brief notes about some of the noteworthy events or other happenings. According to the 1871 edition of the ''American Cyclopaedia'', the 1834 French translation of ...

''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''.
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691

External links

National Diet Library The is the national library of Japan and among the largest libraries in the world. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope to ...

, "The Japanese Calendar
-- historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection
* National Archives of Japa
...Click link for map of Edo before disastrous fire in 3rd year of ''Meiwa'' (1657)
* National Archives of Japa
...Click link for photograph of Ryogoku bridge (1875), first built over Sumida River after Meireki fire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meireki Japanese eras 1650s in Japan 17th-century neologisms