is a

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a bu ...

in Aoyama,

Minato Minato (港 or 湊) is Japanese for 'harbor', and may refer to: Places * Minato, Tokyo or Minato City, a special ward in Tokyo, Japan * Minato-ku, Nagoya, a ward of Nagoya, Japan * Minato-ku, Osaka, a ward of Osaka, Japan * Minato (湊), a neig ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan, managed by the

Tokyo Metropolitan Government The is the government of the Tokyo Metropolis. One of the 56 prefectures of Japan, the government consists of a popularly elected governor and assembly. The headquarters building is located in the ward of Shinjuku. The metropolitan governmen ...

. The cemetery is also famous for its cherry blossoms, and at the season of

hanami is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers; in this case almost always refer to those of the or, less frequently, trees. From the end of March to early May, cherry trees bloom all over Japan, and around ...

, which many people would visit.

History

The cemetery was originally the land of the Aoyama family of the Gujō clan (now

Gujō, Gifu Gujō City Hall is a city located in Gifu, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 41,858, and a population density of 41 persons per km2, in 15,341 households. The total area of the city was . Gujo Hachiman, a part of the city that w ...

) in the province of Mino (now

Gifu is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku ...

). Japan's first public cemetery was opened in 1874, and in the

Meiji era The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

was the main locations of foreigners' graves. Minor Sights: Aoyama- Tokyo's only Foreigners' Cemetery
/ref> The cemetery has an area of 263,564 m².

Japanese section

The Japanese section includes the graves of many notable Japanese, including: * Hachikō * Amino Kiku *

Gotō Shōjirō Count was a Japanese samurai and politician during the Bakumatsu and early Meiji period of Japanese history.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Gotō Shōjirō" in He was a leader of which would evolve into a political party. Early life ...

* Ichikawa Danjūrō IX *

Ichikawa Danjūrō XI may refer to: Places *Ichikawa, Chiba, a city in Chiba, Japan **Ichikawa Gakuen (Ichikawa Junior and Senior High School), a large private boys and girls school in Moto-kita-kata, Ichikawa, Chiba * Ichikawa, Hyogo, a town in Hyōgo, Japan *Ichikawa ...

Kitasato Shibasaburō Baron was a Japanese physician and bacteriologist. He is remembered as the co-discoverer of the infectious agent of bubonic plague in Hong Kong during an outbreak in 1894, almost simultaneously with Alexandre Yersin. Kitasato was nominat ...

* Nakae Chōmin * Nogi Maresuke *

Ōkubo Toshimichi was a Japanese statesman and one of the Three Great Nobles regarded as the main founders of modern Japan. Ōkubo was a ''samurai'' of the Satsuma Domain and joined the movement to overthrow the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate during the ''B ...

* Otoya Yamaguchi * Sasaki Takayuki * Shiga Naoya * Nishi Takeichi *

Osachi Hamaguchi Hamaguchi Osachi ( Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , also Hamaguchi Yūkō, 1 April 1870 – 26 August 1931) was a Japanese politician, cabinet minister and Prime Minister of Japan from 1929 to 1931. Nicknamed the due to his dignified demeanor and m ...

Tateyama Branch

The cemetery also has a Tateyama branch, where Nagata Tetsuzan, Kimura Heitarō, and Sagara Sōzō are buried.

Grave of Hachikō

One of the cemetery's most famous graves is that of Hachikō, the faithful and dutiful dog whose statue adorns

Shibuya Station is a railway station in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, operated jointly by East Japan Railway Company (JR East), Keio Corporation, Tokyu Corporation, and Tokyo Metro. With 2.4 million passengers on an average weekday in 2004, it is the fourth-busiest c ...

, was buried alongside his two owners, Hidesaburō Ueno and Yaeko Sakano.

Foreign section

The cemetery includes a gaikokujin bochi (foreign cemetery), one of the few such plots in Tokyo. Many of the graves are of foreign experts who came to Japan at the end of the 19th century, as part of the Meiji Government's drive for modernisation. Although some of the graves were threatened with removal in 2005 due to unpaid annual fees, the Foreign Section was awarded special protection in 2007. A plaque on the site recognises the men and women who contributed to Japan's modernization. Some of the noted foreigners buried within the cemetery: *

Thomas Baty Thomas Baty (8 February 1869 – 9 February 1954), also known by the name Irene Clyde, was an English writer, lawyer and expert on international law who spent much of his career working for the Imperial Japanese government. Baty was also an act ...

(1869–1954), English transgender lawyer, writer and activist. * Francis Brinkley (1841–1912), journalist and scholar. * Edoardo Chiossone (1833–1898), engraver. *

Edwin Dun Edwin Dun (June 19, 1848 – May 15, 1931) was a rancher from Ohio who was employed as an '' o-yatoi gaikokujin'' in Hokkaidō by the Hokkaidō Development Commission (''Kaitakushi'') and advised the Japanese government on modernizing agric ...

(1848–1931), American agricultural advisor. * William Clark Eastlake (1834–87) "Dental Pioneer of the Orient" * Hugh Fraser (1837–1894), British

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

to Japan. * Flora B. Harris, missionary and translator, wife of Merriman Colbert Harris. * Merriman Colbert Harris (1846–1921) American Methodist missionary. *

Henry Hartshorne Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

(1823–97), Quaker missionary and doctor, father of Anna Hartshorne. * Joseph Heco (1837–1897), the first naturalized Japanese-American. * Paul Jacoulet (1902–1960), French-born woodblock print artist in the Japanese style. * Arthur Lloyd (1852-1911), British.

Anglican Church in Japan The ''Nippon Sei Ko Kai'' ( ja, 日本聖公会, translit=Nippon Seikōkai, lit=Japanese Holy Catholic Church), abbreviated as NSKK, sometimes referred to in English as the Anglican Episcopal Church in Japan, is the national Christianity, Christi ...

minister,

Keio University , mottoeng = The pen is mightier than the sword , type = Private research coeducational higher education institution , established = 1858 , founder = Yukichi Fukuzawa , endow ...

professor and translator. * Henry Spencer Palmer (1838–1893) British engineer and journalist. *

Julius Scriba Julius Karl Scriba (5 June 1848 – 3 January 1905) was a German surgeon serving as a foreign advisor in Meiji period Japan, where he was an important contributor to the development of Western medicine in Japan. Biography Scriba was born in Da ...

(1848–1905), German surgeon. * Alexander Croft Shaw (1846-1902), Canadian.

minister,

Keio University , mottoeng = The pen is mightier than the sword , type = Private research coeducational higher education institution , established = 1858 , founder = Yukichi Fukuzawa , endow ...

professor. * Frederick William Strange (1853 – 1889), British. University instructor, founder of competitive

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically at ...

in Japan. *

Guido Verbeck Guido Herman Fridolin Verbeck (born Verbeek) (23 January 1830 – 10 March 1898) was a Dutch political advisor, educator, and missionary active in ''Bakumatsu'' and Meiji period Japan. He was one of the most important foreign advisors serving th ...

(1830–98), Dutch political advisor, educator, and missionary. *

Gottfried Wagener Gottfried is a masculine German given name. It is derived from the Old High German name , recorded since the 7th century. The name is composed of the elements (conflated from the etyma for 'God' and 'good', and possibly further conflated with ) a ...

(1831-1892), German chemist, educator and ceramics specialist * Charles Dickinson West (1847–1908), Irish engineer.

References