Editing Kobe (section)

==History==
{{for timeline|Timeline of Kobe}}

===Origins===
Tools found in western Kobe demonstrate the area was populated at least from the [[Jōmon period]].<ref name="oldkobehistory">[http://www.city.kobe.jp/cityoffice/15/020/youran/rekishi.html City of Kobe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070918145414/http://www.city.kobe.jp/cityoffice/15/020/youran/rekishi.html |date=September 18, 2007 }} – "Kobe's History" (Japanese). Retrieved October 22, 2007.</ref>

The natural geography of the area, particularly of Wada Cape in [[Hyōgo-ku, Kobe|Hyōgo-ku]], led to the development of a port, which would remain the economic center of the city.<ref name="hyogotsu">[http://www.hyogo-tourism.jp/english/hyogotsu/index.html Hyogo International Tourism Guide] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061130123308/http://www.hyogo-tourism.jp/english/hyogotsu/index.html |date=November 30, 2006 }} – "Hyogo-tsu". Retrieved February 2, 2007.</ref> Some of the earliest written documents mentioning the region include the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}, which describes the founding of the [[Ikuta Shrine]] by [[Jingū of Japan|Empress Jingū]] in AD 201.<ref name="ikutahistory" />
<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="110" perrow="3" caption="Gallery">
File:Ikuta Shrine, Kobe City; April 2017 (04).jpg|[[Ikuta Shrine]]
File:Nagata Jinja Kobe Torii.jpg|[[Nagata Shrine]]
File:Taisanji31s3872.jpg|[[Taisan-ji (Kobe)|Taisan-ji]]. The main hall is a [[National Treasures of Japan|National Treasure of Japan]] (built in 716).
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===Nara and Heian periods===
During the [[Nara period|Nara]] and [[Heian period]]s, the port was known by the name {{nihongo|Ōwada Anchorage||Ōwada-no-tomari}} and was one of the ports from which [[imperial embassies to China]] were dispatched.<ref name="kobecityinfo"/><ref name="oldkobehistory"/> 
The city was briefly the [[capital of Japan]] in 1180, when [[Taira no Kiyomori]] moved his grandson [[Emperor Antoku]] to [[Fukuhara-kyō]] in present-day Hyōgo-ku.<ref name="oldkobehistory" /> The Emperor returned to Kyoto after about five months.<ref name="kobecityinfo"/>
Shortly thereafter in 1184, the [[Taira]] fortress in Hyōgo-ku and the nearby Ikuta Shrine became the sites of the [[Genpei War]] [[battle of Ichi-no-Tani]] between the Taira and [[Minamoto clan]]s. The Minamoto prevailed, forcing Taira remnants to flee to Shikoku.
<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="110" perrow="3" caption="Gallery">
File:Taira no Kiyomori Portrait by Fujiwara Tamenobu and Takenobu.png|[[Taira no Kiyomori]]
File:Yukimi-no-gosho.jpg|Marker indicating the former location of [[Fukuhara-kyō]]
File:Genpei kassen.jpg|[[Battle of Ichi-no-Tani]] ([[Genpei War]])
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===Kamakura period===
As the port grew during the [[Kamakura period]], it became an important hub for trade with China and other countries. In the 13th century, the city came to be known by the name {{nihongo|Hyōgo Port|兵庫津|Hyōgo-tsu}}.<ref name="hyogotsu" /> During this time, Hyōgo Port, along with northern Osaka, composed the province of [[Settsu Province|Settsu]] (most of today's Kobe belonged to Settsu except [[Nishi-ku, Kobe|Nishi Ward]] and [[Tarumi-ku, Kobe|Tarumi Ward]], which belonged to [[Harima Province|Harima]]).
<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="110" perrow="3" caption="Gallery">
File:Yukai sanjurokkassen 勇魁三十六合戦 (Courageous Leaders in Thirty-six Battles) (BM 2008,3037.02214).jpg|[[Kusunoki Masashige]] ([[Battle of Minatogawa]])
File:Minatogawa-jinja shinmon.jpg|[[Minatogawa Shrine]]
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===Edo period===
Later, during the [[Edo period]], the eastern parts of present-day Kobe came under the jurisdiction of the [[Amagasaki Domain]] and the western parts under that of the [[Akashi Domain]], while the center was controlled directly by the [[Tokugawa shogunate]].<ref>[http://www.city.kobe.jp/cityoffice/06/014/year/year.html#3 City of Kobe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080420204218/http://www.city.kobe.jp/cityoffice/06/014/year/year.html#3 |date=April 20, 2008 }} – "Old Kobe" (Japanese). Retrieved February 16, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.city.ashiya.hyogo.jp/english/history.html City of Ashiya] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617011231/http://www.city.ashiya.hyogo.jp/english/history.html |date=June 17, 2008 }} – "An Outline History of Ashiya". Retrieved February 16, 2007.</ref>
It was not until the [[abolition of the han system]] in 1871 and the establishment of the current [[Prefectures of Japan|prefecture system]] that the area became politically distinct.
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File:Hanakuma castle01s3200.jpg|Hanakuma Castle
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===Meiji period===
Hyōgo Port was opened to foreign trade by the Shogunal government at the same time as Osaka on January&nbsp;1, 1868, just before the advent of the [[Boshin War]] and the [[Meiji Restoration]].<ref>{{cite book|author1=John Whitney Hall|author2=Marius B. Jansen|title=The Cambridge History of Japan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7OFYajIf9QgC&pg=PA304|year=1988|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-22356-0|page=304}}</ref> At the time of the opening of the city for foreign trade, the area saw intense fighting resulting from the civil war in progress. Shortly after the opening of Kobe to trade, the [[Kobe Incident]] occurred, where several western soldiers sustained wounds from gunfire by troops from Bizen. The region has since been identified with the West and many foreign residences from the period remain in Kobe's [[Kitano-chō|Kitano area]].
<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="110" perrow="3" caption="Gallery">
File:Kobe Bund 1979.94.6P01B.jpg|[[Kobe foreign settlement]] Kaigan-dōri Avenue around 1885
File:Shinkaichi.jpg|[[Shinkaichi]] theatre street in Kobe (Taisho era)
File:Viewofkobe.PNG|Hyōgo Port in the 19th century<ref>From the [http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/id?110089 NYPL Digital Library]</ref>
File:Kobe kaigan street01 1920.jpg|The Bund, built in the 1860s–1930s
File:Choueke house02 1920.jpg|[[Kitano-chō|Kitano area]], built in the 1880s–1910s
File:Old hyogo prefectural office bld03 1920.jpg|Former Hyogo prefectural office, built in 1902
File:Sesshu Kobe coast prosperity view.jpg|This [[nishiki-e]] (colored woodcut) shows a foreign steamboat entering Hyōgo Port shortly after its opening to the West in the late 19th century. 
</gallery>

=== Modern era ===
Kobe, as it is known today, was founded on April&nbsp;1, 1889, and was [[City designated by government ordinance|designated]] on September&nbsp;1, 1956 by government ordinance. The history of the city is closely tied to that of the Ikuta Shrine, and the name "Kobe" derives from {{nihongo||神戸|kamube|later ''kanbe''}}, an archaic name for those who supported the shrine.<ref name="nagasakiu"/><ref name="kojien_kanbe"/>

During [[World War II]], Kobe was lightly bombed in the [[Doolittle Raid]] on April 18, 1942, along with [[Tokyo]] and a few other cities. Eventually, it was [[Bombing of Kobe in World War II|bombed again with incendiary bombs by B-29 Superfortress bombers on March&nbsp;16 and 17,&nbsp;1945]], causing the death of 8,841 residents and the destruction of 21% of [[Bombing of Kobe in World War II|Kobe's urban area]]. This incident inspired the well-known [[Studio Ghibli]] film ''[[Grave of the Fireflies]]'' and the [[Grave of the Fireflies (novel)|book]] by [[Akiyuki Nosaka]] on which the film was based. It also features in the motion picture ''[[A Boy Called H]]''.

Following continuous pressure from citizens, on March&nbsp;18, 1975, the Kobe City Council passed an ordinance banning vessels carrying [[nuclear weapon]]s from Kobe Port. This effectively prevented any U.S. warships from entering the port, because U.S. policy is to never disclose whether any given warship is carrying nuclear weapons. This [[nuclear proliferation|nonproliferation]] policy has been termed the "[[Japan's non-nuclear policy#The Kobe Formula|Kobe formula]]".<ref>[http://www.prop1.org/prop1/jkobef.htm Kobe City Council] – "Resolution on the Rejection of the Visit of Nuclear-Armed Warships into Kobe Port", March 18, 1975. Retrieved February 16, 2007.</ref><ref>Kamimura, Naoki. "Japanese Civil Society and U.S.-Japan Security Relations in the 1990s". retrieved from [http://www.ippnw.org/MGS/V7N1Kamimura.html International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060516075014/http://www.ippnw.org/MGS/V7N1Kamimura.html |date=May 16, 2006 }} on February 2, 2007</ref>

On January 17, 1995, [[Great Hanshin earthquake|a magnitude 6.9 earthquake]] occurred at 5:46 am [[Japan Standard Time|JST]] near the city. About 6,434 people in the city were killed, 212,443 were made homeless, and large parts of the port facilities and other parts of the city were destroyed.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080625151141/http://www.city.kobe.jp/cityoffice/06/013/report/january.2008.pdf The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Statistics and Restoration Progress] (Jan. 2008). Retrieved April 14, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.kkr.mlit.go.jp/en/topics_hanshin.html Great Hanshin Earthquake Restoration] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141014224958/http://www.kkr.mlit.go.jp/en/topics_hanshin.html |date=October 14, 2014 }}. Retrieved April 14, 2008.</ref> The earthquake destroyed portions of the [[Hanshin Expressway]], an elevated freeway that dramatically toppled over. In Japan, this earthquake is known as the [[Great Hanshin earthquake]] (or the Hanshin-Awaji earthquake). To commemorate Kobe's recovery from it, the city holds an event every December called the [[Kobe Luminarie|Luminarie]], where the city center is decorated with illuminated metal archways.

The [[Port of Kobe]] was Japan's busiest port and one of Asia's top ports until the Great Hanshin earthquake.<ref name="maruhon">[https://web.archive.org/web/20010303054315/http://maruhon.com/business/port.htm Maruhon Business News] – Port Conditions in Japan. Retrieved January 23, 2007.</ref> Kobe later dropped to fourth in Japan and, as of 2025, was the 72nd-[[List of world's busiest container ports|busiest container port worldwide]], as ranked by Lloyds.

<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" caption="Gallery" heights="130px" perrow="3">
File:KobeFormerSettelment Map JapDirectory (1905).tif|Map of the [[Kobe foreign settlement|Foreign Settlement]]
File:Kobe after the 1945 air raid.JPG|View of Kobe after the [[Bombing of Kobe in World War II|bombing]] in 1945
File:Admiralty Chart No 2265 Kobe Ko, Published 1966.jpg|Port of Kobe in 1966
File:Hanshin-Awaji earthquake 1995 337.jpg|Damage in [[Sannomiya]] after the [[Great Hanshin earthquake]] in 1995
File:Port of Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park2.jpg|Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park 
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