Editing Emperor Jimmu (section)

==Imperial Era veneration==

Veneration of Jimmu was a central component of the [[imperial cult]] that formed following the [[Meiji Restoration]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apjjf.org/2016/20/Saaler.html |title=Nationalism and History in Contemporary Japan |access-date=February 11, 2017}}</ref> In 1873, a holiday called ''[[Kigensetsu]]'' was established on February 11.<ref name=kodanshakigensetsu>"Kigensetsu Controversy", ''Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia'' (1993), Kodansha. {{ISBN|978-4069310980}}.</ref> The holiday commemorated the anniversary of Jimmu's ascension to the throne 2,532 years earlier.<ref>''Britannica Kokusai Dai-Hyakkajiten'' article on "Kigensetsu".</ref> After [[World War II]], the holiday was criticized as too closely associated with the "emperor system."<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/> It was suspended from 1948 to 1966, but later reinstated as [[National Foundation Day (Japan)|National Foundation Day]].<ref name="kodanshakigensetsu"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/1998/02/11/national/founding-day-rekindles-annual-debate/#.U4F2VihWrrB|title=Founding Day rekindles annual debate|newspaper=The Japan Times|date=February 11, 1998|access-date=May 24, 2014}}</ref>

Between 1873 and 1945, an imperial envoy sent offerings every year to the supposed site of Jimmu's tomb.<ref name="martin">Martin, Peter. (1997). ''The Chrysanthemum Throne: A History of the Emperors of Japan'', pp. 18–20.</ref> In 1890 [[Kashihara Shrine]] was established nearby, on the spot where Jimmu was said to have ascended to the throne.<ref>[http://www.city.kashihara.nara.jp/kankou/own_kankou/kankou/spot/kashihara_jinguu.html Kashihara City website] tourism page on "Kashihara Jingū".</ref>

Before and during [[World War II]], expansionist propaganda made frequent use of the phrase ''[[hakkō ichiu]]'', a term coined by [[Tanaka Chigaku]] based on a passage in the {{Lang|ja-latn|Nihon Shoki}} discussing Emperor Jimmu.<ref>''Britannica Kokusai Dai-Hyakkajiten'' article on "Hakkō ichiu".</ref> Some media incorrectly attributed the phrase to Emperor Jimmu.<ref>[[John W. Dower|Dower, John W.]], ''War Without Mercy: Race & Power in the Pacific War,'' faber and faber, 1993 p. 223.</ref> For the 1940 ''Kigensetsu'' celebration, marking the supposed 2,600th anniversary of Jimmu's enthronement, the [[Heiwadai Park#Peace Tower|Peace Tower]]<ref>{{nihongo|[[Heiwadai Park#Peace Tower|Peace Tower]]|平和の塔|Heiwa no Tō|extra=originally called the "Hakkō Ichiu Tower" 八紘一宇の塔 ''Hakkō Ichiu no Tō'' or the "Pillar of Heaven and Earth" 八紘之基柱 ''Ametsuchi no Motohashira''}}</ref> was constructed in [[Miyazaki Prefecture|Miyazaki]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/02/10/national/miyazakis-controversial-peace-tower-continues-to-cause-unease/ |title=Miyazaki's controversial Peace Tower continues to cause unease |last=Motomura |first=Hiroshi |date=February 10, 2015 |work=The Japan Times |access-date=February 9, 2018 |language=en-US |issn=0447-5763}}</ref>

That same year, numerous stone monuments relating to key events in Jimmu's life were erected around Japan. The sites at which these monuments were erected are known as Emperor Jimmu Sacred Historical Sites.<ref name="Ruoff2014">{{cite book|last=Ruoff|first=Kenneth J.|title=Imperial Japan at Its Zenith: The Wartime Celebration of the Empire's 2,600th Anniversary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WY5HDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA41|access-date=February 10, 2018|date= 2014|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0801471827|page=41}}</ref>
[[File:Celebrating_Gagaku_Music_in_Imperial_2600.JPG|thumb|124th Emperor [[Hirohito]] and [[Empress Nagako]] presiding the celebration of the 2600th anniversary of mythical foundation of the Empire in November 1940|left]]
In 1940, Japan [[:ja:紀元二千六百年記念行事|celebrated the 2600th anniversary of Jimmu's ascension]] and built a monument to [[Hakkō ichiu]] despite the fact that all historians knew Jimmu was a mythical figure. In 1941, the Japanese government charged the one historian who dared to challenge Jimmu's existence publicly, [[:ja:津田左右吉|Tsuda Sōkichi]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sundberg |first1=Steve |date=October 22, 2018 |title=2600th Anniversary of the Founding of Japan, 1940. |url=http://www.oldtokyo.com/2600th-anniversary-of-the-founding-of-japan-1940/ |website=Old Tokyo}}</ref>