Editing University of Tokyo (section)

==== Great Kanto Earthquake ====
[[File:Tokyo Imperial University after Great Kanto earthquake.JPG|thumb|The University of Tokyo suffered immense damage in the Great Earthquake of 1923.]]
On September 1, 1923, the [[1923 Great Kantō earthquake|Great Kanto Earthquake]] struck the Kanto Plain, inflicting immense damage upon the university. This damage included the complete destruction of almost all main buildings, including the library, as well as the loss of precious scientific and historical samples and data stored in them.<ref>Earthquake disaster and reconstruction, The University of Tokyo 100-year history {{cite book |url=https://repository.dl.itc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/record/53865/files/02_hyakunenshi_tsushi02.pdf#page459 |access-date=2021-05-29 |format=pdf |page=385 |editor=東京大学百年史編集委員会 |publisher=東京大学 |volume=II |date=March 1985 |title=東大百年史 通史 |archive-date=2021-06-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606073831/https://repository.dl.itc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/record/53865/files/02_hyakunenshi_tsushi02.pdf#page459 |url-status=live }} {{in lang|ja}}</ref><ref name="lostmemoryunesco">[http://www.unesco.org/webworld/mdm/administ/pdf/LOSTMEMO.PDF Lost Memory – Libraries and Archives Destroyed in the Twentieth Century] ( {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120905105742/http://www.unesco.org/webworld/mdm/administ/pdf/LOSTMEMO.PDF|date=September 5, 2012}})</ref> This led to a university-wide debate as to whether it should relocate to a larger site, such as [[Yoyogi]], but ultimately, such plans were rejected. Instead, the university purchased additional land in its vicinity, which was still owned by the Maeda family, and expanded there.
[[File:University of Tokyo circa 1953.jpg|thumb|Most of the buildings on the [[Hongō campus|Hongo Campus]] today were built during the reconstruction period in a style known as Uchida Gothic, including [[Yasuda Auditorium]] and the [[University of Tokyo Library#General Library (Hongo)|General Library]].]]
The reconstruction of the university and its library was brought up in the fourth general assembly of the [[League of Nations]] in September 1923, where it was unanimously decided to provide support. The League is said to have been sympathetic especially because the memory of the destruction of [[Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968)|KU Leuven]] in Belgium during the [[World War I|First World War]] was still fresh.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-15 |title=Libraries and disasters, libraries and wars |url=https://letterpresslabo.com/2019/12/15/kulpcws-column37/ |access-date=2024-06-13 |website=活版印刷研究所 |language=ja}}</ref> The American philanthropist [[John D. Rockefeller Jr.]] personally donated $2 million (approximately $36 million in 2023). The United Kingdom formed a committee led by former Prime Minister [[Arthur Balfour|Arthur Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour]], and made substantial financial and cultural contributions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=記念特別展示会－世界から贈られた図書を受け継いで－ |url=https://www.lib.u-tokyo.ac.jp/html/tenjikai/tenjikai2007/preface.html |access-date=2023-11-03 |website=www.lib.u-tokyo.ac.jp}}</ref> Rockefeller Jr. and [[Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester]], a younger son of [[George V]], visited the university in 1929, shortly after the [[University of Tokyo Library#General Library (Hongo)|new library]] was completed.<ref>{{Cite web |title=総合図書館今昔物語 |url=https://www.lib.u-tokyo.ac.jp/html/tenjikai/tenjikai2013/index.html |access-date=2024-10-13 |website=www.lib.u-tokyo.ac.jp}}</ref> Prince Henry's visit marked the first Great Ball (大園遊会, ''Dai-Enyukai'') in several years, which is now known as the May Festival (五月祭, ''Gogatsusai'').<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hiroya |first=Sato |date=30 March 2020 |title=東京大学五月祭の歴史 : 東京帝国大学におけるその起源と変遷 |url=https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1390290699580206208 |journal=東京大学大学院教育学研究科紀要 |volume=59 |pages=241–251 |issn=1342-1050}}</ref> A large portion of the buildings on Hongo Campus today were built during this reconstruction period, and their unique [[Collegiate Gothic|Collegiate Gothic style]] is known as Uchida Gothic ({{lang|ja|内田ゴシック}}) after [[Yoshikazu Uchida]], the architect who designed them.<ref>{{Cite web |title=内田祥三・丹下健三と建築学の戦中・戦後 |url=https://ocw.u-tokyo.ac.jp/lecture_1249/ |access-date=2023-11-03 |language=ja}}</ref>

Another notable change the earthquake brought about at the university was the expansion of its [[Seismology|seismology studies]]. Long having been the only university in the [[List of earthquakes in Japan|seismically active country]], the university was already known for its seismology research, most notably the contributions made by its alumnus and professor, [[Fusakichi Omori]], in quantitatively evaluating the aftershocks of earthquakes ([[Omori's law]]) and developing a new type of seismometer capable of recording [[P wave|primary waves]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Davison |first=C. |date=January 1924 |title=Prof. Fusakichi Omori |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/113133a0 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=113 |issue=2830 |pages=133 |doi=10.1038/113133a0 |bibcode=1924Natur.113..133D |issn=1476-4687}}</ref> The university set up an independent seismology department in November 1923 to delve into the causes and effects of earthquakes and to better prepare for future seismic events.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History |url=https://www.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/overview/history.html |access-date=2024-02-16 |website=SCHOOL OF SCIENCE THE UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO |language=en}}</ref> In 1925, with a government grant, the [[Earthquake Research Institute, University of Tokyo|Earthquake Research Institute]] was established within the university, and it has been in continuous operation up to today.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Greeting from the Director – Earthquake Research Institute, the University of Tokyo |url=https://www.eri.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/overview/greeting-from-the-director/ |access-date=2024-02-16 |language=ja}}</ref>