Tokyo, or Tokei ('Eastern Capital'), is the chief city of the Japanese empire. Until 1868, when the emperor removed his court thither from Kyoto, it was known as Yedo (' Estuary Gate'). Its position at the mouth of the rivers which drain the largest plain of Japan, fits it to be a national centre. The lower portion of the city, which is flat and intersected by canals, stretches between the two parks of Ueno (north) and Shiba (south), famous for their shrines. Midway rises the castle or palace (1889), a fine structure in Japanese style, furnished a I'Europeenne and lit with electricity, around it a double ring of high walls and broad moats. In spring-time the city is gay with plum and cherry blossoms. The immense enclosures formerly inhabited by the nobles and their retainers, are gradually disappearing, and handsome modern buildings in brick for the use of the various government departments are taking their place. Of the fifteen city divisions (ku) the northern, Hongo and Kanda, are mostly educational, and contain the buildings of the Imperial University, Law School, etc. The student population is astonishingly large. The seaward districts of Nihonbashi, Kyobashi, and Asakusa are industrial and commercial, while the government offices are located in Kojimachi ku. There is an anchorage at Shina-gawa, the southernmost suburb, but Yokohama is the port of entry (17 miles off). The city is subject to disastrous fires; that of April 1892 burned 4000 houses in one morning. Tokyo has two railway termini. Foreigners are now free to live anywhere in the city, and almost every phase of modern civilisation is to be found within its vast area. Pop. (1874) 813,500; (1905) 1,530,000.