Kyoto City Fire Department

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Honshu island, Japan.

The Yōwa famine (養和の飢饉, Yōwa no kikin), was a famine which affected Japan at the end of Heian period. Famine is considered to have begun in 1181, and lasted until 1182. It was named after the Yōwa era (1181–1182), during the reign of Emperor Antoku. The shogunate system was not established in Japan yet. The famine was most severe in western Honshū (including Kyoto) and Kyushu islands. The famine was caused by an alternating, untimely drought and flood.During the same period as the famine, there was also the Genpei War (1180-1185), partially caused by famine itself. In 1181, the Taira clan food requisitions in Yamashiro Province for the needs of starving Kyoto city have cost them popular support, while Minamoto no Yoritomo supplied rice for the starving provinces in exchange for grants for independent rule in Kamakura. The famine become worse in 1182, as epidemic was superimposed on scarcity of food. The food prices rose to such levels, what man's load of processed timber was not worth the amount of food to survive a day. The riverbanks were lined with the deceased. According to Hojoki, the number of dead in Kyoto was 43200, and shrines were overwhelmed, resulting in improper burials. Many corpses were left to rot, resulting in foul smells in several districts of the city.

The Kanki famine (寛喜の飢饉, Kanki no kikin), also spelled as Kangi famine, was a famine which affected Japan during the Kamakura period. The famine is considered to have begun in 1230 and lasted until 1231. It was named after the Kangi era (1229–1232), during the reign of Emperor Go-Horikawa. The shogun of Japan was Kujō Yoritsune. The famine was severe throughout Japan. It was caused by cold weather caused probably by volcanic eruptions, coupled later with a general breakdown of society. The anomalous cold weather started in 1229, resulting in a shortage of food. As the excessive rains, cold spells and blizzards destroyed crops in July 1230, the shortage developed into famine, and people started to die en masse in September 1230. The lack of sunlight and cold was so severe what the winter clothing was necessary in spring and summer. The relief efforts by Emperor and Shogunate were generally ineffective, as no food was available at all. To ease population mobility in the worst stricken areas, human trafficking was legalized in 1231, among other means - confiscations and forced food distribution. The social order broke down, and bands of marauding robbers (including former Buddhist monks) became common. The strife spilled even to Goryeo, as starving residents of Kyushu raided coastal towns for food. The weather reversed to warm in winter of 1230-1231, again resulting in crop failure in 1231, this time due to lack of soil moisture and scarcity of seeds. Overall, about one third of the population of Japan perished (dead numbering 1,500,000-2,000,000), meaning the Kanki famine may be the worst in Japanese history. In the same years, the great famine also struck Kievan Rus' and Novgorod.

Kyoto (; Japanese: 京都, Kyōto [kʲoꜜːto] ), officially Kyoto City (京都市, Kyōto-shi, [kʲoːtoꜜɕi] ), is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. As of 2020, the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it the ninth most populous city in Japan. The city is the cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area known as Greater Kyoto, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) home to a census-estimated 3.8 million people. Kyoto is one of the oldest municipalities in Japan, having been chosen in 794 as the new seat of Japan's imperial court by Emperor Kanmu. The original city, named Heian-kyō, was arranged in accordance with traditional Chinese feng shui following the model of the ancient Chinese capitals of Chang'an and Luoyang. The emperors of Japan ruled from Kyoto in the following eleven centuries until 1869. It was the scene of several key events of the Muromachi period, Sengoku period, and the Boshin War, such as the Ōnin War, the Honnō-ji Incident, the Kinmon incident and the Battle of Toba–Fushimi. The capital was relocated from Kyoto to Tokyo after the Meiji Restoration. The modern municipality of Kyoto was established in 1889. The city was spared from large-scale destruction during World War II and as a result, its prewar cultural heritage has mostly been preserved. Kyoto is considered the cultural capital of Japan and is a major tourist destination. The agency for cultural affairs of the national government is headquartered in the city. It is home to numerous Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, palaces and gardens, some of which have been designated collectively as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Prominent landmarks include the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kiyomizu-dera, Kinkaku-ji, Ginkaku-ji, and Kyoto Tower. The internationally renowned video game company Nintendo is based in Kyoto. Kyoto is also a center of higher learning in the country, and its institutions include Kyoto University, the second oldest university in Japan.

The Hōgen rebellion (保元の乱, Hōgen no ran, July 28 – August 16, 1156) was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about Japanese Imperial succession. The dispute was also about the degree of control exercised by the Fujiwara clan who had become hereditary Imperial regents during the Heian period. Hōgen no ran produced a series of unanticipated consequences. It created a foundation from which the dominance of the samurai clans would come to be established. It is considered the beginning in a chain of events which would produce the first of three samurai-led governments in the history of Japan.

The Battle of Toba–Fushimi (鳥羽・伏見の戦い, Toba-Fushimi no Tatakai) occurred between pro-Imperial and Tokugawa shogunate forces during the Boshin War in Japan. The battle started on 27 January 1868 (or fourth year of Keiō, first month, 3rd day, according to the lunar calendar), when the forces of the shogunate and the allied forces of Chōshū, Satsuma and Tosa Domains clashed near Fushimi, Kyoto. The battle lasted for four days, ending in a decisive defeat for the shogunate.

The siege of the Sanjō Palace was the primary battle of the Heiji Rebellion (平治の乱, Heiji no ran, January 19 – February 5, 1160) during the late Heian period of Japan . The conflict arose from feud between court advisors Fujiwara no Nobuyori and Fujiwara no Michinori, both of the powerful Fujiwara clan, with each respectively allied alongside the warrior clans of the Minamoto (Genji) and Taira (Heiki). The Siege is the focal point of the Japanese war epic (軍記物語, Gunki monogatari) The Tale of Heiji (平治物語, Heiji monogatari) and the corresponding Illustrated Scrolls of the Tales of the Heiji (平治物語絵巻, Heiji monogatari emaki). The Night Attack on Sanjō Palace (Sanjō-den yo-uchi no maki) handscroll is the most prominent of the three extant Illustrated Scrolls and belongs to The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in Boston, Massachusetts, where it currently resides on display.

Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae Station (京都市役所前駅 Kyōto shiyakusho-mae eki) is a stop on the Tozai Line of Kyoto Municipal Subway in Kyoto, Japan. It is in Nakagyo-ku. With the station number designation T12, its station color is kara kurenai. Because it lies beneath the Kawaramachi-Oike intersection, the station also carries signs with the name Kawaramachi Oike. The station has one island platform serving two tracks. Most trains of the Keihan Railway Keishin Line make their last stop at Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae before reversing direction. The station, the name of which means "in front of City Hall," is the closest to the offices of Kyoto's city government. The Honnō-ji was rebuilt nearby, rather than at its original location, following the Incident at Honnōji. Also in the vicinity is the Kyoto office of the Bank of Japan.

The Takase River (高瀬川, Takase-gawa) is a canal in Kyoto, Japan. It rises from Nijō-Kiyamachi, going along Kiyamachi Street, and meets the Uji River at Fushimi port. The canal crosses with the Kamo River on the way. Today the south half is not connected with Kamo River.

Honnō-ji (本能寺) is a temple of the Nichiren branch of Buddhism located in Kyoto, Japan.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kyoto (Latin: Kyoten(sis), Japanese: カトリック京都教区) is a diocese located in the city of Kyoto in the Ecclesiastical province of Osaka 大阪 in Japan.

The Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier (Japanese: 聖フランシスコ・デ・ザビエル司教座聖堂), also called Kawaramachi Church, is a parish of the Roman Catholic Church in the city of Kyoto, and cathedral of the Diocese of Kyoto in Japan.It has served as the seat of the bishop of Kyoto since its completion and dedication in November 1972. The diocese (Dioecesis Kyotensis カトリック京都教区) had been erected in 1951 by Pope Pius XII through the Bull "Inter supremi". It is under the pastoral responsibility of the Bishop Paul Yoshinao Otsuka. Masses are offered in Japanese and English in addition to the foreign Catholic community.