Chōwaden Reception Hall

The is the largest building of the

Tokyo Imperial Palace The is the main residence of the Emperor of Japan. It is a large park-like area located in the Chiyoda district of the Chiyoda ward of Tokyo and contains several buildings including the where the Emperor has his living quarters, the where va ...

located in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan. It is where the

Japanese emperor The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the w ...

and other members of the

Japanese imperial family The , also referred to as the Imperial Family or the House of Yamato, comprises those members of the extended family of the reigning Emperor of Japan who undertake official and public duties. Under the present Constitution of Japan, the Emperor i ...

appear every new year and for the emperor's birthday. It is also where some official state ceremonies and functions are held. Members of the Japanese imperial family stand behind bulletproof glass on the veranda of the Chōwaden Reception Hall when appearing before the public. It is customary for the emperor to address the people who assemble in the Kyūden Tōtei Plaza in front of the building on January 2 (the day after New Year's Day) and February 23 (

Emperor Naruhito is the current Emperor of Japan. He acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne on 1 May 2019, beginning the Reiwa era, following the abdication of his father, Akihito. He is the 126th monarch according to Japan's traditional order of succession. ...

's birthday) of each year. Crowds can often be seen waving Japanese flags and shouting " BANZAI" on such occasions. At one end of the Chōwaden Reception Hall is the Kitakuruma-yose entrance for visiting dignitaries. Tokyo Imperial Palace {{japan-struct-stub