Issued to commemorate the accession of Emperor Naruhito on May 1, 2019 — the first abdication-triggered succession in Japan in over two centuries, as his father Akihito stepped down citing age and health rather than dying in office. The previous abdication of a reigning emperor had occurred in 1817 under Emperor Kōkaku, before modern constitutional structures existed to regulate the process.
Special legislation had to be passed in 2017 specifically to permit Akihito's abdication, as the existing Imperial Household Law contained no provision for it.
Issued to commemorate the accession of Emperor Naruhito on May 1, 2019 — the first abdication-triggered succession in Japan in over two centuries, as his father Akihito stepped down citing age and health rather than dying in office. The previous abdication of a reigning emperor had occurred in 1817 under Emperor Kōkaku, before modern constitutional structures existed to regulate the process.
Special legislation had to be passed in 2017 specifically to permit Akihito's abdication, as the existing Imperial Household Law contained no provision for it.