Imperial Family Pay Respects to Tokyo Air Raid Victims; They Place Flowers, Speak to Bereaved Family Members

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:47 JST, October 24, 2025

The Emperor and Empress and their daughter Princess Aiko visited the Tokyo Metropolitan Memorial Hall in Sumida Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday to honor the victims of the Tokyo Air Raids.

The hall houses the remains of about 105,000 victims of the raid, which hit the shitamachi district, a commercial and residential area, in March 1945.

During their visit, the Imperial Family slowly approached the altar where a memorial tablet to the deceased was placed, and offered bouquets of white lilies and other flowers. They then bowed deeply in prayer, watched by about 140 people, including bereaved family members and local residents.

Afterward, the Imperial Family approached and spoke to four bereaved family members.

The Emperor asked one 84-year-old local whom he had lost in the raid. The man explained that eight of his relatives had perished. He was only 4 years old at the time and was not killed because he had been evacuated from Tokyo.

The man expressed his hope that the nation will continue to pursue peace in light of this great loss of life. The Emperor reportedly agreed, nodding in affirmation.

An 82-year-old local woman told the Imperial Family that her father-in-law, a member of the air defense corps, had been killed in an air raid. She said that there was nothing to bury in his grave, not even a strand of hair.

The Empress and Princess Aiko offered their condolences. The Empress said that it must have been terrible, and Princess Aiko expressed her sympathy for the hardship the woman endured.

The Imperial Family have visited Okinawa Prefecture and Nagasaki this year, which marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. The Imperial couple have also visited Iwoto Island in Ogasawara, Tokyo, to mourn the war dead, as well as traveling to Hiroshima. The Imperial Family listened to the stories of atomic bomb survivors and others who experienced the war.

The Emperor and Empress see it as very important to pass down memories of the war to future generations, which is why they brought Princess Aiko with them to the memorial hall this week.