Tokyo is the political and economic center of Japan, and is home to the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the headquarters of many major corporations.

Yokohama is Japan's second-largest city and a major port city located south of Tokyo, with a population of over 3.7 million people.

The 16th century saw the rise of Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, who were instrumental in unifying Japan under a centralized government.