The Kyoto Gyoen is located in the center of Kyoto City. The Kyoto Gyoen area, which stretches approximately 700 meters from east to west and 1,300 meters from north to south, was a lord’s town with more than 200 mansions of various sizes during the Edo period (1603-1868).
In 1869 (Meiji 2), after the capital was moved to Tokyo, Emperor Meiji, deeply saddened by the rapidly deteriorating condition of the lord’s town, ordered the then Ministry of the Imperial Household to preserve the Imperial Palace. In response, over the course of several years, this area was developed, and it has remained in its present form as the Kyoto Imperial Gardens.
In 1974, the Cabinet decided to make the area a national park along with the Shinjuku Imperial Garden and the outer gardens of the Imperial Palace, which were also imperial gardens, and the area is now a favorite recreational spot for Kyoto citizens.