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42-603: Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group traces its origins to the Mitsubishi zaibatsu , a unified company that existed from 1870 to 1946. The company, along with other major zaibatsu, was disbanded during the occupation of Japan following World War II by the order of the Allies . Despite the dissolution, the former constituent companies continue to share the Mitsubishi brand and trademark . While

84-453: A business district. Hisaya was succeeded by his cousin Koyata in 1916, and during his time as president the group saw a significant expansion. In 1917, he funded the establishment of an optics company and became the majority shareholder, which later became Nikon . During this era, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was at the forefront of Japan's aircraft development. He reorganised the group into

126-567: A compound of mitsu ("three") and hishi (literally, " water chestnut ", often used in Japanese to denote a rhombus or diamond). Mitsubishi's emblem was a combination of the Iwasaki family crest, showing three overlapping lozenges , and the crest with three oak leaves, arranged in a threefold rotational symmetry , of the Yamauchi family, which controlled the part of Shikoku where Yatarō

168-463: A form similar to what it is now, and he spun off each department into a subsidiary. Most of them later went public, as he thought that for the sake of the expansion of business, more core capital was needed. The group was organised as follows: The firm's prime real estate holdings in the Marunouchi district of Tokyo, acquired in 1890, were spun off in 1937 to form Mitsubishi Estate , now one of

210-780: The Cold War made the Eastern Bloc more menacing than the possible revival of a strong Japan and Germany , the occupation forces’ initial aim, just like in Germany, was to weaken the Japanese economy so that the country could never wage war against them. Under this policy, Mitsubishi as a group was dissolved. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Chemical were split into three separate entities. On his deathbed, Koyata Iwasaki staunchly defended his actions, asserting that he had done his utmost for his country and had nothing to be ashamed of. Despite his resistance, he could not defy

252-548: The Great Tenmei famine . His family derived from Iwasaki clan that was a branch of Takeda clan of Kai Province ( 甲斐武田氏 ). The ancestor of Iwasaki clan was Iwasaki Nobutaka ( 岩崎信隆 ) known as Takeda Shichirō ( 武田七郎 ) who was the fifth son of Takeda Nobumitsu. The Iwasaki clan served Aki clan ( 安芸氏 ), and Chōsokabe clan ( 長宗我部氏 ) at the Battle of Sekigahara (October 21, 1600). Iwasaki began his career as an employee of

294-599: The Imperial Palace . The name, meaning "inside the circle", derives from its location within the palace's outer moat. Marunouchi is the core of Tokyo's central business district as well as one of the main financial centres in Japan. 20 of the Fortune Global 500 companies are headquartred in the area in 2021, while many other such companies based outside Japan have Asian or Japanese offices there. Together with

336-547: The Meiji Restoration in 1868 which overthrew the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate , abolishing the feudal system in Japan and forcing the disbandment of the shogunate's business interests. In March 1870, Iwasaki became president of the Tsukumo Trading Company, a shipping company founded on behalf of the Yamauchi clan, and leased the trading rights. In 1873, the company changed its name to Mitsubishi,

378-486: The Meiji Restoration , Marunouchi came under control of the national government, which erected barracks and parade grounds for the Imperial Japanese Army . In 1890 Iwasaki Yanosuke , brother of the founder (and later the second leader) of Mitsubishi , purchased the land for 1.5 million yen . As the company developed the land, it came to be known as Mitsubishi-ga-hara (the "Mitsubishi Fields"). Much of

420-551: The Yamauchi clan , the ruling clan of the Tosa Domain which had business interests in many parts of Japan. Iwasaki left for Edo aged nineteen for his education, but his studies were interrupted a year later when his father was seriously injured in a dispute with the village headman. Iwasaki accused the local magistrate of corruption for refusing to hear his case, and was subsequently sent to prison for seven months after he

462-482: The Japanese distribution representative. Three of the group companies are informally known as the "Three Great Houses" ( 御三家 , Gosanke ) and hold a separate coordinating meeting prior to each Friday Conference: Ten other "major" group companies participate in the coordinating meeting on a rotating basis (with six of the ten companies participating in any given month): Iwasaki Yatar%C5%8D Iwasaki Yatarō ( 岩崎 弥太郎 , January 9, 1835 – February 7, 1885)

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504-523: The Japanese government that ensured the new company's success. In return, Mitsubishi supported the new Japanese government and transported troops who defeated the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877. Thus, the success of Mitsubishi became intertwined with the rise of the modern Japanese state and economy and one of the "Big Four" zaibatsu companies. In 1885, a merger of Mitsubishi shipping activities with competitor Kyodo Unyu Kaisha (founded 1882) led to

546-1311: The Marunouchi Trust Tower Main. Konica Minolta has its headquarters in the Marunouchi Center Building in Marunouchi. Japan Airlines used to have its headquarters in the Tokyo Building in Marunouchi. Marunouchi also houses the Japan offices of Aeroméxico ( Pacific Century Place Marunouchi ), Bain & Company , Bayerische Landes Bank , Bloomberg , First National Bank of Boston , BT Group , Citigroup , Banca Commerciale Italiana , Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu , Bank of India , JPMorgan Chase , KPMG , Latham & Watkins , Mellon Bank , Morgan, Lewis & Bockius , Morrison & Foerster , NatWest Group , Nikko Cordial , Nikko Citigroup , Rabobank , Bank Negara Indonesia , Overseas Union Bank , Philadelphia National Bank , PricewaterhouseCoopers , Ropes & Gray , Royal Insurance , Standard Chartered Bank and Standard & Poor's . Chiyoda Board of Education  [ ja ] operates public elementary and junior high schools. Chiyoda Elementary School (千代田小学校)

588-450: The Mitsubishi companies combined generate 7.7% of the total revenue of all publicly traded companies in Japan, and the group's assets amount to 433 trillion yen. The Mitsubishi company was established as a shipping firm by Iwasaki Yatarō (1834–1885) in 1870 under the name "Tsukumo Shokai" ( 九十九商会 ) . In 1873, its name was changed to Mitsubishi Shokai ; Mitsubishi ( 三菱 ) consists of two parts: " mitsu " (三) meaning "three" (as in

630-618: The Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, which are now part of its Mitsubishi Heavy Industries industrial branch. Iwasaki often held dinners for dignitaries, spending a huge amount of money on these occasions, but he also made many friends who later helped him by doing favors. Iwasaki died of stomach cancer on 7 February 1885, aged 50, and was succeeded as the head of the family business first by his brother, Iwasaki Yanosuke , and later his son, Hisaya. In 1903, Iwasaki's fourth daughter, Masako, married Baron Shidehara Kijūrō ,

672-407: The adoption of the company's name Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, or 'NYK' in short, which still exists and is one of the largest global shipping groups. Subsequently, Iwasaki invested in mining , ship repair, and finance industries in addition to shipping. In 1884, Iwasaki took a lease on the Nagasaki Shipyard, which allowed the company to undertake shipbuilding on a large scale and renamed it

714-478: The chairpersons and presidents of major Mitsubishi companies. By 1964, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries also remerged. The Friday Club symbolised the formation of an equal group of companies, rather than the revival of the pre-war Mitsubishi zaibatsu with Mitsubishi Headquarters at the apex. In 1970, Mitsubishi companies established the Mitsubishi Foundation to commemorate the centennial anniversary of

756-615: The country had decided to wage a war with the United States and the British Empire , each member of the company ought to serve the country in fulfilling its only goal, but the company should not forget what it owed to people in these countries. Arguably, one of the most tangible ways in which Mitsubishi was involved in the war was through its supply of ships, aircraft and other arms by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter, designed by Dr. Jiro Horikoshi

798-528: The first Prime Minister of Japan after World War II . Iwasaki serves as the secondary protagonist of the 49th NHK Taiga drama , Ryōma den , focusing on his activities during the Bakumatsu , and also serves as the framing narrator of the story. He is portrayed by Teruyuki Kagawa . Marunouchi Marunouchi ( 丸の内 ) is an area in Chiyoda , Tokyo , Japan , located between Tokyo Station and

840-471: The founding of the first Mitsubishi company. The companies also individually maintain charitable foundations. Mitsubishi pavilions have been highlights of expositions in Japan since EXPO'70 in Osaka in the 1970s to 1980s. The Mitsubishi Group is made up of about 40 individual companies without a controlling parent company. Each of the Mitsubishi companies owns substantial (but usually not controlling) portions of

882-517: The group of companies engages in limited business cooperation, most notably through monthly “Friday Conference” executive meetings, they remain formally independent and are not under common control. The three main entities ( gosanke ) are Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (the largest bank in Japan), Mitsubishi Corporation (a general trading company), and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (diversified manufacturing companies). A 2020 estimate concluded that all

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924-624: The land remains under the control of Mitsubishi Estate Co. , and the headquarters of many companies in the Mitsubishi Group are in Marunouchi. The government of Tokyo constructed its headquarters on the site of the former Kōchi han in 1894. They moved it to the present Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku in 1991, and the Tokyo International Forum and Toyota Tsusho Corporation now stands on

966-669: The largest real estate development companies in Japan. During the Second World War , which was often advertised in government propaganda as a total war, Mitsubishi was a key player in the nation's wartime economy. Educated in England and having many business friends and partners in the Anglosphere , Koyata was opposed to fighting a war against the Allies. However, he famously stated in his speech on 10 December 1941 that once

1008-481: The market capitalisation of the company was significantly less than its real estate holdings. They greenmailed , and other Mitsubishi companies had to buy the shares from them at an unjustly high price. This incident accelerated Mitsubishi's reintegration. In 1954, Mitsubishi Corporation was reformed, and the Mitsubishi Friday Club was established to foster camaraderie and information exchange among

1050-494: The mid-2000s. In addition to the Friday Conference, the group companies' heads of general affairs hold a meeting on the third Monday of each month, and the group companies' legal and IP departments hold a trademark policy coordination meeting on the first Friday of each month. The company briefly dabbled in television during the early 1990s, when it inked a deal with Westinghouse Broadcasting International to become

1092-410: The neighbouring districts of Yūrakuchō (有楽町) and Ōtemachi (大手町), Marunouchi is part of a larger business district sometimes referred to as Daimaruyū ( 大丸有 ). In 1590, before shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu entered Edo Castle , the area now known as Marunouchi was an inlet of Tokyo Bay and had the name Hibiya. With the expansion of the castle, this inlet was filled, beginning in 1592. A new outer moat

1134-568: The operation of shipbuilding were used to expand the business further into the manufacture of aircraft and equipment. The experience of overseas shipping led the firm to enter into a trading business. In 1881, the company bought into coal mining by acquiring the Takashima Mine, followed by Hashima Island in 1890, using the production to fuel their extensive steamship fleet. They also diversified into shipbuilding, banking , insurance , warehousing, and trade. Later diversification carried

1176-410: The organization into such sectors as paper , steel , glass , electrical equipment, aircraft , oil , and real estate . As Mitsubishi built a broadly based conglomerate , it played a central role in the modernization of Japanese industry. In 1894, Hisaya Iwasaki succeeded his uncle Yanosuke as president. During his tenure until 1916, he modernised the Nagasaki Shipyard and developed Marunouchi as

1218-412: The shares of the others. Twenty-nine of the group companies participate in the Friday Conference ( 金曜会 , Kinyō-kai ) , a luncheon meeting of their most senior executives held on the second Friday of each month. The group began its tradition of monthly executive meetings in 1952, and over time the meetings became a venue for coordinating policy between the group companies. By the 1990s, this practice

1260-472: The site. Nearly a quarter of Japan's GDP is generated in this area. Tokyo Station opened in 1914, and the Marunouchi Building in 1923. Marunouchi was targeted in the 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing by the radical far-left terrorist organisation East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front . Tokyo Station reopened on 1 October 2012 after a 5 year refurbishment. Calbee has its headquarters in

1302-550: The then-closed Japan through industry and foreign trade. Iwasaki found work as a clerk for the Yamauchi government through Yoshida, and eventually bought back his family's samurai status. Iwasaki was promoted to the top position at the Yamauchi clan's trading office in Nagasaki in Hizen Province , responsible for trading camphor oil and paper to buy ships, weapons, and ammunition. Iwasaki travelled to Osaka following

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1344-455: The three oak leaves from the crest of the Yamauchi or Tosa family that ruled over Yatarō's birthplace and employed him) and " hishi " (菱, which becomes " bishi " under rendaku ) meaning " water caltrop ", and hence " rhombus ", which is reflected in the company's logo . It is also translated as "three diamonds". Mitsubishi was established in 1870, two years after the Meiji Restoration , with shipping as its core business. Its diversification

1386-630: The tide of the times. His cousin, Hisaya Iwasaki , president of Mitsubishi Partnership Company at the time, expressed his frustration with the situation, noting that the company had been stripped bare, leaving only his ancestral land in Tosa and a mausoleum in Tokyo. His main residence in Shitaya was requisitioned by the American military, and Hisaya had to temporarily rent rooms in his former house. Due to

1428-627: The war. In 2015, Mitsubishi Materials (formerly Mitsubishi Mining) compensated 3,765 Chinese labourers who were conscripted to the company during the war and apologised to ex-American prisoners of war. Mitsubishi was involved in the opium trade in China during this period. After the Second World War, under the Allied Occupation's policy to dissolve zaibatsu , the Mitsubishi conglomerate underwent significant restructuring. Until

1470-539: The zaibatsu dissolution, Mitsubishi Estate was split into two companies, Kanto Real Estate and Yowa Real Estate. Yowa Real Estate owned a significant portion of the land between the Imperial Palace and Tokyo Station , including the Marunouchi Building . In 1952, an incident occurred where two men, Kuniichiro Fujiami and Shomitsu Tajima, who were closely linked to infamous yakuza , attempted to take over Yowa Real Estate by becoming majority shareholders, as

1512-509: Was a Japanese industrialist and financier known as the founder of Mitsubishi , one of Japan's largest conglomerates. Yatarō Iwasaki was born on 9 January 1835 in Aki , Tosa Province (now Kōchi Prefecture ) into a provincial farming family. Iwasaki's family had been members of the samurai warrior nobility, but his great great grandfather, Iwasaki Yajiemon ( 岩崎弥次右衛門 ) had sold off his family's samurai status in obligation of debts during

1554-561: Was born. From 1874 to 1875, Iwasaki was contracted by the Japanese government to transport Japanese soldiers and war materials. The Japanese government purchased a number of ships for the Japanese Expedition of 1874 to Taiwan against the Paiwan Aborigines in southeast Taiwan , and these ships were later given to Mitsubishi after the expedition was finished in 1875. This created strong links between Mitsubishi and

1596-530: Was constructed, and the earlier moat became the inner moat. The area took the name Okuruwauchi ("within the enclosure"). Daimyōs , particularly shinpan and fudai , constructed their mansions here, and with 24 such estates, the area also became known as daimyō kōji ("daimyō alley"). The offices of the North and South Magistrates, and that of the Finance Magistrate, were also here. Following

1638-432: Was criticized (particularly by non-Japanese investors) as a possible violation of antitrust law . Since 1993, the Friday Conference has officially been held as a social function, and not for the purpose of discussing or coordinating business strategy. Despite this, the Friday Conference has been a venue for informal cooperation and coordination between the group companies, most notably in bailing out Mitsubishi Motors during

1680-570: Was kicked out from his village. After his release, Iwasaki was without a permanent job for a time before finding work as a tutor. Iwasaki returned to Edo, where he socialised with political activists and studied under the Yoshida Toyo , a reformist and modernization advocate from Tosa Province. Yoshida was employed by Yamauchi Toyoshige , the daimyō (lord) of the Tosa Domain, and he influenced Iwasaki with ideas of opening and developing

1722-400: Was mostly into related fields. It entered into coal-mining to gain the coal needed for ships, bought a shipbuilding yard from the government to repair the ships it used, founded an iron mill to supply iron to the shipbuilding yard, started a marine insurance business to cater for its shipping business, and so forth. Later, the managerial resources and technological capabilities acquired through

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1764-537: Was the primary fighter of the Imperial Navy . Production of these equipments made Mistubishi factories one of the main targets for allies attack, and in one factory the death toll among its workers amounted to 494 in just a week. Mitsubishi Mining was involved in the forced labour of Allied prisoners of war and people from Japan's colonies and occupied territories such as Korea and parts of China. The company's Iizuka mine counted 19 deaths of Chinese labourers during

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