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Bunkyū (文久) was a Japanese era name (年号,nengō, "year name") afterMan'en and beforeGenji. This period spanned the years from March 1861 through March 1864.^[1] The reigningemperor wasKōmei-tennō (孝明天皇).

• March 29, 1861 (Man'en 2/Bunkyū 1, 19th day of the 2nd month)Bunkyū gannen (文久元年): The new era name ofBunkyū (meaning "Literate Story") was created because of a belief drawn fromChinese astrology that the 58th year of any zodiacal cycle brings great changes.^[2] The previous era ended and a new one commenced inMan'en 2.

• 1861 (Bunkyu 1):Ukai Gyokusen established the first commercial photography studio (Eishin-dō) inEdo.^[3]
• January 1862 (Bunkyū 1, 12th month): TheBonin Islands (Ogasawara Islands) are re-confirmed as a territory of Japan, following up "discovery" of the islands inKanbun 10 (1670) and a shogunate expedition to the islands inEnpō 3 (1675).^[4]
• 1862 (Bunkyū 2): TheBunkyū Reforms relax restrictions ondaimyōs which had been imposed by formerTairōIi Naosuke in theAnsei era.^[5]
• September 14, 1862 (Bunkyū 2, 21st day of the 8th month):Namamugi Incident. Satsuma retainers kill English merchantCharles Lennox Richardson at Namamugi on theTōkaidō road.
• April 22, 1863 (Bunkyū 3, 5th day of the 3rd month):ShōgunIemochi travelled in a great procession to the capital. He had been summoned by the emperor, and had 3,000 retainers as escort. This was the first time that ashōgun had visited Heian-kyō since the visit ofIemitsu inKan'ei 11 (1634) – 230 years before.^[6]
• April 28, 1863 (Bunkyū 3, 11th day of the 3rd month): Emperor Komei made an Imperial progress to theKamo Shrines. He was accompanied by theshōgun, all the principal officials and many feudal lords. This was the first Imperial progress sinceEmperor Go-Mizunoo visitedNijō Castle more than 230 years before; and no Emperor had visited Kamo sinceEmperor Go-Daigo honored both shrines inKenmu 1 (1334).^[6]
• April 29, 1863 (Bunkyū 3, 12th day of the 3rd month): In the early morning,Aizu accepts under its patronage the men of the Rōshigumi, who went on to form theShinsengumi.
• May 2, 1863 (Bunkyū 3, 15th day of the 3rd month): The Rōshigumi men who were taken under Aizu patronage go to Konkaikōmyōji Temple to make their first formal, public appearance, and pay their respects to their new patron,Matsudaira Katamori. As Katamori is unavailable, they are instead met by two of his senior retainers.
• August 15–17, 1863 (Bunkyū 3, 2nd-4th of the 7th month):Bombardment of Kagoshima in retaliation for theNamamugi Incident.

• Japanese calendar

• Jansen, Marius B. (2000).The Making of Modern Japan. Cambridge:Harvard University Press.ISBN 9780674003347;OCLC 44090600
• Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005).Japan Encyclopedia. Cambridge:Harvard University Press.ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5;OCLC 48943301
• Ponsonby-Fane, Richard A. B. (1956).Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794–1869.^{[permanent dead link‍]} Kyoto: The Ponsonby Memorial Society.OCLC 36644
• Satow, Ernest Mason and Baba Bunyei. (1905).Japan 1853–1864, Or, Genji Yume Monogatari. Tokyo:Naigai suppan kyokai (内外出版協會).OCLC 1384148
• Tanaka, Hiroyuki."The Ogasawara Islands in Tokugawa Japan".Kaiji Shi Kenkyuu (Journal of the Maritime History). No. 50, June, 1993, Tokyo: The Japan Society of the History of Maritime.

• National Diet Library,The Japanese Calendar– historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection
• Bunkyū 3 procession of Shogun towards Kyoto– link to digitized image of woodblock print by Utagawa TsuyanagaArchived 2007-12-06 at theWayback Machine

• Japanese eras
• 1860s in Japan
• 1861 establishments in Japan
• 1861 introductions
• 1860s disestablishments in Japan
• 1860s neologisms

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