Emperor Akihito of Japan is to abdicate on 30 April 2019, aged 85, in the first such departure from the Chrysanthemum throne in about 200 years, the government has said.
Akihito’s eldest son, Crown Prince Naruhito, will ascend the throne the following day, beginning an as-yet-unnamed era.
The decision was made on Friday at a meeting of the Imperial House council, which was chaired by the prime minister, Shinzō Abe, and included parliamentary leaders, supreme court judges and family members.
Akihito expressed his wish to abdicate in August 2016 after he suggested that his age and health problems were affecting his ability to carry out public duties.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/01/akihito-become-first-japanese-emperor-abdicate-200-years