Japan's Emperor Akihito to abdicate on April 30, 2019

FILE PHOTO: Japan's Emperor Akihito is seen at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo February 23, 2011. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo

TOKYO (Reuters) - Emperor Akihito, who has spent much of his nearly three decades on Japan's throne seeking to soothe the wounds of World War Two, will step down on April 30, 2019 - the first abdication by a Japanese monarch in about two centuries.

A 10-member Imperial Household Council of lawmakers, royals and supreme court justices, chaired by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, agreed on the timing on Friday.