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Takahito, Prince Mikasa

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Takahito
Prince Mikasa
The prince in 2012.
Takahito in 2012
BornTakahito, Prince Sumi
(Trừng cung sùng nhân thân vương)
(1915-12-02)2 December 1915
Tokyo Imperial Palace,Tokyo City,Empire of Japan
(nowChiyoda, Tokyo,Japan)
Died27 October 2016(2016-10-27)(aged 100)
St. Luke's International Hospital,Chūō,Tokyo,Japan
Burial4 November 2016
Toshimagaoka Imperial Cemetery,Tokyo
Spouse
​
(m.1941)​
Issue
HouseImperial House of Japan
FatherEmperor Taishō
MotherSadako Kujō
Military career
AllegianceEmpire of Japan
Service/branchImperial Japanese Army
Years of service1932–1945
Rank Major
Unit
Battles/wars

Takahito, Prince Mikasa(Tam lạp cung sùng nhân thân vương,Mikasa-no-miya Takahito Shinnō,2 December 1915 – 27 October 2016)was a Japanese prince, the youngest of the four sons ofEmperor Taishō(Yoshihito) andEmpress Teimei(Sadako). He was their last surviving child. His eldest brother wasEmperor Shōwa(Hirohito). After serving as a junior cavalry officer in theJapanese Imperial ArmyduringWorld War II,Takahito embarked upon a post-war career as a scholar and part-time lecturer inMiddle Eastern studiesandSemitic languages;he was especially interested inJewish studies.

Prince Mikasa marriedYuriko Takagiin 1941, and they had five children. Prince and Princess Mikasa outlived all three of their sons. With the death of his sister-in-lawKikuko, Princess Takamatsu,on 17 December 2004, Prince Mikasa became the oldest living member of theImperial House of Japan.He remained active until a few months before his death at theage of 100.At the time of his death, Prince Mikasa was theoldest living royal.[1][2][3]

Early life

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Emperor Taishō's four sons in 1921:Hirohito,Takahito,NobuhitoandYasuhito

Prince Takahito was born at theTokyo Imperial Palaceon 2 December 1915 toEmperor TaishōandEmpress Teimei.He was fourteen years younger than his eldest brother, Crown PrinceHirohito(the future Emperor Shōwa). His childhood appellation wasSumi-no-miya.Prince Takahito attended the boys' elementary and secondary departments of theGakushūin (Peers' School)from 1922 to 1932. By the time he began his secondary schooling, his eldest brother had already ascended theChrysanthemum Throneand his next two brothers,Prince ChichibuandPrince Takamatsu,had already embarked upon careers in theJapanese Imperial Armyand theJapanese Imperial Navyrespectively. Takahito enrolled in theImperial Japanese Army Academyin 1932 and was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant and assigned to the Fifth Cavalry Regiment in June 1936. He subsequently graduated from theArmy Staff College.

Upon attaining the age of majority in December 1935, Emperor Shōwa granted him the titleMikasa-no-miya(Prince Mikasa) and the authorization to form a new branch of the Imperial Family.

Military service

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Prince Mikasa on theYokosuka Linein 1946

Prince Mikasa was promoted to lieutenant in 1937 and to captain in 1939, serving in China under the name of "Wakasugi". During his army career, he was harshly critical of the Japanese military's conduct in China.[4]In a 1994 interview, he criticized the Imperial Army's invasion of and atrocities in China, and recalled having been "strongly shocked" when an officer informed him that the best way to train new recruits was to use living Chinese POWs for bayonet practice.[4]According to Daniel Barenblatt, Prince Mikasa and his cousin PrinceTsuneyoshi Takedareceived a special screening byShirō Ishiiof a film showing airplanes loadinggerm bombsforbubonic plaguedissemination over the Chinese city ofNingboin 1940.[5]He also was given a film of Japanese atrocities, possibly linked to the footage used in the American propaganda film,The Battle of China,and was so moved that he made his brother Emperor Hirohito watch the film.[6]

In one of Prince Mikasa's memoirs, he wrote that he touredUnit 731's headquarters in China and was shown films showing Chinese prisoners "made to march on the plains of Manchuria for poison gas experiments on humans."[7]

In 1994, a newspaper revealed that after Prince Mikasa's return to Tokyo, he had written a stinging indictment of the conduct of the Imperial Japanese Army in China, where the Prince had witnessedJapanese atrocitiesagainst Chinese civilians. The Imperial Army General Staff suppressed the document, but one copy survived and surfaced in 1994.[8]After the war, it was reported that while an officer, Prince Mikasa had taken a strict stance against lax discipline and the cruel actions of Japanese soldiers serving in China.[9]

In an interview with theYomiuri Shimbun,Mikasa detailed the extent of Japanese military atrocities against the Chinese. He said, “I was really shocked when an officer told me that the best way to train new soldiers was to use living prisoners of war for bayonet practice because it gave them will power.”[10]“It was truly a horrible scene that can only be termed a massacre,” he said.[11]Out of a desperate desire to end the war, he wrote and delivered a speech that condemned Japanese troop aggression against the Chinese, elaborating that repeated rape, plunder and killing of civilians created strong anti-Japanese feelings in China, and that the puppet government inManchukuowas an attempt to cover up Japan's policy of aggression in China.[12]He also disclosed that the Japanese served fruit contaminated with cholera germs to a team from theLeague of Nationsthat came to investigate Japan's invasion of China.[13]They did not develop the disease.[13]The army tried to destroy all copies of his speech, but one was discovered.[13]

He also said he watched an army film that showed Japanese troops yelling and gassing Chinese prisoners who were tied to stakes.[14][15]He stated that he did not talk about his written speech with his brother, EmperorHirohito,but he said he once showed the emperor a Chinese-made film of Japanese atrocities.[16]

Promoted to major in 1941, Prince Mikasa served as a staff officer in the Headquarters of theChina Expeditionary ArmyatNanjing,China from January 1943 to January 1944. His role was intended to bolster the legitimacy of theWang Jingwei regimeand to coordinate with Japanese Army staff towards a peace initiative, but his efforts were totally undermined by theOperation Ichi-Gocampaign launched by theImperial General Headquarters.[17]

Prince Mikasa served as a staff officer in the Army Section of theImperial General Headquartersin Tokyo untilJapan's surrenderin August 1945. After the end of the war, the Prince spoke before thePrivy Council,urging that Hirohito abdicate to take responsibility for the war.[18]

Marriage

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Takahito wearing thesokutai

On 22 October 1941, Prince Mikasa marriedYuriko Takagi(born 4 June 1923), the second daughter ofViscountMasanari Takagi.Prince and Princess Mikasa had five children. The couple's two daughters surrendered their imperial titles and left the Imperial Family upon marriage. All of their sons predeceased them. In addition to their five children, they had nine grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren as of 2022.[19]

Children

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  • Yasuko Konoe(Cận vệ やす tử,Konoe Yasuko)(formerly Princess Yasuko of Mikasa(Ninh tử nội thân vương,Yasuko Naishinno,born 26 April 1944);married on 16 December 1966 toTadateru Konoe,younger brother of former Prime MinisterMorihiro Hosokawaand adopted grandson (and heir) of former Prime MinisterFumimaro Konoe,currently President of theJapanese Red CrossSociety; has a son, Tadahiro, who has three children.
  • Prince Tomohito of Mikasa(Khoan nhân thân vương,Tomohito Shinnō,5 January 1946 – 6 June 2012);heir apparent; married on 7 November 1980 toNobuko Asō(born 9 April 1955), third daughter of Takakichi Asō, chairman ofAsō Cement Co.,and his wife, Kazuko, the daughter of former Prime MinisterShigeru Yoshida;had two daughters.
  • Yoshihito, Prince Katsura(Quế cung nghi nhân thân vương,Katsura-no-miya Yoshihito Shinnō,11 February 1948 – 8 June 2014);created Katsura-no-miya on 1 January 1988.
  • Masako Sen(Thiên dung tử,Sen Masako)(formerly Princess Masako of Mikasa(Dung tử nội thân vương,Masako Naishinnō,born 23 October 1951);married on 14 October 1983 to Sōshitsu Sen (born 7 June 1956), the elder son ofSōshitsu Sen XV,and currently the sixteenth hereditary grand master (iemoto) of theUrasenkeJapanese tea ceremonySchool; and has two sons, Akifumi and Takafumi, and a daughter, Makiko.
  • Norihito, Prince Takamado(Cao viên cung hiến nhân thân vương,Takamado-no-miya Norihito Shinnō,29 December 1954 – 21 November 2002);created Takamado-no-miya on 1 December 1984; married on 6 December 1984 toHisako Tottori(born 10 July 1953), eldest daughter of Shigejiro Tottori, former president ofMitsui & Co.in France; and had three daughters.

Post-war career

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Prince Mikasa, 1958.National Archives of Brazil.

After the defeat of Japan in World War II, many members of the imperial family, such as Princes Chichibu, Takamatsu andHigashikuni,pressed Emperor Hirohito to abdicate so that one of the Princes could serve as regent until Crown PrinceAkihitocame of age.[20]On 27 February 1946, Prince Mikasa even stood up in thePrivy Counciland indirectly urged the Emperor to step down and accept responsibility for Japan's defeat.General of the ArmyDouglas MacArthur,the most senior-rankingUnited Statesmilitary commander in Japan at the time, insisted that Emperor Hirohito retain the throne. According to Minister of Welfare Ashida's diary, "Everyone seemed to ponder Mikasa's words. Never have I seen His Majesty's face so pale."[21]

After the war, Prince Mikasa enrolled in the Literature Faculty of theUniversity of Tokyoand pursued advanced studies inarchaeology,Middle Eastern studies,andSemitic languages.From 1954 until his death in 2016, he directed the Japanese Society for Middle East Studies. He was honorary president of the Japan Society of Orientology. The Prince held visiting and guest faculty appointments in Middle Eastern studies and archaeology at various universities in Japan and abroad, including:Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music,Aoyama Gakuin,Tokyo Woman's Christian University,theUniversity of London,Hokkaido UniversityandShizuoka University.He made numerous radio and television appearances, speaking on cultural subjects, and was known as "the Imperial scholar".[22]He was especially interested in Jewish studies, and believed "The truth incarnated in Judaism, a truth of being rather than of theory, is the central meaning of history.… History had brought him—Prince Mikasa—to the Jew, he said, and Judaism had brought him back to himself. For the Jew is not only the father of the West, he is the scion of the Orient. He is the holy bridge (a traditional and poignant Japanese symbol) between East and West. Through understanding Judaism, the Prince regained a sense of his dignity as a member of his people; he was again proud to be Japanese[23]."

Final years and death

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Towards the end of his life, due to his advanced age, Prince Mikasa rarely made public appearances, and regularly used a wheelchair. He and Princess Mikasa lived together at a residence in the grounds of theAkasaka EstateinMotoakasaka,Minato, Tokyo.He underwent heart surgery in 2012, and made a full recovery. His routine included exercising for about 30 minutes each day with his wife at their Tokyo residence, and he often went outdoors for a roll in his wheelchair. About once a week, he would leave his home for a haircut, or to attend various events for other family members. In October 2014, he attended the Tokyo wedding of his granddaughterPrincess Noriko,the second daughter of his youngest son Prince Takamado. Palace staff noted that he appeared vigorous until his last days, and that he would always be seen helping his wife to get about.[22]He continued to read newspapers, and enjoyed watching sumo and music programs on television.[24]

On 2 December 2015, Prince Mikasa became the first member of the imperial family to become acentenarian.[a]On his 100th birthday, he said, "Nothing will change just because I turn 100 years old. I'd like to spend my days pleasantly and peacefully while praying for the happiness of people around the world and thanking my wife, Yuriko, who has been supporting me for more than 70 years."[24]At his residence in April 2016, he met the Japanese ambassador to Turkey and took a stroll at the Akasaka Detached Palace.[9]

On 16 May 2016, Prince Mikasa was admitted to the intensive-care unit ofSt. Luke's International Hospitalin Tokyo'sChuo Ward,having contracted acute pneumonia.[22]He remained in hospital for the remaining months of his life. His heart weakened in June, and fluid accumulated in his lungs.[9]Princess Yuriko frequently visited him along with other Imperial family members, including theEmperorandEmpressin June. During his last days, Prince Mikasa remained responsive to visitors.[22]On 22 October, Prince Mikasa and his wife celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in his hospital room.[9]His condition eventually stabilised to the point where he began to receive rehabilitation in his bed, which included stretching his arms and legs. At 7:40 a.m. on 27 October, however, his heart gradually slowed, stopping at 8 a.m. Prince Mikasa was pronounced dead at 8:34 a.m., with his wife at his side. At his death, he had outlived all of his siblings and all three of his sons.[9][22]He was also the last surviving grandson ofEmperor Meiji.

Prince Mikasa's funeral was held on 4 November 2016 at Toshimagaoka Imperial Cemetery.[26]About 580 people including members of the Imperial Family, Prime MinisterShinzo Abe,U.S. AmbassadorCaroline Kennedy,and former imperial family members,Sayako Kuroda(grandniece) andNoriko Senge(granddaughter) and their husbands, attended the funeral.[26]Princess Mikasa hosted the ceremony as the chief mourner.[26]

Honours

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See also:List of honours of the Japanese Imperial Family by country

National

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Foreign

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Honorary positions

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  • Honorary President of the Middle Eastern Culture Center in Japan
  • Honorary President of the Japan – Turkey Society
  • Honorary Vice-President of theJapanese Red Cross Society[31]

Issue

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Name Birth Death Marriage Issue
Date Spouse
Yasuko Konoe
(Princess Yasuko of Mikasa)		 (1944-04-26)26 April 1944(age 80) 16 December 1966 Tadateru Konoe Tadahiro Konoe
Prince Tomohito of Mikasa 5 January 1946 6 June 2012 7 November 1980 Nobuko Asō Princess Akiko of Mikasa
Princess Yōko of Mikasa
Yoshihito, Prince Katsura 11 February 1948 8 June 2014 None
Masako Sen
(Princess Masako of Mikasa)		 (1951-10-23)23 October 1951(age 72) 14 October 1983 Sōshitsu Sen XVI Akifumi Kikuchi
Makiko Sakata
Takafumi Sen
Norihito, Prince Takamado 29 December 1954 21 November 2002 6 December 1984 Hisako Tottori Princess Tsuguko of Takamado
Noriko Senge
(Princess Noriko of Takamado)
Ayako Moriya
(Princess Ayako of Takamado)

Ancestry

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[32]

Patrilineal descent

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Patrilineal descent[33]
Imperial House of Japan
  1. Descent prior to Keitai is unclear to modern historians, but traditionally traced back patrilineally toEmperor Jimmu
  2. Emperor Keitai,ca. 450–534
  3. Emperor Kinmei,509–571
  4. Emperor Bidatsu,538–585
  5. Prince Oshisaka, ca. 556–???
  6. Emperor Jomei,593–641
  7. Emperor Tenji,626–671
  8. Prince Shiki,???–716
  9. Emperor Kōnin,709–786
  10. Emperor Kanmu,737–806
  11. Emperor Saga,786–842
  12. Emperor Ninmyō,810–850
  13. Emperor Kōkō,830–867
  14. Emperor Uda,867–931
  15. Emperor Daigo,885–930
  16. Emperor Murakami,926–967
  17. Emperor En'yū,959–991
  18. Emperor Ichijō,980–1011
  19. Emperor Go-Suzaku,1009–1045
  20. Emperor Go-Sanjō,1034–1073
  21. Emperor Shirakawa,1053–1129
  22. Emperor Horikawa,1079–1107
  23. Emperor Toba,1103–1156
  24. Emperor Go-Shirakawa,1127–1192
  25. Emperor Takakura,1161–1181
  26. Emperor Go-Toba,1180–1239
  27. Emperor Tsuchimikado,1196–1231
  28. Emperor Go-Saga,1220–1272
  29. Emperor Go-Fukakusa,1243–1304
  30. Emperor Fushimi,1265–1317
  31. Emperor Go-Fushimi,1288–1336
  32. Emperor Kōgon,1313–1364
  33. Emperor Sukō,1334–1398
  34. Prince Yoshihito Fushimi,1351–1416
  35. Prince Sadafusa Fushimi,1372–1456
  36. Emperor Go-Hanazono,1419–1471
  37. Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado,1442–1500
  38. Emperor Go-Kashiwabara,1464–1526
  39. Emperor Go-Nara,1495–1557
  40. Emperor Ōgimachi,1517–1593
  41. Prince Masahito,1552–1586
  42. Emperor Go-Yōzei,1572–1617
  43. Emperor Go-Mizunoo,1596–1680
  44. Emperor Reigen,1654–1732
  45. Emperor Higashiyama,1675–1710
  46. Prince Naohito Kanin,1704–1753
  47. Prince Sukehito Kanin,1733–1794
  48. Emperor Kōkaku,1771–1840
  49. Emperor Ninkō,1800–1846
  50. Emperor Kōmei,1831–1867
  51. Emperor Meiji,1852–1912
  52. Emperor Taishō,1879–1926
  53. Takahito, Prince Mikasa

Notes

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  1. ^A cousin,Higashifushimi Kunihide,was 103 at his death in 2014, but had left the imperial family in 1931 to establish a branch of theHigashifushimi-no-miya.[25]Another cousin,Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni,lived to 102 but lost his imperial titles after World War II.

References

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Citations

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  1. ^"Prince Mikasa, Emperor Akihito's uncle, turns 100".The Japan Times.2 December 2015.Retrieved2 December2015.
  2. ^"Prince Mikasa, a China war veteran who spanned three reigns, dies at 100".The Japan Times.27 October 2016.Retrieved27 October2016.
  3. ^Kaneko, Kaori (27 October 2016)."Japan's Prince Mikasa, oldest imperial family member, dies at 100".Reuters.Retrieved27 October2016.
  4. ^abYoshida, Reiji (27 October 2016)."Prince Mikasa, a China war veteran who spanned three reigns, dies at 100".The Japan Times.Retrieved27 October2016.
  5. ^Daniel Barenblatt,A Plague upon Humanity,2004, p.32.
  6. ^“Ám に táng られた hoàng thất の quân bộ phê phán”, 『This is đọc mại 』, nhất cửu cửu tứ niên bát nguyệt hào 57ページ
  7. ^Kristof, Nicholas (17 March 1995)."Unmasking Horror -- A special report.; Japan Confronting Gruesome War Atrocity".The New York Times.Retrieved10 June2021.
  8. ^McCarthy, Terry (6 July 1994)."Tokyo 'in 1931 Poison Plot'".The Independent.Retrieved27 October2016.
  9. ^abcde"UPDATE: Prince Mikasa, uncle of Akihito, dies at 100 years old".Asahi Shimbun. 27 October 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 29 March 2017.Retrieved27 October2016.
  10. ^"Centenarian Japanese prince who loved dancing and hated war laid to rest".Reuters.4 November 2016.
  11. ^"Hirohito's Brother Assailed Japan's WW II 'Aggression': Asia: Late emperor's sibling confirms a bold 1944 speech to troops condemning military policy, atrocities in China".Los Angeles Times.7 July 1994.
  12. ^"Hirohito's brother condemns Japan's wartime aggression".
  13. ^abc"Hirohito's Brother Says Japan Was Brutal Aggressor in War".Associated Press.
  14. ^"Hirohito's Brother Says Japan Was Brutal Aggressor in War".Archived fromthe originalon 6 October 2020.
  15. ^"Japanese prince denounced 'aggression' in China in 1944, paper says".Baltimore Sun.7 July 1994.Retrieved23 May2024.
  16. ^"New Hirohito Revelations Startle Japan".Chicago Tribune.7 July 1994.
  17. ^Bix,Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan,2000, Page 474
  18. ^Bix,Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan,2000, Page 572
  19. ^"Princess Yuriko, oldest in Japan's Imperial Family, turns 99".Arab News.4 June 2022.Retrieved12 June2022.
  20. ^Bix,Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan,2000, pp. 571–573.
  21. ^Ashida Hitoshi Nikki, Dai Ikkan,Iwanami Shoten, 1986, p. 82.
  22. ^abcde"Prince Mikasa spent his last years peacefully at Tokyo residence".The Japan Times.27 October 2016.Retrieved27 October2016.
  23. ^"Japan's Takahito Mikasa at 100: A Prince Among the Jews".Tablet Magazine.2 December 2015.Retrieved3 September2021.
  24. ^ab"Prince Mikasa, Emperor Akihito's uncle, turns 100".The Japan Times.2 December 2015.Retrieved2 December2015.
  25. ^Đông phục kiến từ hiệp さん tử khứ thiên hoàng bệ hạ の thúc phụ[Emperor's uncle, Higashifumi Kunihide dies].Asahi Shimbun Digital(in Japanese). The Asahi Shimbun Company. 1 January 2014. Archived fromthe originalon 1 January 2014.Retrieved2 December2015.
  26. ^abc"Prince Mikasa laid to rest in Imperial rite".The Japan Times.4 November 2016.Retrieved5 January2017.
  27. ^"Persondetaljer - Hans Kejserlige Højhed Mikasa"[Person Details - His Imperial Highness Mikasa] (in Danish). Archived fromthe originalon 7 December 2013.Retrieved27 October2016.
  28. ^"S.A.I. Takahito di Mikasa Principe del Giappone"[S.A.I. Takahito Mikasa, Prince of Japan].Presidenza della Repubblica (Presidency of the Republic)(in Italian).Retrieved27 October2016.
  29. ^Nationaal Archief, inventory 2.02.32, dossier 529/530
  30. ^"Atatürk Uluslararası Barış Ödülü – AYK".www.ayk.gov.tr.3 July 2015.Retrieved25 June2020.
  31. ^"The Japanese Red Cross Society at a Glance".Japanese Red Cross Society.Archived fromthe originalon 27 July 2013.Retrieved3 May2023.
  32. ^"Genealogy".Reichsarchiv(in Japanese). 30 April 2010.Retrieved29 October2017.
  33. ^"Genealogy of the Emperors of Japan"(PDF).Imperial Household Agency.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 22 March 2011.Retrieved30 March2011.

Sources

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