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Empress Shōken

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The native form of thispersonal nameisIchijō Masako.This article usesWestern name orderwhen mentioning individuals.
Empress Dowager Shōken
Chiêu hiến Hoàng Thái Hậu
The Empress in 1889
Empress consort of Japan
Tenure11 January 1869 –
30 July 1912
Enthronement11 January 1869
Empress dowager of Japan
Tenure30 July 1912 –
9 April 1914
BornMasako Ichijō(Một cái thắng tử)
(1849-05-09)9 May 1849
Heian-kyō,Japan
Died9 April 1914(1914-04-09)(aged 64)
Numazu,Japan
Burial
Fushimi Momoyama no Higashi no Misasagi,Fushimi-ku,Kyoto,Japan
Spouse
​
​
(m.1869;died1912)​
HouseImperial House of Japan
FatherTadayoshi Ichijō
MotherTamiko Niihata

Masako Ichijō(Một cái thắng tử,Ichijō Masako,9 May 1849 – 9 April 1914),who adopted the imperial given nameHaruko(Mỹ tử)in 1867 and was posthumously honoured asEmpress Dowager Shōken(Chiêu hiến Hoàng Thái Hậu[1],Shōken-kōtaigō),was the wife ofEmperor MeijiofJapan.She was one of the founders of theJapanese Red Cross Society,whose charity work was known throughout theFirst Sino-Japanese War.

Early life

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Masako Ichijō was born on 9 May 1849, inHeian-kyō,Japan. She was the third daughter of Tadayoshi Ichijō, formerMinister of the Leftand head of theFujiwara clan'sIchijō branch.Her adoptive mother was one ofPrince Fushimi Kuniie's daughters, but her biological mother was Tamiko Niihata, the daughter of a doctor from the Ichijō family. Unusual for the time, she had beenvaccinatedagainstsmallpox.As a child, Masako was somewhat of a prodigy: she was able to read poetry from theKokin Wakashūby the age of 4 and had composed somewakaverses of her own by the age of 5. By age seven, she was able to read some texts inclassical Chinesewith some assistance and was studyingJapanese calligraphy.By the age of 12, she had studied thekotoand was fond ofNohdrama. She excelled in the studies offinances,ikebanaandJapanese tea ceremony.[2]

Masako in traditional clothes (1865)

The major obstacle to Masako's eligibility to become empress consort was the fact that she was 3 years older than Emperor Meiji, but this issue was resolved by changing her official birth date from 1849 to 1850.[2]They became engaged on 2 September 1867, when she adopted the given nameHaruko,which was intended to reflect her serene beauty and diminutive size. TheTokugawa Bakufupromised 15,000ryōin gold for the wedding and assigned her an annualincomeof 500koku,but as theMeiji Restorationoccurred before the wedding could be completed, the promised amounts were never delivered. The wedding was delayed partly due to periods of mourning forEmperor Kōmei,for her brother Saneyoshi, and the political disturbances aroundKyotobetween 1867 and 1868.[2]

Empress of Japan

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Haruko and Emperor Meiji's wedding was finally officially celebrated on 11 January 1869.[2]She was the first imperial consort to receive the title of bothnyōgōand ofkōgō(literally, the emperor's wife, translated as "empress consort" ), in several hundred years. However, it soon became clear that she was unable to bear children. Emperor Meiji already had 12 children by 5 concubines, though: as custom in Japanese monarchy, Empress Haruko adoptedYoshihito,her husband's eldest son byYanagihara Naruko,who became Crown Prince. On 8 November 1869, the Imperial House departed from Kyoto for the new capital ofTokyo.[3]In a break from tradition, Emperor Meiji insisted that the Empress and the senior ladies-in-waiting should attend the educational lectures given to the Emperor on a regular basis about national conditions and developments in foreign nations.[4]

Influence

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On 30 July 1886, Empress Haruko attended the Peeresses School's graduation ceremony in Western clothing. On 10 August, the imperial couple received foreign guests in Western clothing for the first time when hosting a Western Music concert.[5]

The Imperial Family in 1900. From left to right:Princess Fusako,Crown Princess Sadako,Princess Nobuko,Emperor Mutsuhito,Princess Toshiko,Empress Haruko,Crown Prince YoshihitoandPrincess Masako

From this point onward, the Empress' entourage wore only Western-style clothes in public, to the point that in January 1887 Empress Haruko issued amemorandumon the subject: traditional Japanese dress was not only unsuited to modern life, but Western-style dress was closer than thekimonoto clothes worn by Japanese women in ancient times.[6]

In the diplomatic field, Empress Haruko hosted the wife of formerUS PresidentUlysses S. Grantduring his visit to Japan. She was also present for her husband's meetings withHawaiian KingKalākauain 1881. Later that same year, she helped host the visit of the sons of future BritishKing Edward VII:Princes Albert Victorand George (futureGeorge V), who presented her with a pair of petwallabiesfromAustralia.[7]

The Emperor and the Empress ride a horse-drawn carriage to attend the constitutional celebration on 11 February 1889.

On 26 November 1886, Empress Haruko accompanied her husband toYokosuka, Kanagawato observe the newImperial Japanese NavycruisersNaniwaandTakachihofiringtorpedoesand performing other maneuvers. From 1887, the Empress was often at the Emperor's side in official visits to army maneuvers.[8]When Emperor Meiji fell ill in 1888, Empress Haruko took his place in welcoming envoys fromSiam,launching warships and visitingTokyo Imperial University.[9]In 1889, Empress Haruko accompanied Emperor Meiji on his official visit toNagoyaand Kyoto. While he continued on to visit naval bases atKureandSasebo,she went toNarato worship at the principalShinto shrines.[10]

Known throughout her tenure for her support of charity work and women's education during theFirst Sino-Japanese War(1894–95), Empress Haruko worked for the establishment of theJapanese Red CrossSociety. She participated in the organization's administration, especially in their peacetime activities in which she created amoney fundfor theInternational Red Cross.Renamed "The Empress Shōken Fund", it is presently used for international welfare activities. After Emperor Meiji moved his military headquarters from Tokyo toHiroshimato be closer to the lines of communications with his troops, Empress Haruko joined her husband in March 1895. While in Hiroshima, she insisted on visiting hospitals full of wounded soldiers every other day of her stay.[11]

Death

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After Emperor Meiji's death in 1912, Empress Haruko was granted the titleEmpress Dowager(Hoàng Thái Hậu,Kōtaigō)by her adoptive son,Emperor Taishō.She died in 1914 at the Imperial Villa inNumazu, Shizuokaand was buried in the East Mound of theFushimi Momoyama RyoinFushimi, Kyoto,next to her husband. TheMeiji Shrinein Tokyo was dedicated to her and her late husband.[12]On 9 May 1914, she received the posthumous name "Empress Dowager Shōken" ( chiêu hiến Hoàng Thái Hậu,Shōken Kōtaigō).[1]Her railway-carriage can be seen today in theMeiji MuraMuseum, inInuyama,Aichi prefecture.

Honours

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National

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Foreign

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She received the following orders and decorations:[13]

Ancestry

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^abĐại chính 3 năm trong cung tỉnh bố cáo đệ 9 hào (Imperial Household Ministry's 9th announcement in 1914)
  2. ^abcdKeene, Donald. (2005).Emperor of Japan:Meiji and His World,pp. 106–108.
  3. ^Keene, p. 188.
  4. ^Keene, p. 202.
  5. ^Donald Keene,Emperor of Japan: Meiji and His World, 1852–1912,2010
  6. ^Keene, p. 404.
  7. ^Keene, pp. 350–351.
  8. ^Keene, p. 411.
  9. ^Keene, p. 416.
  10. ^Keene, p. 433.
  11. ^Keene, p. 502.
  12. ^Liu, David U. B. (2015). "The Ancestral, the Religiopolitical". In Goldenberg, Naomi; Fitzgerald, Timothy; Stack, Trevor (eds.).Religion as a Category of Governance and Sovereignty.Brill. p. 153.ISBN9789004290594.
  13. ^Hình Bộ phương tắc (2017).Minh trị thời đại の huân chương ngoại giao nghi lễ(PDF)(in Japanese). Minh trị thánh đức kỷ niệm học được kỷ yếu. p. 141.
  14. ^Royal Thai Government Gazette(11 February 1900)."บอกอรรคราชทูตสยาม เรื่องเฝ้าถวายเครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์เอมเปรสกรุงญี่ปุ่นถวายเครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์ บรมมหาจักรีวงษ์ฝ่ายใน ซึ่งสมเด็จพระบรมราชินีนารถมีพระราชเสาวณีย์โปรดเกล้า ฯ ให้เชิญมาถวายเอมเปรสญี่ปุ่น"(PDF)(in Thai). Archived fromthe original(PDF)on May 8, 2019.Retrieved2019-05-08.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  15. ^"Genealogy".Reichsarchiv(in Japanese).Retrieved28 October2017.

References

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Japanese royalty
Preceded by
Takatsukasa Tsunako
(title granted posthumously)
 Empress consort of Japan
1869–1912 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Empress dowager of Japan
1912–1914 		Succeeded by
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