Nagako (1903–2000)

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Nagako (1903–2000)

Empress of Japan. Name variations: Princess Nagako; Nagako Kuni; Showa empress. Born in Tokyo, Japan, on March 6, 1903; died in Tokyo on June 16, 2000; eldest daughter of Prince Kuni no Miya Kunihiko, also known as Kuni Kuniyoshi (a field marshal and member of the Fushimi house), and Princess Chikako Kuni (from the noble family of Shimazu, who ruled over the feudal clan of Satsuma); graduated from the girls' middle school department of Gakushuin; married Hirohito (Emperor Showa), emperor of Japan (r. 1926–1989), on January 26, 1924 (died January 7, 1989); children: Princess Shigeko (1925–1961, who married the son of Prince Higashikuni, the first postwar prime minister); Princess Kazuko (b. 1927); Princess Atsuko (b. 1929); Crown Prince Akihito (b. 1933), later emperor of Japan (r. 1989—); Prince Masahito (b. 1935); Princess Takako (b. 1939); another daughter, born in the 1920s, died within a year of her birth.

In February 1918, Crown Prince Hirohito became engaged to the beautiful Princess Nagako, the eldest daughter of Prince Kuni Kuniyoshi, a highly placed scamp who fathered some 19 children, only six with his wife, Princess Chikako Kuni . Hirohito was fortunate in that he was able to choose a bride he loved, although during their six-year betrothal, he saw Nagako only nine times and never alone. She was a member of the Satsuma clan and hence was attacked for not being a Fujiwara. Moreover, she was criticized for a strain of color blindness in her lineage, something that supposedly would taint the imperial line. Yet on January 26, 1924, the marriage took place, and on December 25, 1926, Hirohito and Nagako became emperor and empress of Japan. In November 1928, when the couple were enthroned in Kyoto, it was the first time an empress-consort took part in such a ceremony.

Puritanical in his lifestyle, Hirohito was monogamous, always remaining faithful to Nagako, and the couple would have seven children. The public and court officials grew unnerved, however, when she produced four daughters in a row: Shigeko (b. 1925), Kazuko (b. 1927), Atsuko (b. 1929), and one who died before age two. It was assumed that if the fifth child was a girl, Hirohito would officially take another consort. Their fifth, born to booming cannons, was son Akihito. Though Nagako astounded the public when she fed her son herself, royal convention eventually won out: at age three, he was taken from his parents and raised by attendants. She saw her son only one day a month.

For many years, Empress Nagako was Japan's "most endearing public figure," writes the London Times, "a smiling face in a court known for its dour inscrutability. Throughout Emperor Hirohito's reign, she was said to have lent 'genuine warmth to deadly dull imperial ceremonial,' occasionally putting a citizen at ease with a conspiratorial wink."

Historians continue to debate how much responsibility Hirohito had for World War II. Most think he was a puppet of the Japanese military. Less is known about Nagako's views on the war; during the conflict, she knitted scarves for the generals. She once described those years as "the hardest time of my life." When Hirohito surrendered, Nagako wrote to Akihito: "You father has worried every day. Although it was regrettable, Japan has been saved for good through the decision. I have to admit that B29s are well-built planes." The United States placed the blame for Japanese aggression on Prime Minister Hideki Tojo, and Hirohito was allowed to remain an emperor, though he had to deny his divinity.

Though she remained a traditionalist, Nagako seemed willing to change after the war (when American Elizabeth Gray Vining began to teach English to Akihito, Nagako asked for lessons, too). But customs die hard, writes Nicholas D. Kristof, and Nagako was critical of her daughter-in-law, Michiko , Akihito's wife, "for carrying her babies in public, for breast-feeding them and for trying to raise and shape her children

herself." There was much friction between Nagako and the college-educated commoner, and their relationship would remain strained.

Nagako worked served as honorary president of the Japanese Red Cross Society. A talented artist, she was also known for her Japanese-style paintings, which she signed with the name Toen. Two collections of her works were published: Toen gashu, 1967, and Kimposhu, 1969. She was also an able singer and could play the piano, violin, and Japanese harp. Nagako became Japan's longest living empress dowager when she turned 92 in 1995, surpassing Empress Kanshi , who died in 1127. By then, Nagako had not been seen in public for years, living quietly in a modest home on the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo; her last official event was the 86th birthday celebration of Hirohito on April 29, 1987. She was too feeble to attend his funeral when he died in 1989.