Photo/Illutration Princess Yuriko delivers remarks at the national convention of Aiiku group members, an annual event organized by the Imperial Gift Foundation Boshi Aiiku Kai, in Tokyo in 2009. (Ryuichi Matsuzawa)

The Imperial Household Agency announced that Princess Yuriko, aunt of Emperor Emeritus Akihito, died on Nov. 15. She was 101.

The princess died at 6:32 a.m. at St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo’s Chuo Ward, the agency said.

The motorcade carrying Yuriko left the hospital before 9:30 a.m. Accompanied by a car with her granddaughter, Princess Akiko, it entered the Akasaka Estate where her residence is located.

According to the agency, Yuriko had been hospitalized since March and receiving medical care following a stroke and aspiration pneumonia diagnosis.

The princess was the widow of Prince Mikasa, the youngest brother of the late Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Emperor Showa.

Yuriko held the distinction of being the longest-living member of the imperial family since the Meiji Era (1868-1912).

The last passing in the imperial family was that of Prince Mikasa in October 2016.

Yuriko was born in June 1923 as the second daughter of Viscount Masanari Takagi, a member of the House of Peers.

The princess graduated from Gakushuin Women’s College and married Mikasa in October 1941 at the age of 18.

According to Mikasa’s biography, the couple’s home was completely burned down in an air raid during World War II, forcing the family―including their 1-year-old daughter, Princess Yasuko―to live in an air raid shelter.

When Japan accepted the Potsdam Declaration in August 1945, young officers argued for continuing the war, but Prince Mikasa opposed them, saying, “It would be better to end it.”

Yuriko recalled that “the debate grew so heated it felt as though bullets could start flying at any moment.”

She was dedicated to social welfare, serving as president of the Imperial Gift Foundation Boshi Aiiku Kai, which promotes maternal and child health, and as honorary vice president of the Japanese Red Cross Society.

She also served as honorary president of the Cultural Foundation for Promoting the National Costume of Japan.

The couple made numerous overseas visits together, including goodwill trips to Turkey in 1986 and 1993.

In 1989, they traveled to South Korea to attend the funeral of Princess Masako, who married the last crown prince of Korea’s Joseon Dynasty, Yi Un.

The couple also visited France in November 1991, where Mikasa attended his induction ceremony as a member of the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres.

In June 1994, they traveled to Britain for his honorary membership ceremony at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

In the years that followed, Yuriko faced several health challenges.

In May 1999, she underwent surgery for a pacemaker implant due to an irregular heartbeat. In July 2007, she had a colectomy. 

In June 2022, she attended the 10th memorial service at Toshimagaoka cemetery in Tokyo’s Bunkyo Ward for her late son, Prince Tomohito, in a wheelchair.

On her 100th birthday in June 2023, Yuriko shared her appreciation through a statement from the Imperial Household Agency, saying, “I reflect with deep gratitude on the support I have received from so many people.”

The couple had three sons and two daughters. All three of their sons―princes Tomohito, Katsura and Takamado―have passed away.

Their eldest daughter, Princess Yasuko, married Tadateru Konoe, former president of the Japanese Red Cross Society, and their younger daughter, Princess Masako, married Sen Soshitsu XVI, grand master of the Urasenke school of tea ceremony.

(This article was written by Yasuhiko Shima and Ayako Nakada.)

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