Hanako, Princess Hitachi
Hanako 正仁親王妃華子 | |||||
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Princess Hitachi | |||||
![]() At the new year congratulatory imperial palace visit. 2 January 2012 | |||||
Born | 19 July 1940 | ||||
Spouse | |||||
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House | Imperial House of Japan | ||||
Father | Yoshitaka Tsugaru | ||||
Mother | Hisako Mōri | ||||
Religion | Shinto |
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Hanako, Princess Hitachi (正仁親王妃華子, Masahito Shinnōhi Hanako), born Hanako Tsugaru (津軽華子, Tsugaru Hanako) on 19 July 1940, is a member of the Japanese Imperial Family as the wife of Prince Hitachi who is the younger son of Emperor Shōwa and the only brother of the current emperor, Akihito.
Early life and education
She is the fourth daughter of Count Yoshitaka Tsugaru, the last representative of the Tsugaru clan and adopted son of the daimyo of the Tsugaru Domain (present day Hirosaki, Aomori). Yoshitaka Tsugaru was originally from the Owari branch of the Tokugawa clan. He was also a member of the aristocracy created by the Meiji restoration (kazoku).
Her mother, Hisako Mōri, was a descendant of the Mōri clan and also of the former daimyo of Chōshū Domain in the former province of Nagato (present day Yamaguchi).
Princess Hitachi is descendant from the old feudal aristocracy. She is a second cousin to a niece of Kikuko, Princess Takamatsu who was, like her father, a descendant of the Tokugawa clan. She is also a second cousin to Takamasa Ikeda, former head of the Ikeda clan and husband of her sister-in-law, Atsuko Ikeda.
Hanako Tsugaru attended the prestigious Gakushuin School for her primary, junior high, and high school education, a school for Peers which its purpose was to educate the children of the imperial family and the imperial aristocracy (kuge). She graduated from the Gakushuin Women's Junior College in 1961.
Marriage
Hanako met her future husband, Prince Masahito, during her studies at Gakushuin. The Imperial Household Council announced the engagement of Prince Masahito and Hanako Tsugaru on 28 February 1964 and the engagement ceremony was held on 14 April 1964. The wedding ceremony took place on 30 September 1964. Upon marriage, Prince Masahito received the title Prince Hitachi (Hitachi-no-miya – strictly "Prince Hitachi") and authorization from the Imperial Household Economy Council to form a new branch of the Imperial Family. As of tradition dictates, upon her entry into the imperial family and like other members, she received a personal emblem (o-shirushi (お印)): rhododendron (Tsutsuji (ツツジ)). They have no children.
Since December 1976, Prince Hitachi and Princess Hitachi have their official residence in a palace in large grounds off Komazawadori in Higashi in the district of Shibuya in Tokyo.[1]
Public service
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Princess_Hanako_and_Prince_Masahito_cropped_The_New_Year_Greeting_2011_at_the_Tokyo_Imperial_Palace.jpg/220px-Princess_Hanako_and_Prince_Masahito_cropped_The_New_Year_Greeting_2011_at_the_Tokyo_Imperial_Palace.jpg)
Princess Hitachi, like her husband, was elected on 5 September 2007 by the other members of the imperial family to be one of their main representatives (there are two in total) to the Imperial Household Council as a member.[2] Both the members and reserve members, including Princess Hitachi, were re-elected on 7 September 2011.[3]
Princess Hitachi is president of various organizations that concern themselves with welfare and the arts. She has also translated various children books from English into Japanese.
Translation
Princess Hitachi has translated various children books from English into Japanese.
- The Eighty-Ninth Kitten by Eleanor Nilsson (published in 1987)
- The Most Obedient Dog in the World, by Anita Jeram (published in 1996)
- It was Jake, by Anita Jeram (published in 1997)
- A Guide Dog Puppy Grows Up, by Caroline Arnold (published in 2001)
Titles and styles
Styles of Princess Hitachi | |
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Reference style | Her Imperial Highness |
Spoken style | Your Imperial Highness |
Alternative style | Ma'am |
Hanako is styled as "Her Imperial Highness The Princess Hitachi". Prior to her marriage on 30 September 1964, she was styled as "Lady Hanako Tsugaru".
Honours
National honours
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Precious Crown
Foreign honours
Nepal : Member of the Order of Ojaswi Rajanya (19 April 1960).[4]
Honorary positions
- Member of the Imperial House Council
- Honorary President of the Japan Ikebana Art Association
- Honorary President of the Japan Animal Welfare Society
- Honorary President of the Japan Equestrian Federation
- Honorary President of the Nippon-Latin American Ladies' Association
- Honorary Vice-President of the Japanese Red Cross Society[5]
Ancestry
Family of Hanako, Princess Hitachi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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References
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)