Prince Tomohito of Mikasa
Prince Tomohito of Mikasa (寛仁親王, Tomohito Shinnō, 5 January 1946 – 6 June 2012) was a member of the Imperial House of Japan and the eldest son of the current HIH Prince Mikasa and HIH Princess Mikasa. He was a first cousin of Emperor Akihito, and was formerly sixth in the line of succession to the Japanese throne and the heir apparent to the princely house of Mikasa-no-miya and the title "Prince Mikasa" (Mikasa-no-miya). Prince Tomohito was the first member of the Imperial House of Japan to sport a full beard since Emperor Meiji, thus earning him the popular nickname of the "Bearded Prince".[1] He died of cancer on June 6, 2012, aged 66. BiographyEducationPrince Tomohito graduated from the Department of Political Studies in the Faculty of Law of Gakushuin University in 1968. From 1968 – 1970, he studied at Magdalen College, University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Marriage and familyThe Prince met and became engaged to Ms. Nobuko Asō on 21 May 1980. She is the third daughter of the late Mr. Takakichi Aso, chairman of Asō Cement Co., and his wife, Kazuko, the daughter of former Prime Minister, Shigeru Yoshida and the sister of former Prime Minister Tarō Asō. The couple married on 7 November 1980. Ms. Aso was given the title HIH Princess Tomohito of Mikasa. The Prince and Princess have two daughters:
The family lives in a compound within the Akasaka Palace complex, in Azabu Minato, Tokyo.[2] Public service For the 1972 Sapporo Winter Olympics, Prince Tomohito served as a committee member on the organizing committee from 1970 – 1972. He was also on the committee for the 1975 Okinawa World Fair. Prince Tomohito was president and honorary president of various organizations that concerned themselves with cancer research (the Princess Takamatsu Cancer Research Fund), having himself suffered from the disease from 2003, youth education and promotion of international relations. He was also noted for his support of organizations which promoted the welfare of people with physical or mental disabilities through sporting activities, such as ski, bowling, dancing and rugby). He traveled extensively abroad with the princess on charity, and support missions that concerned matters of illness and welfare. The Prince often gave lectures and contributed articles to national newspapers and magazines, and had also authored seven books. In December 1992, the Prince and Princess visited the United States to support a newly established cancer ward in the New York Medical College, and in 1994, visited Hawaii to support the reconstruction of Kuakini Hospital. In February 1994, the Prince and Princess visited Norway to attend the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. In April 1998, the Prince and Princess visited Turkey to attend the opening ceremony of the Turkey-Japan Foundation Cultural Centre. They had previously visited Turkey in 1990 as part of the celebrations for the 100th anniversary of Japan-Turkey relations. The Prince strongly supported the establishment of a Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology at the Middle Eastern Culture Center in Japan, and returned to Turkey again in October 2002, June 2003 and October 2003 leading three groups of benefactors on tours of the heritage of Turkey. In June 1998, Prince Tomohito visited Australia for fundraising activities for a medical science foundation to commemorate the Australian Nobel Prize winner Dr. Howard Walter Florey. In December of the same year, he visited Thailand to attend the 13th Asian Games. In April 2003, Prince Tomohito visited Norway accompanied by his daughter, Princess Akiko to attend the World Cross Country Ski Championships for the Visually Disabled. He appeared on the radio as a DJ in his younger days.[3] Health issues and deathThe Prince was first diagnosed with cancer in 1991, but later went into remission. He was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx in 2003, and immediately began treatment for it. In September 2006, he fractured his jaw, which had been weakened by his chemotherapy treatments. In 2007, the Prince made a public announcement that he was suffering from alcoholism, and was undergoing treatments at the Imperial Household Agency hospital.[4] In March 2008, his cancer spread to his pharynx, and he underwent surgery.[5] Although attempts were made to save his voice, he subsequently suffered from pneumonia caused by his inability to properly swallow food, and was thereafter only able to speak with the aid of a mechanical larynx. On 6 June 2012, the Prince died from multiple organ failure at a Tokyo hospital, aged 66.[6] He had been hospitalized for some time, as a result of his multiple cancer diagnosis.[7] Titles and styles
HonoursSee also List of honours of the Japanese Imperial Family by country National honours
Foreign honours
Honorary degreeHonorary positions
Issue
Ancestry
Notes
External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Prince Tomohito of Mikasa.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- Use dmy dates from October 2011
- 1946 births
- 2012 deaths
- Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford
- Gakushuin University alumni
- Japanese princes
- Japanese radio personalities
- People self-identifying as alcoholics
- People from Tokyo
- Cancer deaths in Japan
- Grand Cordons of the Order of the Chrysanthemum
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- Deaths from multiple organ failure