Hidehito (Japanese: 英仁, 5 August 1758 – 16 December 1779), posthumously honored as Emperor Go-Momozono (後桃園天皇, Go-Momozono-tennō), was the 118th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.[1][2] He was named after his father Emperor Momozono. The wording of go- (後) in the name translates as "later", so he has also been referred to as "Later Emperor Momozono", "Momozono, the second", or "Momozono II".
Go-Momozono became Emperor in 1771, but had a short reign that lasted to his death in 1779.[3] Events during his reign were confined to a series of natural calamities that occurred in 1772, aside from that the political situation with the Shōgun was quiet. Things came to a head towards the end of Go-Momozono's life in the form of a succession issue as the Emperor had no eligible successor. As a result, he hastily adopted a son on his deathbed who later became the next Emperor.
Genealogy
He was the son of Emperor Momozono with a lady-in-waiting. Before becoming emperor, he was known as Imperial Prince Hidehito (英仁親王).
Consort and issue(s):
Empress (Nyogo): Konoe Koreko (近衛 維子, 26 January 1760 – 6 November 1783), later Seikamō-in (盛化門院), daughter of Konoe Uchisaki (近衛内前)
Adopted Son: Imperial Prince Kanehito(兼仁親王, 23 September 1771 – 11 December 1840), later Emperor Kōkaku
Events of Go-Momozono's life
Early life
Before Go-Momozono's accession to the
imina) was Hidehito (英仁)[4][5] or Hanahito.[citation needed] Prince Hidehito was born on August 5, 1758, and was the firstborn son of Emperor Momozono.[6] After his father died in 1762, the title of Emperor went to his aunt who became known as Empress Go-Sakuramachi. Hidehito was deemed too young to become Emperor at the time but was named Crown Prince and heir 5 years later.[2] Empress Go-Sakuramachi abdicated in favor of her nephew on January 9, 1771, and Prince Hidehito became Emperor immediately.[6]
As Emperor
Little more than a year had passed into Go-Momozono's reign before Japan was hit with "The Great Meiwa Fire". On February 29, 1772, unofficial reports described a swath of ashes and cinders nearly five miles wide and 15 miles (24 km) long—destroying 178 temples and shrines, 127 daimyō residences, 878 non-official residences, 8705 houses of hatamoto, and 628 blocks of merchant dwellings, with estimates of over 6,000 casualties. All this devastation subsequently engendered the costs of reconstruction.[7] The year 1772 as a whole was later called "year of trouble" because it was marked by an extraordinary succession of natural calamities. A contemporary pun was made linking the words "Meiwa" + "ku" (meaning "Meiwa 9", that is, the year 1772 according to the era calendar) and the sound-alike word "meiwaku" (meaning "misfortune" or "annoyance").[7] In addition to the fire, a tempest struck the Kantō region, causing floods and ruining crops. Another storm brought flooding and high winds to the Kantō region, destroying an estimated 4000 houses in Edo alone.[7] The era name (nengō) was changed at the end of the year to Anei (meaning "eternal tranquillity"); but this symbolic act proved to be futile.[8] Epidemic diseases spread across the country in 1775 which resulted in 190,000 estimated deaths in Edo.[9]
Succession issue and death
Go-Momozono's Imperial Family lived with him in the
