Kikuko, Princess Takamatsu

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Kikuko
Princess Takamatsu
Bunkyo, Tokyo
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1930; died 1987)​
HouseTokugawa clan (by birth)
Imperial House of Japan (by marriage)
FatherYoshihisa Tokugawa
MotherPrincess Mieko of Arisugawa

Kikuko, Princess Takamatsu (宣仁親王妃喜久子, Nobuhito Shinnōhi Kikuko), born Tokugawa Kikuko (徳川喜久子, 26 December 1911 – 18 December 2004), was a member of the

Emperor Shōwa and an aunt by marriage of the following emperor, currently the Emperor Emeritus
. She was mainly known for philanthropic activities, particularly her patronage of cancer research organizations. At the time of her death, Princess Takamatsu was the oldest member of the Imperial Family.

Early life

Born in Tokyo on 26 December 1911, she was the second daughter of Tokugawa Yoshihisa (2 September 1884 – 22 January 1922), a peer, and his wife Princess Mieko of Arisugawa (14 February 1891 – 25 April 1933). Her paternal grandfather was

Chrysanthemum throne. By virtue of her descent from the Arisugawa-no-miya, Lady Kikuko and Prince Takamatsu were related. Both were direct descendants of Emperor Reigen
, making them sixth cousins twice removed. Prince Takamatsu was a seven-times great-grandchild of the Reigen Emperor, while Lady Kikuko was a five-times great-grandchild of Reigen.

Marriage

Prince and Princess Takamatsu, c. 1950

On 4 February 1930, she married Prince Takamatsu at the

George V of the United Kingdom in sending a mission to Tokyo to present Emperor Shōwa with the Order of the Garter. During their journey, they travelled across the United States so as to strengthen the goodwill and understanding between their nations. The 1930 photo illustration comes from the illustrated biography on Prince Iyesato Tokugawa titled The Art of Peace. The photo presents Princess and Prince Takamatsu during their reception by U.S. President Herbert Hoover.[1][2]

The Prince and Princess returned to Japan in June 1931 and took up residence in Takanawa in Minato, Tokyo.

Following her mother's death from

Japanese Red Cross
Society.

Unconventional frankness

Dianthus, designated imperial personal emblem of Kikuko

In 1991, Princess Takamatsu and an aide discovered a twenty one volume diary, written in Prince Takamatsu's own hand between 1922 and 1947. Despite opposition from the

Marco Polo Bridge Incident into a full-scale war against China, and had warned his brother Hirohito in November 1941 that the Navy
could not fight more than two years against the United States.

After the death of her sister-in-law

tennō
was "not unnatural" since women had assumed the throne in the past, most recently in the early nineteenth century.

Princess Takamatsu died of

Meiji period
.

Honours

National

Foreign

Ancestry

References

  1. ^ "Prince and Princess Takamatsu take a fourteen month Goodwill World Tour during 1930-1931. While in Washington, D.C., they were personally escorted by President Herbert Hoover down Pennsylvania Avenue as part of their special reception". TheEmperorAndTheSpy.com. 2019.
  2. ISBN 978-0-9903349-2-7
    .

External links
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