Prince Tomohito of Mikasa

was a member of the Imperial House of Japan and the eldest son of Takahito, Prince Mikasa and Yuriko, 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". Prince Tomohito was the first member of the Imperial House of Japan with a full beard since Emperor Meiji, thus earning him the popular nickname of the "Bearded Prince" (ヒゲの殿下 Hige no Denka). He died of cancer on 6 June 2012, aged 66.

Early life and education Prince Tomohito (far left) with (from left to right) his mother Princess Mikasa, his brother Prince Yoshihito, and his sister Princess Yasuko, c. 1950 Prince Tomohito was born on 5 January 1946 at Prince Mikasa's family home. He 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 family The Prince became engaged to Miss Nobuko Asō on 21 May 1980. She is the third daughter of the late Takakichi Asō, chairman of Asō Cement Co., and his wife, Kazuko, the daughter of former Prime Minister, Shigeru Yoshida. She is also the sister of former Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Tarō Asō. The couple married on 7 November 1980. Miss Asō was given the title HIH Princess Tomohito of Mikasa. The Prince and Princess had two daughters:

The family lived in a compound within the Akasaka Estate complex, in Moto-Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo. In October 2009, his wife separated her residence from him and their children. particularly his appearance on All Night Nippon in 1975.

Health problems and death The 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. 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 the Sasaki Institute Kyoundo Hospital in Tokyo, aged 66. He had been hospitalized for some time, as a result of his multiple cancer diagnoses. Around 660 people attended his funeral, which was held at the Toshimagaoka Imperial Cemetery.

In June 2013, the Imperial Household Agency stated that they had integrated his family into the household led by his father.

Views on the imperial succession Amid the Japanese imperial succession debate, then-Prime Minister Junichirō Koizumi strongly supported the revision of the Imperial Household Law to allow a woman to ascend to the Imperial Throne, pledging to present a bill to the 2006 session of the parliament. Some conservative lawmakers opposed Koizumi and said the debate was premature. Prince Tomohito also opposed the proposal, saying that the official male members of the Japanese imperial family might take up concubines in order to produce male members because it was previously possible for a male illegitimate child to assume the imperial throne. Later he said that this remark was just a joke.

Honours

National honours Grand Cordon of the Order of the Chrysanthemum (05/06/1966)

Foreign honours Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (09/03/1982)

Honorary degree Ankara University

Honorary positions President of the Social Welfare Organization Yuai Jyuji Kai President of the Arinomama-sha President of the Social Welfare Organization Saiseikai Imperial Gift Foundation Inc. President of the New Technology Development Foundation President of the Princess Takamatsu Cancer Research Fund President of the Nippon Billiard Association President of the Professional Ski Instructors Association of Japan President of the Collegiate Skating And Ice Hockey Federation President of the Japan-Turkey Society President of the Middle Eastern Culture Center in Japan Honorary President of the Japan Rugby Football Union Honorary President of the Japan-British Society Honorary President of the Norway-Japan Society

Ancestry

Patrilineal descent

Imperial House of Japan

Descent prior to Keitai is unclear to modern historians, but traditionally traced back patrilineally to Emperor Jimmu Emperor Keitai, ca. 450–534 Emperor Kinmei, 509–571 Emperor Bidatsu, 538–585 Prince Oshisaka, ca. 556–??? Emperor Jomei, 593–641 Emperor Tenji, 626–671 Prince Shiki???–716 Emperor Kōnin, 709–786 Emperor Kanmu, 737–806 Emperor Saga, 786–842 Emperor Ninmyō, 810–850 Emperor Kōkō, 830–867 Emperor Uda, 867–931 Emperor Daigo, 885–930 Emperor Murakami, 926–967 Emperor En'yū, 959–991 Emperor Ichijō, 980–1011 Emperor Go-Suzaku, 1009–1045 Emperor Go-Sanjō, 1034–1073 Emperor Shirakawa, 1053–1129 Emperor Horikawa, 1079–1107 Emperor Toba, 1103–1156 Emperor Go-Shirakawa, 1127–1192 Emperor Takakura, 1161–1181 Emperor Go-Toba, 1180–1239 Emperor Tsuchimikado, 1196–1231 Emperor Go-Saga, 1220–1272 Emperor Go-Fukakusa, 1243–1304 Emperor Fushimi, 1265–1317 Emperor Go-Fushimi, 1288–1336 Emperor Kōgon, 1313–1364 Emperor Sukō, 1334–1398 Prince Yoshihito Fushimi, 1351–1416 Prince Sadafusa Fushimi, 1372–1456 Emperor Go-Hanazono, 1419–1471 Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado, 1442–1500 Emperor Go-Kashiwabara, 1464–1526 Emperor Go-Nara, 1495–1557 Emperor Ōgimachi, 1517–1593 Prince Masahito, 1552–1586 Emperor Go-Yōzei, 1572–1617 Emperor Go-Mizunoo, 1596–1680 Emperor Reigen, 1654–1732 Emperor Higashiyama, 1675–1710 Prince Naohito Kanin, 1704–1753 Prince Sukehito Kanin, 1733–1794 Emperor Kōkaku, 1771–1840 Emperor Ninkō, 1800–1846 Emperor Kōmei, 1831–1867 Emperor Meiji, 1852–1912 Emperor Taishō, 1879–1926 Takahito, Prince Mikasa Prince Tomohito of Mikasa