The every move of members of royal families from
various countries around the world has always been closely watched, and the Japanese imperial family,
recognized by the Guinness World Records as the "oldest existing royal family," is certainly
no exception. From Emperor Naruhito's love at first sight for Empress Masako to Princess
Mako, the eldest daughter of Prince Fumihito, marrying a commoner boyfriend, these have
all been hot topics of public interest. The Japanese Imperial Family has already
staged a Cinderella-meets-Prince story, featuring the abdicated Emperor Akihito
and Empress Michiko's tennis romance. Today, the 88-year-old Empress Michiko
has gracefully transformed into a gentle and kind-hearted elderly lady, maintaining her
elegance even as she has grown older. However, what might come as a surprise is that despite
spending over 60 years together with Emperor Akihito, she has openly expressed her desire not
to be buried alongside the Emperor in the future. Why is that? Today, I will take you through
the life story of Empress Michiko of Japan. Empress Michiko, whose original name is Michiko
Shōda, was born on October 20, 1934, into an elite family in Tokyo, Japan. Michiko is the second of
four children born to Hidesaburō Shōda, president and later honorary chairman of Nisshin Flour
Milling Company, and his wife, Fumiko Soejima. Additionally, she is the niece of several
prominent Japanese scholars, including the mathematician Kenjiro Shōda, who served as the
president of Osaka University from 1954 to 1960. Michiko received an elite education from a young
age. She began learning English and playing the piano as a child, while also studying arts such as
painting, cooking, and Kōdō. When it was time for her to start school, Michiko enrolled at Futaba
Elementary School in Kōjimachi, a neighborhood in Chiyoda, Tokyo, but was required to leave in her
fourth-grade year because of the American bombings during World War II. She was then successively
educated in the prefectures of Kanagawa, Gunma, and Nagano. She returned to Tokyo in 1946 and
completed her elementary education in Futaba and then attended the Sacred Heart School for Junior
High School and High School in Minato, Tokyo. She graduated from high school in 1953. Following
that, she graduated with honors from the Faculty of Letters at the Female University of the
Sacred Heart, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree. Due to her coming from an elite family
and having outstanding qualities herself, Michiko has never lacked suitors around her,
including the writer Yukio Mishima. However, he was never the one destined for Michiko.
In August 1957, at a tennis court at Karuizawa near Nagano Prefecture, 23-year-old Michiko
met her future husband, the then Crown Prince Akihito. They both participated in
a tennis match and by coincidence, the draw resulted in Akihito facing Michiko.
Although Akihito was an excellent tennis player, it was clear that Michiko's tennis skills
surpassed his. She was very observant and quickly cleverly identified Akihito's weaknesses
in his tennis technique, leaving Akihito very flustered. Despite Akihito putting up an
exceptional performance in that match, he still lost to the more skilled Michiko.
After that match, Michiko, this lively and beautiful girl, left a deep
impression in Akihito's heart. He fell in love at first sight and immediately
fell for her. After Akihito's repeated pursuits, Michiko finally agreed to date him.
Once, Akihito took the opportunity to organize a photography exhibition to publicly
display the photos he had taken of Michiko. When other members of the Japanese Imperial family
saw Michiko's photos, they asked Akihito, "Who is this girl?" Akihito replied candidly, "Her name
is Michiko Shōda, and she is the girl I love." After the news of Crown Prince Akihito's
intention to marry Michiko Shōda emerged, a portion of the Japanese populace expressed
opposition to this marriage. This was because Michiko did not hail from a royal or noble
background, and her family practiced Christianity, which was a significant taboo for some of the
conservative factions in Japan at that time. As one of the conservative forces in Japan,
Empress Kōjun strongly opposed the marriage between her son, Crown Prince Akihito, and
Michiko. Coming from the imperial family herself, she did not allow a commoner girl to taint the
pure bloodline of the Japanese imperial family. Despite this, Akihito insisted on marrying
Michiko. During that time, the relationship between mother and son became very strained.
However, considering that Japan at the time was still in an uneasy atmosphere following its
defeat and surrender in the Second World War, many Japanese citizens began to harbor
dissatisfaction towards the Imperial family. To soothe the public's sentiments, the then
Prime Minister of Japan, Nobusuke Kishi, and Emperor Shōwa believed that intermarriage
with commoners seemed like a very good idea to boost public confidence in the Imperial family.
Therefore, Emperor Shōwa, the father of Akihito, not only mediated external opposition to this
marriage but also personally visited Michiko's father, hoping that he would marry his daughter
into the Imperial family. At the same time, Akihito's sincerity also touched Michiko, and
she agreed to marry into the Imperial family. So, on November 27, 1958, The Imperial Household
Council officially approved the engagement of Crown Prince Akihito and Michiko Shōda. Their
engagement ceremony took place on January 14, 1959. Their wedding was ultimately held on April
10, 1959, in a traditional Shinto ceremony. The wedding procession covered a route of
8.8 kilometers, and more than 500,000 people watched the wedding procession in the streets
of Tokyo. Some parts of the wedding ceremony were also televised, marking the first time a
Japanese royal wedding was open to the public. It attracted approximately
15 million viewers in total. Michiko Shōda also became the first commoner
to marry into the Japanese imperial family. After marriage, this young couple
moved to the Tōgū Palace Residence, which is the traditional name for the Crown
Prince's official residence established in 1952, located within the Akasaka Estate
in Motoakasaka, Minato, Tokyo. Subsequently, they welcomed three children:
Prince Naruhito, born on February 23, 1960; Prince Fumihito, born on November 30, 1965;
and Princess Sayako, born on April 18, 1969. According to reports, Michiko had a miscarriage
in 1963. Her continuous participation in various official and social activities before pregnancy
damaged her health. At that time, Michiko, who was already about three months pregnant,
underwent an artificial abortion surgery in Tokyo. This in itself is a matter of sadness, but what
is infuriating is that some people at the time believed that Michiko married into the Imperial
family solely to bear children, and as a result, she accidentally miscarried, which is truly
irresponsible. We can imagine that after Michiko married into the Imperial family, she
did not experience the happily-ever-after life depicted in fairy tales. The difficulties she
had imagined one by one turned into reality, and even more terrifying. What's even more
egregious is that Michiko, due to her commoner background, was subjected to attacks from the
conservative factions and was even mocked as the "daughter of a flour shop". Empress Kōjun, who
had opposed this marriage from the very beginning, was particularly cold and critical towards
Michiko, and even tacitly allowed the female officials in the palace to mistreat her.
Due to the pressure from the media and the attitude of Empress Kōjun, Michiko
experienced multiple mental breakdowns, which led to a brief bout of aphasia in the 1960s,
during which she lost her voice for seven months. Although life within the Imperial family was not
easy, Michiko still confronted the unreasonable royal traditions in her way. For instance, the
Japanese Imperial family at the time required children to be cared for by wet nurses, but
Michiko broke with convention and refused to use wet nurses. Furthermore, according to tradition,
royal children were supposed to live separately from their parents and be cared for by private
tutors. Michiko continued to break this precedent, insisting on raising her children herself rather
than entrusting them to palace attendants. She succeeded in allowing all three
children to grow up in their parents' love. When remodeling their residence, Michiko insisted
on adding a kitchen because she wanted to cook for her husband, Akihito. Of course, this idea
was met with strong opposition, as it was unheard of for a royal woman to cook herself.
However, Michiko stood her ground. Eventually, her wish was granted, and from then on,
she often busied herself in the kitchen, preparing delicious meals for her family.
Everything Michiko did to withstand the pressure was very beneficial for establishing a positive
image of the Japanese Imperial family among the public. She and her husband also achieved a
high status among the Japanese population, often meeting with people in all 47 prefectures
of the country. On a more formal level, between 1959 and 1989, the Crown Prince
and Princess visited 37 countries. After the death of Emperor Shōwa on January 7,
1989, Akihito, the husband of Michiko, ascended to the throne as the 125th Emperor of Japan, and
she became the Empress. On November 12, 1990, the new Emperor and Empress held their enthronement
ceremony at the Tokyo Imperial Palace. In 1993, due to the mental stress caused by negative
media coverage, Empress Michiko briefly fainted on her 59th birthday, and for the following
two months, she lost her ability to speak. In the year 2000, Empress Kōjun, who
had always disliked her daughter-in-law, passed away in Tokyo. Michiko's days finally
became much better. However, at that time, she was already 66 years old, and her precious
youth had been worn away by the intrigues and cold words of the court. In the spring of
2007, due to immense psychological stress, Empress Michiko had to cancel many
official duties. At the same time, she also suffered from ailments such as mouth
ulcers, nosebleeds, and gastrointestinal bleeding. Although Empress Michiko has been living in the
repressive palace, she has done her best in her role, accompanying the Emperor on diplomatic
visits and breaking many royal traditions. In English-speaking countries, she spoke
fluent English, which left everyone in awe. And what did Empress Michiko think? On the
surface, she maintained a loving relationship with the Emperor and appeared beautiful and elegant
at every event. However, after all these years, she couldn't help but feel a sense of melancholy.
She said there was no love between her and the Emperor, only a part that was needed. In 2013,
Empress Michiko expressed through the Imperial Household Agency that she did not wish to be
buried with Emperor Akihito after her death. The tragedy was far from over. On June
9, 1993, the accomplished diplomat Masako Owada married the eldest son of Michiko, the
then Crown Prince Naruhito. From then on, this once radiant career woman followed the same
path as her mother-in-law. Her beautiful youthful years were buried in the idle gossip of the deep
palace. Like her mother-in-law, she also suffered from various illnesses due to mental stress,
including depression. And that is another story.
