Yi Bangja ( ko, 이방자, 4 November 1901 – 30 April 1989) was Queen of the Korean Empire as the wife of King Euimin of Korea.

Birth

Born Princess Masako of Nashimoto ( ja, 方子女王), she was the first daughter of Japanese imperial family member

Prince Nashimoto Morimasa was a member of the Japanese Imperial Family and a ''Field Marshal (Japan), field marshal'' in the Imperial Japanese Army. An uncle-in-law of Emperor Shōwa, an uncle of his consort, Empress Kōjun, and the father-in-law of Crown Prince Euimin ...

, the seventh son of

Prince Kuni Asahiko was a member of a collateral line of the Japanese imperial family who played a key role in the Meiji Restoration. Prince Asahiko was an adopted son of Emperor Ninkō and later a close advisor to Emperor Kōmei and Emperor Meiji. He was the gre ...

and his wife, Princess Itsuko, a daughter of Marquis Naohiro Nabeshima. She was a first cousin of

Empress Kōjun , born , was a member of the Imperial House of Japan, the wife of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito) and the mother of Shigeko Higashikuni, Princess Sachiko Hisa-nomiya, Kazuko Takatsukasa, Atsuko Ikeda, the Emperor Emeritus Akihito, Prince Masahito ...

of Japan. On maternal side, she was also a first cousin of Princess Setsuko.

Marriage

Princess Masako was a leading candidate to wed the

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

of Japan, the future

Emperor Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

. Other candidates included Princess Nagako of Kuni (who became the future

), and Tokiko Ichijō, a daughter of Prince Ichijō Saneteru. The possibility of infertility and the feeble political influence of her family were among the reasons she was removed from the list of candidates. However, Princess Masako was selected instead to wed

Crown Prince Euimin Prince Imperial Yeong, Yi Un, Crown Prince Uimin (also Euimin), also known as Yi Un, Yi Eun, Lee Eun and Un Yi (20 October 1897 – 1 May 1970), was the 28th Head of the Korean Imperial House, an Imperial Japanese Army general and the last crown ...

of Korea who had been held by Japanese government under the pretense of studying abroad in 1917. The wedding was held on 28 April 1920, at the Korean royal residence in Tokyo. Princess Masako was still a student at the Girls' Department of the

Gakushūin The or Peers School (Gakushūin School Corporation), initially known as Gakushūjo, is a Japanese educational institution in Tokyo, originally established to educate the children of Japan's nobility. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2002)"Gakushū- ...

Peers' School at the time; her new title became '' Her Royal Highness Crown Princess of King Yi'' ( ja, 李王世子妃). In addition, the title she received from birth, Princess Masako, still retained after she married. Despite an unfavorable fertility diagnosis prior to her marriage, she gave birth to a son, Prince Jin, on 18 August 1921. However, Prince Jin died under suspicious circumstances when she visited Korea with her husband on 11 May 1922. On 24 April 1926, Princess Masako received the formal title ''Her Royal Highness Princess Masako, Queen Yi'' ( ja, 李王妃方子女王) when the

Emperor Sunjong Sunjong, the Emperor Yunghui (; 25 March 1874 – 24 April 1926), was the second and the last Emperor of Korea, of the Yi dynasty, ruling from 1907 until 1910. Biography Crown Prince of Korea Sunjong was the second son of Emperor Gojong a ...

, the elder brother of Crown Prince Euimin, died. Under the terms of the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, the Korean royal title was demoted from that of "Emperor" to "King" and Crown Prince Euimin was never formally crowned as the monarch of Korea; therefore, Princess Masako would later be addressed as "Bangja, Crown Princess Euimin" in Korea. On 29 December 1931, she gave birth to a second son,

Yi Ku Francis Yi Ku (December 29, 1931 July 16, 2005) was a Korean prince who was head of the House of Yi from 1970 until 2005. He was a grandson of Emperor Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. Early life Ku was born in Kitashirakawa Palace (which is cu ...

Life as last Crown Princess of Korea

After the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, all former royal and peerage titles were abolished by the American occupation authorities; ever since, Princess Masako took the Korean name Yi Bangja.

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

President

Rhee Syng-man Syngman Rhee (, ; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965) was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Ko ...

's fear of Crown Prince Euimin's popularity prevented the family's homecoming, and they lived in destitution as Korean residents in Japan. In November 1963, Yi Bangja and her family came back to Korea at the invitation of President

Park Chung-hee Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...

and were allowed to live in

Changdeok Palace Changdeokgung (Hangul: 창덕궁, Hanja: 昌德宮; literally, "The Palace of Prospering Virtue"), also known as Changdeokgung Palace or Changdeok Palace, is set within a large park in Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the " Five ...

in downtown

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. However, by this time, Crown Prince Euimin was already unconscious from cerebral thrombosis and was rushed to Seoul Sungmo Hospital where he remained bedridden for the rest of his life. Thereafter, Yi Bangja devoted herself to the education of mentally and

physically disabled A physical disability is a limitation on a person's physical functioning, mobility, dexterity or stamina. Other physical disabilities include impairments which limit other facets of daily living, such as respiratory disorders, blindness, epilepsy ...

people. She successively became the chairman of various committees including the ''Commemorative Committee of Crown Prince Euimin'', and the ''Myeonghwi-won'', an asylum for deaf-and-dumb persons or patients suffering from

infantile paralysis Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...

and she founded the ''Jahye School'' and the ''Myeonghye School'', which helps disabled people become socially adapted. She was adored as the "mother of the handicapped in Korea" and despite lingering anti-Japanese sentiment in Korea she was a widely respected Japanese woman in Korea. Some members of the Nashimoto family, her relatives, visited Seoul in October 2008 to pay their respects. The Nashimotos have continued supporting her charity foundations for helping Korean physically challenged people even after the Princess died in 1989.영친왕비 이방자 여사 종친 방한
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Death

Yi Bangja died on 30 April 1989, aged 89, at the Nakseon Hall, Changdeok Palace from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. Her funeral was held as a semi-

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of Etiquette, protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive ...

which

Prince Mikasa was a Japanese prince, the youngest of the four sons of Emperor Taishō (Yoshihito) and Empress Teimei (Sadako). He was their last surviving child. His eldest brother was Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito). After serving as a junior cavalry officer in ...

and

Princess Mikasa (born ; 4 June 1923), is a member of the Imperial House of Japan as the widow of Takahito, Prince Mikasa, the fourth son of Emperor Taishō and Empress Teimei. The Princess is the last surviving paternal great-aunt-in-law of Emperor Naruhito, an ...

of Japan attended and she was buried beside her husband,

, at the Hongyureung,

Namyangju Namyangju () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. To the east is Gapyeong County, to the west is Guri City, and to the north is Pocheon City. Namyangju-si was originally a southern part of Yangju-gun, but was separated into Namyangju-gu ...

near Seoul.

Other

She wrote an autobiography, ''The World is One: Princess Yi Bangja's Autobiography''.

Children

# Prince Yi Jin () (18 August 1921 – 11 May 1922). He was poisoned during a visit to Korea with his parents. His funeral was held on 17 May 1922 and he was buried in Korea. # Prince

Yi Gu Francis Yi Ku (December 29, 1931 July 16, 2005) was a Korean prince who was head of the House of Yi from 1970 until 2005. He was a grandson of Emperor Gojong of the Joseon dynasty. Early life Ku was born in Kitashirakawa Palace (which is cu ...

() (29 December 1931 – 16 July 2005). Prince Gu became the 29th Head of the

Korean Imperial Household The House of Yi, also called the Yi dynasty (also transcribed as the Lee dynasty), was the royal family of the Joseon dynasty and later the imperial family of the Korean Empire, descended from the Joseon founder Yi Seong-gye. All of his descendant ...

upon the death of his father.

Ancestry

Popular culture

Yi Bangja was portrayed by

Naho Toda is a Japanese actress. Career In 1990, she successfully passed an audition called Horipro Talent Scout Caravan( Ja). Personal life She had graduated from Tamagawa University. Her sister was an actress, and her brother Kōhei Toda ( Ja: ...

in the 2016 film '' The Last Princess''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yi, Bangja 1901 births 1989 deaths Japanese princesses Nashimoto-no-miya House of Yi Korea under Japanese rule Japan–Korea relations South Korean people of Japanese descent Grand Cordons of the Order of the Precious Crown People from Tokyo