, posthumously honored as , was the 110th

emperor of Japan The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family, and the keeping of the Privy Seal of Japan, Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century ...

(''Kunaichō'')
後光明天皇 (110)
/ref> according to the traditional

order of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.1643 through 1654. This 17th-century sovereign was named after the 14th-century Nanboku-chō Emperor Kōmyō and ''go-'' (後), translates as ''later'', and thus, he could be called the "Later Emperor Kōmyō". The Japanese word ''go'' has also been translated to mean ''the second one'', and in some older sources, this emperor may be identified as "Kōmyō, the second", or as Kōmyō II".

Genealogy

Before Go-Kōmyō's accession to the

Chrysanthemum Throne The is the throne of the Emperor of Japan. The term also can refer to very specific seating, such as the throne in the Shishin-den at Kyoto Imperial Palace. Various other thrones or seats that are used by the Emperor during official functions ...

, his personal name (his '' imina'') was ; and his pre-accession title was .Titsingh
p. 412.
/ref> He was the fourth son of Emperor Go-Mizunoo. His mother was Fujiwara no Mitsuko, the daughter of the Minister of the Left ('' Sadaijin''); but he was raised as if he were the son of Tōfuku-mon'in. His predecessor, Empress Meishō, was his elder paternal half-sister. Go-Kōmyō's Imperial family lived with him in the Dairi of the Heian Palace. His family included only one daughter and no son:Ponsonby-Fane, p. 116. *Lady-in-waiting ( ''Naishi-no-Suke'') : Niwata Hideko (d. 1685; 庭田秀子), Niwata Shigehide's daughter **First daughter: Imperial Princess Takako (1650–1725; 孝子内親王) later Empress Dowager Reiseimon’in (礼成門院)

Events of Go-Kōmyō's life

Tsuguhito-shinnō was granted the title of

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, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

; and the following year, he became Emperor when Empress Meishō abdicated. His sister stepped down from the throne and the succession (''senso'') was received by the new monarch. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Go-Kōmyō is considered to have acceded to the throne (''sokui'').Titsingh
p. 412
Varley, p. 44; n.b., a distinct act of ''senso'' is unrecognized prior to Emperor Tenji; and all sovereigns except Jitō, Yōzei, Go-Toba, and Fushimi have ''senso'' and ''sokui'' in the same year until the reign of Emperor Go-Murakami. The events during his lifetime shed light on his reign. The years of Go-Kōmyō's reign correspond with a period in which

Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate, Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who acted as his political adviser and was at the ...

and Tokugawa Ietsuna were leaders at the pinnacle of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

. * April 20, 1633: The birth of an Imperial prince who will become known by the posthumous name of Go-Kōmyō''-tennō''.Meyer, Eva-Maria. (1999)
''Japans Kaiserhof in der Edo-Zeit,'' p. 186.
/ref> * 1641 ('' Kan'ei 19''): Prince Tsuguhito was named heir; and he was given the title of Crown Prince. * 1643 (''Kan'ei 20, 29th day of the 9th month''): The empress ceded her throne to her brother by abdicating; and the succession (''senso'') was received by his younger brother. * November 14, 1643 (''Kan'ei 20, 3rd day of the 10th month''): Go-Kōmyō accepted the title; and he is said to have acceded to the throne (''sokui''). He was age 11.Ponsonby-Fane, p. 115. His reign is considered to have begun. * 1645 ('' Shōhō 2, 23rd day of the 4th month''): The ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

'' was elevated to the rank of '' sadaijin''. * 1649 ('' Keian 2, 20th day of the 2nd month''): There was a major earthquake in Edo. * 1651 (''Keian 4''): Tokugawa Ietsuna was proclaimed ''shōgun''. * 1652 (''Keian 5, 5th month''): '' Nihon Ōdai Ichiran'' is first published in Kyoto under the patronage of the tairō Sakai Tadakatsu, lord of the Obama Domain of Wakasa Province. * 1653 ('' Jōō 2, 12th day of the 8th month''): A violent fire destroyed a large part of the imperial palace and many temples which were nearby. Shortly thereafter, several girls, aged 12–14 years, were imprisoned for arson involving this fire as well as other fires in Kyoto. * 1654 (''Jōō 3, 6th day of the 7th month''): Ingen, a Buddhist priest who would eventually become very influential, arrived at

Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...

from China. His intention was to reform the practice of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

in Japan. * October 30, 1654 (''Jōō 3, 20th day of the 9th month''): The emperor died. He was buried at Sennyū-ji on the 15th day of the 10th month. There is a probability that the emperor died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

. Go-Kōmyō is among those enshrined in the imperial mausoleum, '' Tsuki no wa no misasagi,'' at Sennyū-ji in

Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto is one of the eleven Wards of Kyoto, wards in the Municipalities of Japan, city of Kyoto, Kyoto, Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. History It was created in 1929 when it was split off from Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto, Shimogyō-ku. During the years ...

. Also enshrined are Go-Kōmyō's immediate predecessors, Emperor Go-Mizunoo and Empress Meishō. Go-Kōmyō's immediate Imperial successors are also memorialized in this ''misasagi'', including Go-Sai, Reigen, Higashiyama, Nakamikado, Sakuramachi, Momozono, Go-Sakuramachi and Go-Momozono.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan,'' p. 423.

Kugyō

is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the

Emperor of Japan The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...

in pre- Meiji eras. Even during those years in which the court's actual influence outside the palace walls was minimal, the hierarchic organization persisted. In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Go-Kōmyō's reign, this apex of the ''

Daijō-kan The , also known as the Great Council of State, was (i) (''Daijō-kan'') the highest organ of Japan's premodern Imperial government under the Ritsuryō legal system during and after the Nara period or (ii) (''Dajō-kan'') the highest organ of Jap ...

'' included: * '' Sesshō'', Nijō Yasumichi, 1635–1647 * ''Sesshō'', Kujō Michifusa, 1647 * ''Sesshō'', Ichijō Akiyoshi, 1647 * '' Kampaku'', Ichijō Akiyoshi, 1647–1651 * ''Kampaku'', Konoe Hisatsugu, 1651–1653 * ''Kampaku'', Nijō Mitsuhira, 1653–1663 * '' Sadaijin'' * '' Udaijin'' * '' Naidaijin'' * ''

Dainagon was a counselor of the first rank in the Imperial court of Japan. The role dates from the 7th century. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.Nussbaum, "Dainag ...

Eras of Go-Kōmyō's reign

The years of Go-Kōmyō's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name or '' nengō''. * '' Kan'ei'' (1624–1644) * '' Shōhō'' (1644–1648) * '' Keian'' (1648–1652) * '' Jōō'' (1652–1655)

Ancestry

Notes

References

* Meyer, Eva-Maria. (1999)
''Japans Kaiserhof in der Edo-Zeit: unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Jahre 1846 bis 1867''.
Münster: LIT Verlag.
OCLC 42041594
* Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959)
''The Imperial House of Japan''.
Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society
OCLC 194887
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). '' Nihon Ōdai Ichiran''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''.
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691
* Varley, H. Paul. (1980)
''Jinnō Shōtōki: A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns''.
New York: Columbia University Press.
OCLC 59145842