was the 116th

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his positio ...

, according to the traditional

order of succession An order of succession 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.

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial Family, and also the keeping of the Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century AD, up until the Second World War, it ...

(''Kunaichō'')
桃園天皇 (115)
/ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', pp. 119–120. Momozono's reign spanned the years from 1747 until his death in 1762. Momozono's reign was mostly quiet, with only one incident occurring that involved a small number of Kuge who advocated for the restoration of direct Imperial rule. These Kuge were punished by the

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators 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, though during part of the Kamakur ...

, who held de facto power in the country. Momozono fathered two sons with his one and only lady in waiting, but he died at a young age in 1762. The line of succession fell to Momozono's sister, Princess Toshiko, who became

Empress Go-Sakuramachi was the 117th monarch of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 後桜町天皇 (120)/ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 120. She was named after h ...

. Due to the young age of Momozono's sons, she also became empress regent to the future

Emperor Go-Momozono was the 118th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 後桃園天皇 (118)/ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 120. He was named after his ...

until he became of age to rule.

Events of Momozono's life

Early life

Before Momozono's ascension 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 (''

imina in modern times consist of a family name (surname) followed by a given name, in that order. Nevertheless, when a Japanese name is written in the Roman alphabet, ever since the Meiji era, the official policy has been to cater to Western expecta ...

'') was . Toohito was the firstborn son of

Emperor Sakuramachi was the 115th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 桜町天皇 (115)/ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 119. Sakuramachi's birth name ...

, while his mother was a concubine named Sadako (定子) (Empress Dowager Kaimei, 開明門院). His Imperial family lived with him in the Dairi of the

Heian Palace The was the original imperial palace of (present-day Kyoto), the capital of Japan, from 794 to 1227. The palace, which served as the imperial residence and the administrative centre for most of the Heian period (from 794 to 1185), was located a ...

. Toohito's pre-accession title was initially ''Yaho-no-miya'' (八穂宮) and later ''Sachi-no-miya'' (茶地宮). While Prince Toohito was invested as Crown Prince on 25 April 1747 it is unknown what other events took place in his early life other than the information provided here.

Reign

Prince Toohito acceded to the throne on 9 June 1747 as Emperor when his father abdicated in his favor.Meyer, p. 48. The era name was then changed from Enkyō to ''

Kan'en was a after and before . This period spanned the years from July 1748 to October 1751. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834) ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 418./ref> Change of era * 1748 : The era name was changed to (me ...

'' (meaning "Prolonging Lenience") to mark the occasion. Momozono fathered at least two sons with a

court lady ''Court Lady'' () is a 2021 Chinese television series produced by Yu Zheng, starring Xu Kai and Li Yitong. Once renowned as Chang’an’s number one hedonist, Sheng Chumu could barely ride on a horse without falling off. Now, he has fallen head ...

named Ichijō Tomiko during his reign. While he held the political title of ''Emperor'', it was

in name only ''In Name Only'' is a 1939 romantic film starring Cary Grant, Carole Lombard, and Kay Francis, directed by John Cromwell. It was based on the 1935 novel ''Memory of Love'' by Bessie Breuer. The fictional town where it is set, Bridgefield, Co ...

as the

s of the Tokugawa family controlled Japan. During the first year or so of Momozono's reign the first performance of the popular eleven-act puppet play ''

Kanadehon Chūshingura is an 11-act bunraku puppet play composed in 1748. It is one of the most popular Japanese plays, ranked with Zeami's '' Matsukaze'', although the vivid action of Chūshingura differs dramatically from ''Matsukaze''. Medium During this portion o ...

'' was performed. The fictionalized story of the play is about samurai revenge, and the 1702 vendetta of the 47 ''rōnin''. Also of note was a Ryukyuan diplomatic mission from

Shō Kei was king of the Ryukyu Kingdom from 1713–1752. His reign, strongly guided by royal advisor Sai On, is regarded as a political and economic golden age and period of the flowering of Okinawan culture."Shō Kei." ''Okinawa rekishi jinmei jiten'' (� ...

of the

Ryūkyū Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English language, English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' wa ...

which was received by the shogunate.Titsingh, p. 418. On 7 October 1749 a powerful storm struck Kyoto, and the

keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...

Nijō Castle is a flatland castle in Kyoto, Japan. The castle consists of two concentric rings (Kuruwa) of fortifications, the Ninomaru Palace, the ruins of the Honmaru Palace, various support buildings and several gardens. The surface area of the castle is ...

burned after it was struck by lightning. The era name was changed to

Hōreki , also known as Horyaku, was a after ''Kan'en'' and before ''Meiwa''. The period spanned the years from October 1751 through June 1764. The reigning emperor and empress were and .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834 ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 418 ...

in 1751 to mark the death of the retired

, and the death of the former ''shōgun''

Tokugawa Yoshimune was the eighth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1716 until his abdication in 1745. He was the son of Tokugawa Mitsusada, the grandson of Tokugawa Yorinobu, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lineage Yoshimune ...

. In the year that followed a second ''Ryukyuan diplomatic mission'' from Shō Boku of the Ryūkyū Kingdom arrived in Edo. Momozono had no role in these missions as they were expected to pay tribute to the shogunate. The 1754 Hōreki River incident caused the deaths of eighty-eight people due to a harsh project ordered by the shōgun, but again the Emperor was not involved. Another incident though occurred in 1758, when a small number of

Kuge The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese Imperial Court in Kyoto. The ''kuge'' were important from the establishment of Kyoto as the capital during the Heian period in the late 8th century until the rise of the Kamakur ...

were punished by the shogunate for advocating the restoration of direct Imperial rule.Ponsonby-Fane, ''Imperial House,'' p. 119. Two years later Shōgun Ieshige resigned, and his

son A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current c ...

became the 10th shōgun of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

.Titsingh
p. 419.
/ref> In 1762, Emperor Momozono abdicated the throne in favor of his sister Imperial Princess Toshiko, who became

. His retirement did not last long as he died that same year on 31 August 1762 at the age of 21. Momozono's ''

kami are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...

'' is enshrined in an Imperial mausoleum (''misasagi''), ''

Tsuki no wa no misasagi is the name of a mausoleum in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto used by successive generations of the Japanese Imperial Family. The tomb is situated in Sennyū-ji, a Buddhist temple founded in the early Heian period, which was the hereditary temple or of th ...

,'' at

Sennyū-ji , formerly written as , is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan. For centuries, Sennyū-ji has been a mausoleum for noble families and members of the Imperial House of Japan. Located within the temple grounds are the official tom ...

Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto is one of the eleven wards in the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. History It was created in 1929 when it was split off from Shimogyō-ku. During the years 1931 to 1976 it also covered the area of present-day Yamashina-ku, which ...

. Also enshrined here are Momozono's immediate Imperial predecessors since

Emperor Go-Mizunoo was the 108th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Go-Mizunoo's reign spanned the years from 1611 through 1629, and was the first emperor to reign entirely during the Edo period. This 17th-century sovereign was n ...

– Meishō, Go-Kōmyō, Go-Sai, Reigen, Higashiyama, Nakamikado and Sakuramachi, along with five of his immediate Imperial successors – Go-Sakuramachi, Go-Momozono, Kōkaku, Ninkō, and Kōmei.

Eras and Kugyō

The years of Momozono's reign are more specifically identified by more than one

era name A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year o ...

or ''

nengō The , also known as , is the first of the two elements that identify years in the Japanese era calendar scheme. The second element is a number which indicates the year number within the era (with the first year being ""), followed by the literal ...

''.Titsingh
p. 418.
/ref> While is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the

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. The following eras occurred during Momozono's reign: * '' Enkyō'' (1744–1748) * ''

'' (1748–1751) * ''

'' (1751–1764) During Momozono'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: * '' Kampaku'', Konoe Uchisaki. * ''

Sadaijin The ''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Kenkyusha Limited, was a government position in Japan in the late Nara and Heian periods. The position was consolidated in the Taihō Code of 702. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the ini ...

'' * ''

Udaijin was a government position in Japan in the late Nara and Heian periods. The position was consolidated in the Taihō Code of 702. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the initial appearance of the ''udaijin'' in the context of a central administr ...

'' * ''

Naidaijin The , literally meaning "Inner Minister", was an ancient office in the Japanese imperial court, Japanese Imperial Court. Its role, rank and authority varied throughout the pre-Meiji period, Meiji period of Japanese history, but in general remain ...

'' * ''

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 ...

Genealogy

Emperor Momozono had only one

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...

named Ichijō Tomiko, and fathered at least two sons with her.

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
* Screech, Timon. (2006)
''Secret Memoirs of the Shoguns: Isaac Titsingh and Japan, 1779–1822''.
London:

RoutledgeCurzon Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

.
OCLC 65177072
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''

Nihon Ōdai Ichiran , ', is a 17th-century chronicle of the serial reigns of Japanese emperors with brief notes about some of the noteworthy events or other happenings. According to the 1871 edition of the ''American Cyclopaedia'', the 1834 French translation of ...

''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''.
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691
{{DEFAULTSORT:Momozono Japanese emperors 1741 births 1762 deaths

Emperor Momozono was the 116th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 桃園天皇 (115)/ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', pp. 119–120. Momozono's reign s ...

18th-century Japanese monarchs

Events of Momozono's life

Early life

Reign

Eras and Kugyō

Genealogy

Ancestry

See also

Notes

References