Fujiwara no Hiroko

, also known as , was an empress consort of Emperor Go-Reizei. She was the eldest daughter of Fujiwara no Yorimichi and Fujiwara no Gishi. Fujiwara no Morozane was her brother by the same mother.

Life

At the time, the matrilineal bloodline was very important in Japanese noble society. Hiroko's mother Gishi's hazy background might have put her at a disadvantage, but to her father she was a long-awaited daughter.

Empress

Especially after the early death of her adopted sister Fujiwara no Genshi in 1039, Yorimichi expected Hiroko to give birth to an imperial prince, and so sent her to the court of Emperor Go-Reizei in 1050. A year later, in 1051, she became '' kōgō''. Normally, the existing imperial wife Princess Shōshi would have taken the position, but Shōshi remained in the position of '' chūgū'' by her own preference. With her father's powerful protection, Hiroko maintained a flashy palace and held poetry competitions.
However, despite her father's great expectations and the Emperor's affection, Hiroko proved unable to bear children. In 1068, Fujiwara no Kanshi became a ''kōgō'', and Hiroko took the position of ''chūgū''. After Emperor Go-Reizei's death in the same year, Hiroko became a nun.

Later life

By her later years in the early 12th century, the golden age of the Sekkan system was past. However, Hiroko's connection to its central figures, including her father Yorimichi and her aunt Fujiwara no Shōshi, earned her respect from her family as a remnant of that tradition.

Fujiwara no Hiroko died in her secondary residence in Uji in 1127, at the age of 91.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fujiwara, Hiroko
Fujiwara clan
Japanese empresses
Japanese Buddhist nuns
11th-century Buddhist nuns
12th-century Buddhist nuns
1036 births
1127 deaths