The is a department of the

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 ...

of Japan.

History

According to

Taihō Code The was an administrative reorganisation enacted in 703 in Japan, at the end of the Asuka period. It was historically one of the . It was compiled at the direction of Prince Osakabe, Fujiwara no Fuhito and Awata no Mahito. Nussbaum, Louis ...

around the 8th century, it was presupposed that a chamberlain belonged to the

Ministry of the Center The (lit. the department of the inner (or privy) affairs) was a division of the eighth century Japanese government of the Imperial Court in Kyoto, instituted in the Asuka period and formalized during the Heian period. The Ministry was replaced i ...

. When the was installed during the Heian era, the chamberlain's role was quickly reduced, limited to matters of courtesy. In 1869, the chamberlain was brought within the Imperial Household Ministry. The position of Grand Chamberlain was placed within the merit system in 1871, and three people—

Tokudaiji Sanetsune ''With information translated from the Japanese Wikipedia article'' Duke was a Japanese statesman and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan in the Meiji era. Life Tokydaiji Sanetsune was born to a branch of the Fujiwara court nobility in K ...

, Masataka Kawase, and Higashikuze Michitomi—were appointed. According to the Imperial Household Ministry regulations, the Grand Chamberlain supervises chamberlains who closely attend the appointed person, reports to that person and announces their orders. After

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the chamberlains were organized into the Board of the Chamberlains, within the Imperial Household Agency, through the temporary . After passage of the National Public Service Law (Shōwa 22 Law No. 120), the chamberlain became a special service national public servant. Although distinctions between first-class officials, second class officials, and so forth continued, the class publication to an appointment document would no longer be carried out after the

2001 Central Government Reform The by the Japanese government involved the establishment of a new ministry, the merging of existing ministries and the abolition of others. This resulted in little more than a change of ministry names (with the exception of the Environment Ag ...

Organisation

The is a chief functionary of the Imperial court, and aide of the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the 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 position is derived from "the ...

. He also keeps the Privy Seal and the State Seal and has been an official civil servant since the

Meiji Period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

. Today, the Grand Chamberlain, assisted by a Vice-Grand Chamberlain, heads the Board of the Chamberlains. The Grand Chamberlain's position is that of an attestation official ( 認証官 ''Ninshōkan''), i.e. his appointment and dismissal are at the discretion of the Emperor.

Crown Prince

The Crown Prince of Japan is also served by a chamberlain. This official is called because the Crown Prince lives in the Tōgū Palace ("East Palace"). The Grand Master is the head of the Board of the Crown Prince's Household.

Grand Chamberlains

This is a list of grand chamberlains after the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

: * Prince

( 徳大寺実則), 1871–77 * Viscount Kawase Masataka ( 河瀬真孝), 1871–73 * Count Higashikuze Michitomi ( 東久世通禧), 1871–77 *

Yamaguchi Tadasada Yamaguchi Tadasada ( ja, 山口正定) (October 18, 1843 – March 21, 1902) was an Imperial Japanese Navy veteran of the Boshin War and Meiji-era Japanese politician. He was the second governor of Ibaraki Prefecture (1872). He was Grand Chamberla ...

( 山口正定), 1878–84 *

Yoneda Torao Yoneda Torao ( ja, 米田虎雄) (March 10, 1839 – November 27, 1915) was an Imperial Japanese Army veteran of the Boshin War. He was born in Kumamoto Prefecture. He was Grand Chamberlain of Japan (1878-1884). He was recipient of the Order of the ...

( 米田虎雄), 1878–84 * Prince

( 徳大寺実則), 1884–12 * Baron

Hatano Norinao Hatano Norinao ( ja, 波多野敬直) (November 13, 1850 – August 29, 1922) was Grand Chamberlain of Japan (1912). He was born in Saga Prefecture. He was recipient of the Order of the Sacred Treasure (3rd class, 1899; 1st class, 1906), the Order ...

( 波多野敬直), 1912 * Prince

Katsura Tarō Prince was a Japanese politician and general of the Imperial Japanese Army who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1901 to 1906, from 1908 to 1911, and from 1912 to 1913. Katsura was a distinguished general of the First Sino-Japanes ...

( 桂太郎), 1912 * Prince

Takatsukasa Hiromichi , son of Kujō Hisatada and adopted son of Takatsukasa Sukehiro, was a kazoku Duke of the Meiji period who served in Imperial Japanese Army. Nobusuke and Nobuhiro were his sons. Family His son was Toshimichi Takatsukasa (d. 1966), who was mar ...

( 鷹司煕通), 1912–18 * Count Ogimachi Sanemasa ( 正親町実正), 1919–22 * Count Tokugawa Satotaka ( 徳川達孝), 1922–27 * Count Chinda Sutemi ( 珍田捨巳), 1927–1929 * Baron Suzuki Kantarō ( 鈴木貫太郎), 1929–36 * Hyakutake Saburō ( 百武三郎), 1936–44 * Fujita Hisanori ( 藤田尚徳), 1944–47 After enforcement of the

Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan (Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japa ...

by the end of World War II: * Ōgane Masujirō ( 大金益次郎), 1947–48 * Mitani Takanobu ( 三谷隆信), 1948–65 * Inada Syūichi ( 稲田周一), 1965–69 *

Irie Sukemasa was a Japanese essayist. Life A second cousin of the Shōwa Emperor, Irie was born in Tokyo. He was a graduate of the University of Tokyo. He was Grand Chamberlain of Japan (1969–1985). He was a recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun and the O ...

( 入江相政), 1969–85 * Tokugawa Yoshihiro ( 徳川義寛), 1985–88 * Yamamoto Satoru ( 山本悟), 1988–96 *

Watanabe Makoto was a Japanese diplomat. Biography Watanabe was born in Tokyo, as a son of Akira Watanabe. He attended Hibiya High School and graduated from the University of Tokyo. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1959. He was Ambassador of Japa ...

( 渡邉允, 12 December 1996 – 2007 * Kawashima Yutaka ( 川島裕), 2007–2015 *

Kawai Chikao is a musical instrument manufacturing company headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan. It is best known for its grand pianos, upright pianos, digital pianos, electronic keyboards and electronic synthesizers. The company was founded in Augus ...

( 河相周夫), 2015–present

References

External links