, also known as , was the official wife of , the 13th ''

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 ...

'' 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 ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. She was the daughter of Lady Oyuki and , who was the head of the branch of the Shimazu in

Satsuma Satsuma may refer to: * Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit * ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails Places Japan * Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town * Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture * Satsuma Domain, a ...

. She was originally named by her parents. When she was adopted by

Shimazu Nariakira was a Japanese feudal lord (''daimyō'') of the Edo period, the 28th in the line of Shimazu clan lords of Satsuma Domain. He was renowned as an intelligent and wise lord, and was greatly interested in Western learning and technology. He was ...

, her name was changed to or ("Lady Atsu") and later to upon her adoption by

Konoe Tadahiro Prince List of Japanese court ranks, positions and hereditary titles, Senior first rank , son of Konoe Motosaki, Motosaki, was a ''kugyō'' or Japanese court noble of the late Edo period (1603–1868). He held a regent position Sesshō and Kampak ...

Biography

Tenshōin was born in

Kagoshima , is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Etymology While the ...

in 1835. In 1853, she became the adopted daughter of Shimazu Nariakira. On August 21, 1853, she travelled by land from Kagoshima via

Kokura is an ancient Jōkamachi, castle town and the center of modern Kitakyushu, Japan. Kokura is also the name of the Kokura Station, penultimate station on the southbound San'yō Shinkansen line, which is owned by JR West. Ferries connect Kokura ...

to the Edo jurisdiction, never to return to Kagoshima again. Atsuko was thought to have been sent to

Edo Castle is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan in Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. In modern times it is part of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is therefore also known as . Tokugawa Ieyasu established th ...

with the aim of helping Shimazu Nariakira politically. The question of the next heir to the shogunate was divided between the choice of

Tokugawa Yoshinobu Kazoku, Prince was the 15th and last ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful. He resigned his position as shogun in late 1867, while ai ...

, then head of the Hitotsubashi-Tokugawa house and Tokugawa Yoshitomi, then head of Kii-Tokugawa house. In order to ensure that Yoshinobu became the next in succession, Atsuko was arranged to wed into the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

. On 18 November 1856, Atsuko married

Tokugawa Iesada was the 13th ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He held office for five years from 1853 to 1858. He was physically weak and was therefore considered by later historians to have been unfit to be ''shōgun''. His reign marks the begi ...

and became a

Midaidokoro The ''midaidokoro'' (御台所) was the official wife of the ''shōgun''. During the Edo period, she resided in the ''Ōoku'' of Edo Castle and sometimes wielded considerable political power behind the scenes. Heian period * Miyoshi Takako, wife ...

. In 1858, both

and Shimazu Nariakira died. The 14th ''shōgun'' was decided to be Iesada's cousin and adopted son,

Tokugawa Iemochi (17 July 1846 – 29 August 1866) was the 14th '' shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, who held office from 1858 to 1866. During his reign there was much internal turmoil as a result of the "re-opening" of Japan to western nations. I ...

. Following the demise of her husband, Atsuko took the tonsure, becoming a Buddhist nun, and took the name Tenshōin on 26 August 1858, and she was given

Junior Third Rank The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese language, Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the Nation, state. ''Ikai'' as a system was the indication of the rank of burea ...

. In 1862, as part of the

Kōbu Gattai was a policy in the Bakumatsu era of Japanese history aiming to strengthen Japan against the perceived "foreign threat" by obtaining a political coordination between the Tokugawa shogunate, certain major feudal domains and the Japanese Imperi ...

("Union of Court and Bakufu") movement, Iemochi was married to Imperial Princess

Kazu-no-Miya Chikako (''Kazunomiya'') was the wife of 14th ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Iemochi. She was renamed Lady Seikan'in-no-miya after she took the tonsure as a widow. Chikako was the youngest child of Emperor Ninkō. Biography Her birth name was Chikako. She was t ...

daughter of

Emperor Ninkō Ayahito (16 March 1800 – 21 February 1846), posthumously honored as Emperor Ninkō, was the 120th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 仁孝天皇 (120)/ref> Ninkō's rei ...

, and younger sister of

Emperor Kōmei Osahito (22 July 1831 – 30 January 1867), posthumously honored as Emperor Kōmei, was the 121st emperor of Japan, according to the List of Emperors of Japan, traditional order of succession.Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')孝明天皇 ...

. The Satsuma clan brought up the request for Tenshōin to return to Satsuma, but was rejected by Tenshōin herself. In 1866, Iemochi died. Tokugawa Yoshinobu became the next ''shōgun''. During the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, Tenshōin and her daughter in law, Seikan'in (Kazu-no-Miya's name after tonsure) helped negotiate for the peaceful surrender of Edo Castle. She spent her remaining years nurturing

Tokugawa Iesato Prince was the first head of the Tokugawa clan after the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate, and a significant figure in Japanese politics and diplomacy during the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa period of Japan. When Prince Tokugawa travel ...

, the 16th head of the Tokugawa clan. She moved into the Tokugawa residence in

Sendagaya is an area within Shibuya ward, one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo. Introduction Sendagaya is nestled in an urban green area in Shibuya ward between Shinjuku ward and Shinjuku Gyo-en (Shinjuku Imperial Gardens) to the north (an area in Send ...

, in the

Shibuya is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in Tokyo, Japan. A major commercial center, Shibuya houses one of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shibuya Station. As of January 1, 2024, Shibuya Ward has an estimated population of 230,60 ...

district,

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. She suffered from

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

which eventually took her life on November 20, 1883, at the age of 47. She was buried in Kaneiji in

Ueno is a district in Taitō, Tokyo. The area extending from Ueno to Asakusa is part of the historical Shitamachi (literally "low city") district of Tokyo, which is often associated with working-class traditions and culture as well as their dist ...

, together with her husband, Onkyoin (Iesada). Beside Onkyoin and Tenshoin tombs, There is

loquat The loquat (''Eriobotrya japonica'', Chinese: 枇杷; Pinyin: pípá) is a large evergreen shrub or tree grown commercially for its orange fruit. It is also cultivated as an ornamental plant. The loquat is in the family Rosaceae, subfamily Spi ...

tree planted there as it was Tenshoin's favorite food. The 2008

NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...

Taiga drama is the name NHK gives to the annual year-long historical drama television series it broadcasts in Japan. Beginning in 1963 with the black-and-white ''Hana no Shōgai'', starring kabuki actor Onoe Shoroku II and Awashima Chikage, the network regul ...

'' Atsuhime'' was a fifty-episode television dramatization of her life.

Family

* Father: Shimazu Tadatake (1806–1854) * Mother: Lady Oyuki * Adoptive Fathers: **

* Adoptive Mothers: ** Tsunehime (1805–1858), daughter of Tokugawa Nariatsu and wife of

** Shimazu Kyoko or Ikuhime (1807–1850) sister of

and wife of

* Uncle:

Shimazu Hisamitsu Prince , also known as , was a Japanese samurai of the late Edo period. The younger brother of Shimazu Nariakira, Hisamitsu was the virtual sovereign and strongman of Satsuma Domain while serving as regent for his underage son Tadayoshi, who be ...

* Husband:

* Adopted son:

Honours

Shimazu clan Tokugawa clan 19th-century Buddhist nuns Japanese Buddhist nuns Deaths from Parkinson's disease in Japan 1883 deaths 1836 births {{Authority control