Kosho Hajime no gi

Their Imperial Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko attended Wednesday Jan 11th with a part of the imperial family the "Kosho hajime no gi" ceremony.

Absent were Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Princess Masako and Princess Kako. The wife of Crown Prince Naruhito was not by his side to attend the "Kosho hajime no gi" alongside with some other members of the Japanese imperial family. With a sitting arrangement of women on one side, the men on the other, to the left and right of the imperial couple. T.I.M Emperor Akihito of Japan and Empress Michiko, sitting in armchairs in front of masked tables of shimmering fabric, faced the speakers who succeeded each other in the course of this annual ceremony. Dressed in turquoise-blue, Princess Mako, 25, had come with her parents Prince Fumihito of Akishino and Princess Kiko.

The "Kosho hajime no gi" or "First Conference" is organized annually in January at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, in the presence of the Japanese monarch and his wife, during the New Year ceremonies. Academics took the floor. Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo and member of the Japanese Academy of Sciences, Tetsuya Shiokawa evoked the French mathematician and philosopher of the seventeenth century Blaise Pascal, of whom he is an undisputed specialist. Also featured was Kazuko Mori, professor emeritus at Waseda University, whose main research interests are related to the politics and external relations of contemporary China, and molecular biologist Yoshiyuki Sakaki, 6th president of Toyohashi Technical University and Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo.

The Japanese Imperial Family wishes a Happy New Year

Emperor Akihito of Japan on Monday pronounced infront of tens of thousands of his citizens his traditional New Year wishes, which could be his last given the ongoing debate on an eventual abdication. This is his first wish since he announced in August his concerns about his ability to perform his duties due to old age. The imperial palace also broadcast a series of photos of the whole family gathered around the Emperor, on the occasion of the New Years.

The Imperial Palace announced that at least 58,600 people had attended his speech, some waving Japanese flags and shouting "Banzai!" ("Ten thousand years", meaning "long life"). "At the beginning of this year, I wish happiness and tranquility to all, in the world and in our country," he said in a televised address from a glassed-in balcony where several members of his family .

The 83-year-old Emperor fears that old age will prevent him in the future from fully exercising his role as a "symbol of the Nation". "Fortunately, today I am healthy, but when I see my form decline gradually, I am concerned about the difficulty of fulfilling my duties," he said in August. If he did not pronounce the expression "abdication", this wish filtered in his words and led to a national reflection on his end of reign.

Under the law governing the Imperial House, the Emperor of Japan is not allowed to abandon the throne of Chrysanthemum during his lifetime. Nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appointed a commission of personalities to reflect on the question of a possible renunciation, which would entail a transfer of the imperial title to Crown Prince Naruhito.
Later the whole family attended the New Year's ceremony reception at the Imperial Palace on January 1st 2017 in Tokyo. The ladies adorned their tiaras, Princess Kiko of Akishino in the Akishino Tiara, her daughters Princesses Kako and Mako each wore their respective tiara and Crown Princess Masako wore the Japanese Sunburst Tiara


The Japanese Imperiale Courts: The Akishinos in the Heart of the Italian Renaissance *May 14th post

Last Saturday, May 14th teams of restorers of the Opificio delle Pietre hard (the Office of the hard stone) in Florence received unusual visitors. While passing through this city, as part of their official one-week trip to Italy, Prince Akishino and his wife Princess Kiko had indeed made a quick visit the laboratories of the institute of scientific research and restoration works art that is among the largest in the world, to see the work in progress. And the youngest son of their Imperial Majesties and his wife have been rather spoiled because they were able to look at two masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance being restored: the painting of the Adoration of Magi painted about 1481 by Leonardo da Vinci and the bronze reliefs of the south door of the baptistery of San Giovanni by Andrea Pisano between 1330 and 1338.

The Japanese royal couple were giving them a private tour of the Uffizi, the Vasari Corridor and the Pitti Palace. Kiko and Akishino ended the day at the Natural History Museum of the Specola.

The Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko were in Italy to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Treaty of friendship and exchange signed between this country and Japan in 1866. This official visit has first conducted in Rome where they arrived this Tuesday, May 10, and then they went to Milan, Bologna and Florence.
Photo Credits: Paris MAtch

The Japanese Imperial and Royal Courts: The Akishinos on a sate visit to Italy -May 10th

In 1866, Italy and Japan signed a treaty of friendship and exchange. The time has come to celebrate the 150 years of these good relations. Representing his father His Imperial Majesty Emperor Akihito, Prince Akishino was therefore flown to Europe accompanied by his wife Princess Kiko, for a week-long visit on Italian soil.

Arriving in Rome on Tuesday May 10th, the Japanese royal couple was in turn met for two days the President of the Republic of Italy Sergio Mattarella and his daughter Laura, Council President Matteo Renzi and Pope Francis. The last visit of members of the imperial family of Japan to the Vatican had been more than 20 years. Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko there had been received in audience in September 1993 by the late John Paul II.

To mark the 150th anniversary of the Italian-Japanese Treaty, the Colosseum was part of a sound and light colors of both countries. During this stay in Rome, Akishino and Kiko, who has alternated kimono and Western dress, also visited the Forum and took part in a symposium entitled "The flowering branches of Japanese literature" at La Sapienza University.

After the Italian capital, the official travel of the younger son of the Japanese imperial couple and his wife continued to Milan, Bologna and Florence. Then their Imperial Highnesses Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko will return to Tokyo on  May 17th.
Photo Credits: Paris Match
MAy 11th
May 12th

Press

Ads

Shop

WalMart CanadaTOMS (FR)Frank & Oak Hunt ClubRoland Mouret
© TheRoyalCourts/Les Cours Royale | Term Of Use/Condition d'utilisation