Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Princess Sayako

Japan's Princess Sayako has lost her royal status after she married commoner Yoshiki Kuroda, in a ceremony in Tokyo.
Thousands of well-wishers lined the streets between the royal palace and the city hotel where the half-hour marriage rite took place.
Wearing a Western-style white dress and pearls, the princess sipped sake rice wine with her bureaucrat husband.
Marriage to Mr Kuroda, 40, means Princess Sayako loses her title and will have to adjust to a new lifestyle.
The ceremony, which took place in Tokyo's plush Imperial Hotel, was an informal affair by royal standards.
"The princess was so beautiful, she was just like a cherry blossom," said bystander Michiyo Tanimura.
"It's like someone above the clouds is coming closer to ordinary people like us," she told the Associated Press.
About 30 people attended the ceremony, and some 120 guests attended the reception, where they dined on a French-style menu including lobster and caviar jelly and caramel-vanilla sorbet with chestnut creme brulee.
The princess had said her formal farewells to the imperial family at the weekend. She is Emperor Akihito's only daughter and becomes the first princess to abandon her title in 45 years.
Sayako Kuroda, as she will now be known, told a press conference that her mother and father had reassured her that her family ties were unchanged.
"The empress then hugged me tightly and told me 'Everything's going to be OK,' many times," she said.
Her husband said in the press conference: "While respecting each other's views, I would like to make a quiet home where you can feel at ease."
To prepare for her dramatic change of lifestyle, Princess Sayako has reportedly been taking driving lessons and practising shopping at the supermarket.
The princess and Mr Kuroda, who is a descendant of Japan's now-abolished aristocracy, were childhood acquaintances, but their romance began two years ago at a tennis party thrown by one of Sayako's brothers.
Princess Sayako will lose her royal allowance, but this is eased by a $1.2m dowry from the state.
The couple will live in a rented apartment not far from the palace before moving to a new condominium to be completed next year, media reports said.
Sayako's aunt, Takako Shimazu, was the last princess to lose her royal status when she married a commoner in March 1960.
The Japanese royal household currently faces a succession crisis, with no male heir produced for 40 years. There are moves under way to change the law to let women ascend the throne.
Story from BBC


I like this story, I think it's sweet and I wish Mr and Mrs Kuroda all the luck in the world.

cq

9 comments:

OldLady Of The Hills said...

I agree with you cq...it is a very VERY sweet story and I too, hope they have a wonderful life together...I guess it's the incurable romatic in me, but I hope they make a go of their marriage.

Juggling Mother said...

hang on, if no royal hier has been produced & she's the only daughter, who is next in line?

Seems easier to do it our way: you want to marry a commoner darling? oh ok then, we'll make him an Earl of somewhere. problem solved!

craziequeen said...

gonna be a kick in the teeth for the Emperor if the first Kuroda Jnr is a boy! :-)

cq

Unknown said...

The follow up to the story i read is that they're looking at changing the law of succession so the imperial mantle can be passed along the female/maternal line as there have been no men born to the line for a number of years.

What I'm not clear on is why she has to lose her title? If the aristocracy in Japan has been abolished surely she'd have to marry a commener or a non-Japenese individual?

Spock said...

CQ,
Just thought I'd let you know Oreo just got an email, er, wire from Charlie. Oreo is under the impression that I can drive there to rescue him. HAHAHA NOT! Charlie will be very disappointed that he's not getting recued. Your life will be much better once his tiny bits are gone though!
Heather

craziequeen said...

I know - the little fiend must have found a spare computer somewhere!

[snip snip]

cq

Spock said...

Oreo has posted about this on his blog, he's sad that he couldn't help him. :(

MaR said...

It is indeed a sweet story. And she, a grown-up, is learning how to shop at a supermarket? is this happening nowadays? I bet she will lead a much happier life now with her loved one. *sigh*

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