Japanese Princess Yuriko, the oldest member of the Japanese imperial family, has died at the age of 101.
Yuriko died in a hospital in Tokyo, and Japanese media reported that she died of pneumonia.
Princess Yuriko was born in 1923, and at the age of 18 she married Prince Mikasa, the younger brother of the famous Japanese Emperor Hirohito.
“Since her marriage, Princess Yuriko has supported Prince Mikasa and as a member of the imperial family has contributed to a wide range of areas such as medical care, humanitarian work, culture and sports. She was particularly involved in the maternal and child care program,” said Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Yuriko was one of the few members of the imperial family who was alive before World War II, and during her life she often spoke about her experiences from World War II and the situation in Japan on the eve of the atomic bombings.
“The young people said the war should continue, and Prince Mikasa said it was better to stop. The discussions were so heated that I thought they were going to shoot each other,” Yuriko said.
After the war, through family troubles and financial instability, the princess worked hard to build a home and raise her five children.
After the war, Princess Yuriko also joined Prince Mikasa in attending haiku gatherings. They adopted the common pseudonym Yukari after they began writing haiku. In 1957, they published a collection of haiku called Hatsuyuki (First Snow).
After the war, as Prince Mikasa continued his career as a historian, Princess Yuriko became his supportive partner. She helped her husband research historical sites in the Middle East by making films and slides. This served as valuable material for his lectures.
She accompanied Mikasa on many of his international visits, helping to establish friendly ties with countries such as Sri Lanka and Turkey.
The love story of Mikasa and Yuriko was often represented in the media, and in 2011 their message on the occasion of their 70th wedding anniversary was made public, where they shared their personal thoughts about each other.
“When I look back, without a doubt, my Yuriko supported me for 70 years. Although my wife came from a noble family, life in the imperial family is even more demanding. The hardships she endured in managing our home while I was away were extremely great. I cannot find adequate words to thank her for everything,” Mikasa said at the time.
An acquaintance of Princess Yuriko said that she often liked to show a photo of the young Prince Mikasa riding a horse.
“Looks so dignified, doesn’t it?” Yuriko would say.
Princess Yuriko was the longest-serving member of the imperial family since the Meiji era (1868-1912) and her death is the first in the family in eight years. With her death, the imperial family was reduced to 16 members, Klix.ba reports.
Photo: Kyodo
