Princess Ayako to Marry, Empress Turns 84
Princess Ayako, 28, the third daughter of the late Prince Takamado (cousin of the the Emperor) and Princess Hisako, will marry commoner Kei Moriya October 29th. He is a 32 year old employee at the shipping firm Nippon Yusen K.K. Female members of the Imperial family lose their royal status after marriage. She will receive 106,750,000 yen from the state after she marries in order to maintain her dignity after losing royal status.
The amount is set depending on the status of the imperial family member and the money is exempted from income tax. Princess Ayako's older sister, Noriko Senge, received the same amount when she married Kunimaro Senge, a senior priest of a Shinto shrine in 2014.
Sayako Kuroda, the daughter of the Emperor and Empress, received 150 million yen when she married Tokyo metropolitan government employee Yoshiki Kuroda in 2005.
In other Imperial Family news, the Empress celebrated her 84th birthday yesterday. You can read her interview on the Imperial Family of Japan blog. This is her last birthday as Empress, her husband will abdicate on April 30, 2019. I thought it was interesting that one of the things she wants to do after retirement is read several P. G. Wodehouse "Jeeves" books. I love the Jeeves books. Empress Michiko and I could be friends.
4 comments:
That is interesting how the royals get kind of paid out after they marry a commoner...that would thin out the royals depending on money from the public purse..I am assuming they get paid by the public! The Empress looks like an elegant lady.
A very attractive lady the empress, she looks fabulous for an 84 year old.
I often listen to audio books of the Jeeves stories - does that entitle me to join in your and The Empress's friendship group!
I kind of like this concept...they seem to be free to marry who they want (although none of the commoner grooms seems to be especially 'scandalous'), and they get out of their royal duties, too! I don't even know, is there any kind of nobility in Japan besides the royal family? Or is everyone else considered a commoner?
I hope Michiko enjoyed her last birthday as Empress. She surely earned that retirement and reading time :)
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