Kitashirakawa Satonari

Prince Kitashirakawa Satonari (北白川宮智成親王, Kitashirakawa-no-miya Satonari-shinnō) was born on 22 July 1856 in Kyoto, Japan. He was the thirteenth son of Prince Fushimi Kuniie (1802–1872), who was the twentieth head of the Fushimi-no-miya, one of the four branches of the imperial family authorized to succeed to the Chrysanthemum Throne if the main imperial line failed to produce an heir.

In 1860, during the late Edo period, Prince Satonari was adopted by Emperor Kōmei as a potential heir to the Japanese throne. At that time, Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa Bakufu, a feudal shogunate government. In 1866, he was sent into the Buddhist priesthood and assigned to serve at the monzeki temple of Shogo-in in Kyoto. This was a common practice for imperial princes during that period, often involving religious training or service.

After the Meiji Restoration in 1867, which marked the end of feudal rule and the restoration of imperial sovereignty, Prince Satonari returned to secular life. During this transitional period, Emperor Meiji authorized him to establish a new princely house (ōke) called Kitashirakawa-no-miya in 1873. The purpose of creating this house was to provide a cadet branch of the imperial family, which could serve as a potential heir or fulfill other roles within the imperial court.

However, Prince Kitashirakawa Satonari died in 1872, at the age of 15, before the establishment of the new princely house could be fully realized. Since he died without heirs, the title of Kitashirakawa-no-miya was passed to his elder half-brother, Yoshihisa-ō.

References cited regarding his life include works by Marius B. Jansen, Donald Keene, and Sugiyama Takie Lebra, which provide historical context on the formation of modern Japan and the status of the Japanese nobility during his lifetime.