Princess Kaya Sakiko

Queen Saki Ko, Princess Sakiko Takahiko (born March 30, 1903 – died September 1, 1923), was a Japanese imperial princess. She was the second daughter (third child) of Prince Kakyō no Miya Kuninori and his consort Princess Yoshiko. She was the bride of Prince Takahiko of Yamashina.

Life:

Princess Sakiko was born at 5 p.m. on March 30, 1903, in Kyoto Prefecture, as the second princess of Kakyō no Miya Kuninori and his wife, Princess Yoshiko.

Education:

She graduated from Kyoto Prefectural First Girls' High School.

Marriage and Engagement:

In February 1921, reports indicated her engagement to Prince Takahiko of Yamashina had been arranged, but it was postponed several times afterward. Finally, on July 19, 1922, at 9 a.m., the wedding ceremony was held, and she married Prince Takahiko of Yamashina.

Death:

On September 1, 1923, Princess Sakiko was pregnant with her first child. While resting at her mother's seaside villa in Yuigahama, Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, during the Great Kanto Earthquake, the villa collapsed, and she was crushed to death on the same day.

Handling of the remains and mourning:

Her body was embalmed and transferred to a tent within the Kamakura Imperial Villa. Her mother, Princess Yoshiko, was also injured but attended the wake and funeral while injured.

Additionally, her maid, Shō Ishijima, sacrificed her life attempting to protect Princess Sakiko. After the earthquake, Prince Takahiko traveled by car from Oppama (present-day Yokosuka City) to view her body.

Funeral and Honors:

On September 17, 1923, Princess Sakiko was posthumously awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Precious Crown. A memorial service and the burial ceremony took place on September 18, and she was laid to rest at the Tō-shimaoka Cemetery in Bunkyō, Tokyo.

Subsequently, Prince Takahiko was mentally overwhelmed and the plan for remarriage was canceled.

Other Imperial Family Victims of the Earthquake:

Besides Princess Sakiko, three other members of the Imperial Family died in the earthquake: Prince Jōyō of Iwakura, the second son of Prince Niihuanomiya Atsumu (in Fuji, Fujisawa City), and Princess Kaneko, the fourth daughter of Prince Inui of Kannen-in (in Odawara City).

Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito) designated September 1 as "Day of Restraint" in remembrance of the casualties among the Imperial Family.

Honors:

Princess Sakiko was posthumously awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Precious Crown.

References and Publications:

Kyoto Kamōkai, "Exposed Garments," special supplement to the Kamōkai magazine, dedicated to the memorial of Princess Sakiko (1924).

There are also various materials and records concerning the Great Kanto Earthquake.