Nashimoto Morimasa

Morimasa, Prince Nashimoto (梨本宮守正王, Nashimoto no miya Morimasa ō), was born on 9 March 1874 and died on 2 January 1951. He was a member of the Japanese Imperial Family and held the rank of field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army. He was related to the Imperial House through familial ties; he was an uncle-in-law of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito), an uncle of Empress Kōjun, and the father-in-law of Crown Prince Euimin of Korea.

Early Life:

Prince Nashimoto Morimasa was born in Kyoto as the fourth son of Prince Kuni Asahiko and Harada Mitsue, a court lady. His father, a prince of the blood who was also a former Buddhist priest, headed one of the collateral branches of the Imperial Family known as ōke, established during the early Meiji period. Morimasa was initially named Prince Tada before being adopted as the successor to the Nashimoto-no-miya branch of the Imperial Family on 2 December 1885. He adopted the personal name "Morimasa" in 1886.

Family:

On 28 November 1897, Prince Nashimoto married Nabeshima Itsuko (1879–1977), the second daughter of Marquis Nabeshima Naohiro, a former ambassador to Italy and the son of the last feudal lord of Saga Domain. Itsuko was the maternal aunt of Princess Chichibu. The couple had two daughters and an adopted son:

- Princess Nashimoto Masako (1899–1989): Married Yi Un (Crown Prince Euimin of Korea) in 1920.

- Princess Nashimoto Noriko (1907–1985): Married Count Hirohashi Tadamitsu in 1926.

- Prince Norihiko (1922–2007): Son of Prince Kuni Taka, adopted by Princess Nashimoto Itsuko in 1966, married Princess Kuni Masako in 1945, divorced in 1980.

Military Career:

Prince Nashimoto received education at the Central Military Preparatory School and the Imperial Japanese Army Academy. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1899. Between 1903 and 1904, he studied at the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr in France. He served as a captain in the Russo-Japanese War under General Oku Yasukata and returned to France from 1906 to 1909. He rose through military ranks, achieving major in 1906, lieutenant colonel in 1908, colonel in 1910, and general in 1922. In August 1917, he was promoted to lieutenant general and commanded the IJA 16th Division. He was promoted to field marshal on 8 August 1932 and was a member of the Board of Marshals and Fleet Admirals.

During the Second World War, he held no major commands and was largely removed from the radical military movements of the period. In October 1937, he became chief priest of Ise Shrine following the death of his half-brother Prince Kuni Taka. He retired from active military service in 1944.

Postwar Period:

Following Japan's defeat in World War II, on 2 December 1945, General Douglas MacArthur ordered Prince Nashimoto's arrest as a "class A" war criminal, primarily due to his support of State Shintoism and his role as chief priest of Ise Shrine. His detention lasted four months in Sugamo Prison, after which he was released without charges on 13 April 1946. On 14 October 1947, he and his wife were stripped of their imperial status and became commoners following reforms enacted by the Imperial Household Council. Unlike other noble families, he was not granted compensation or restitution of properties, and his residence in Tokyo was destroyed in American bombing raids. He faced financial difficulties in his later years and died of a heart attack in 1951 at age 76.

Honors:

He received various honors, including the Order of the Double Dragon (Qing dynasty), the Honorary Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (United Kingdom), the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (France), the Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III (Spain), and the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Stephen (Austria-Hungary).

References:

His biography is documented in sources such as the "Encyclopedia of Military Biography" by Trevor N. Dupuy, "The Making of Modern Japan" by Marius B. Jansen, "Above the Clouds" by Sugiyama Takie Lebra, and "Victors' Justice" by Richard Minear.